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• Article | Health Affairs Blog | June 30, 2020

  Bipartisan Tax-Free Solution to Health Care Financing: Coupling HRAs With a Public Option

  Regina E. Herzlinger, Richard Boxer and James Wallace

  A combination of health insurance initiatives by the presumptive 2020 Democratic and Republican presidential nominees could expand health care coverage and significantly reduce costs, without raising taxes. Along the way, the combination could revitalize private insurance plans’ competition. One initiative, proposed by former Democratic Vice President Joseph Biden, requires a Public Option so non-seniors can enroll in Medicare. The other initiative is President Donald Trump’s rule that enables employees in small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) to use pre-tax funds, which their employers deposit in Individual Coverage Health Reimbursement Arrangements (ICHRAs). Under this HRA-Public Option combination, the employee could buy a suitable ACA plan that would be administered by private insurers ,paying Medicare’s rates, with its substantial economies. In addition, if the Public Option-HRA combination were priced to reduce Medicare‘s unfunded liabilities, its price would remain lower than Obamacare or those paid by SME enrollees. Simultaneously, combining HRAs with the Public Option would spur private health insurers to compete by using their massive scale to reduce the bloated U.S. health care system. They could compete by reducing the estimated waste in the health care system of $900 billion; experts estimate that at least 250 billion could be saved without diminishing the quality of care.

  Keywords: health care financing; Public Option; health reimbursement arrangement (HRA); Health Care and Treatment; Insurance; Cost Management;

  Citation:

  Herzlinger, Regina E., Richard Boxer, and James Wallace. "Bipartisan Tax-Free Solution to Health Care Financing: Coupling HRAs With a Public Option." Health Affairs Blog (June 30, 2020).  View Details

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• Case | HBS Case Collection | July 2001 (Revised March 2020)

  Medtronic: Patient Management Initiative (A)

  Regina E. Herzlinger and Mark P. Allyn

  Keywords: Health Care and Treatment; Medical Devices and Supplies Industry;

  Citation:

  Herzlinger, Regina E., and Mark P. Allyn. "Medtronic: Patient Management Initiative (A)." Harvard Business School Case 302-005, July 2001. (Revised March 2020.)  View Details

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• Supplement | HBS Case Collection | September 2008 (Revised March 2020)

  Medtronic: Patient Management Initiative (B)

  Regina E. Herzlinger

  The (B) case provides the denouement to the (A) case about Medtronic's introduction of the Chronicle and remote monitoring business.

  Keywords: Health Care and Treatment; Measurement and Metrics; Outcome or Result; Technology; Medical Devices and Supplies Industry;

  Citation:

  Herzlinger, Regina E. "Medtronic: Patient Management Initiative (B)." Harvard Business School Supplement 309-064, September 2008. (Revised March 2020.)  View Details

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