The U.S. health insurance model frequently costs more and provides less care than systems in other Western nations. RAND's health insurance research began in 1971 with the 15-year Health Insurance Experiment, the only community-based experimental study of how cost-sharing arrangements affect people’s use of health services, their quality of care, and their health status. Subsequent research has continued to inform the U.S. policy debate.
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The ACA's goal of expanding access to health coverage has implications for health care costs at many levels: how it will affect individual decisions to obtain insurance, employer decisions about offering coverage, and government spending.
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Employment trajectories following the onset of disability are poorly understood. Employer-focused policy interventions may reduce uptake in public disability insurance and disability-induced early retirement.
As the Affordable Care Act expands health insurance coverage in the U.S., the "cost" of applying for SSDI will decline for many. Studying the effect of Massachusetts health care reform in 2006 may provide insights into the impact the ACA may have on SSDI applications and awards.
Changing the Social Security Disability Insurance program rules could reduce caseload costs by encouraging a return to work, but it could also create unintended consequences by inducing more workers to apply for benefits.
Policymakers are facing new challenges as they implement the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA). RAND COMPARE is a modeling tool that simulates the impact of implementation decisions on insurance coverage, premiums, and health care spending.
RAND Health can assess the health care systems and capacities of counties and population centers. As communities become increasingly diverse and the economic climate shifts, policymakers need dependable data and analysis to help understand and plan for the health of residents.
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