How the 2018 Midterm Results Impact Healthcare

In this final quarter of 2018, most of the attention of the news cycle has been fixed on the U.S. Midterm Election. Within that complex national conversation, as we’ve shared before, the biggest player was healthcare.

According to exit poll data, 41% of voters ranked healthcare policy as the top priority issue. In fact, it was the top priority by a significant percent, with immigration coming in second as a priority for only 23% of voters.

We can reasonably surmise from numbers like this that the questions of who gets healthcare and how have perhaps never been more crucial and pressing for the majority of Americans.

Here are a few key points to keep in mind about the midterms’ impact on healthcare and providing benefits to your employees.

 

Healthcare Changes Likely to be State-by-State, Not Nationwide

The biggest news from the midterms was that the Democratic party now holds the majority in Congress. 

Meanwhile, the Republican party strengthened its Senate majority. With a more bipartisan leadership in place in Washington, there’s a likelihood of gridlock over any major policy changes — which leaves any potential policy updates to occur on a state-by-state basis.

Although any chance of repealing the ACA or major national Medicaid changes seem to no longer be possible, state governments do have the ability to make significant decisions about whether to expand Medicaid or not in their individual states.

Adjustments on that front could be the biggest changes in policy to navigate over the next two years.

 

The Status Quo is Stabilizing

With the above mentioned slowing of policy change, the healthcare status quo is likely to be more stable than it has been in years.

The downside to that is, as we all already know, the status quo isn’t working. But the good news is that Captiva already has a plan in place to solve your benefit problems in this current climate. Policy won’t change much. Neither will our ability to bring your costs down.

 

Get Ready for Drug Pricing Conversations

Although overall the Democrats and Republicans have different priorities, there is a good chance there is one item they can agree on: pharmaceutical drugs are priced outrageously high. Any bipartisan progress to be made could well center on curbing this issue.

Bringing drugs to an affordable price is a mission that Captiva has been on already. We work towards transparency to uncover hidden pharmaceutical costs and do the hard work of shopping around for the most fair price.

If you’re ready to learn more about how Captiva can help your business’s benefits culture thrive regardless of the political climate, talk to us to find out how. 

 

The article How the 2018 Midterm Results Impact Healthcare was first published on: Captiva Benefit Solutions Blog