The 2018 Elections: Winners and Losers in the Healthcare Ecosystem
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Key takeaways:
- The election of a Democratic controlled House means, among other things, that the Affordable Care Act (“ACA”) is here to stay for the foreseeable future. In light of this development, commercial health insurers may conclude that the time is right to make investments necessary to maximize the success and profitability of plans sold on the ACA exchanges for the long term.
- Multiple states voted to expand Medicaid and in several other states the outcome of gubernatorial elections makes expansion possible. Medicaid expansion is a boon for hospitals in the affected states and provides new opportunities for commercial insurers that administer Medicaid managed care plans.
- A Democratic controlled House is likely to pursue legislation relating to prescription drug prices. It may find support from the Trump Administration, which recently proposed several drug pricing initiatives that have been strongly opposed by the pharmaceutical industry.