State Laws Which Inform the Consumer of Health Care Prices and Quality
Does Your State Help or Hinder Your Access to Quality Health Care? This article reviews state health care laws impacting clinical care and resourcing in light of the Accountable Care Act and the needs for primary health care. The recent articles in the academic Health Affairs Journal and by the nonprofit advocacy group, The Commonwealth Fund, address the issue of market competition in health care delivery and the impact on services as well as the potential for anti-trust issues. Anti-trust occurs when a single health care entity or a consortium of providers exerts enough control of the market in a given geographic region, to dictate prices, and to be able to perform in an atmosphere where the consumers have fewer choices. In other words, to charge more without offering an improvement in service. Now, with that in mind, some of the state laws that throw a monkey wrench into this idea of a competitive marketplace for health care are; certificate of need requirements, any-willing-provide...