Policy Analysis
AIR staff research issues and evaluate programs that have a direct impact on health insurance and delivery system policy at the Federal and state levels. These studies have spanned Medicare, Medicaid, and private insurance and cover the full range of health care services including prescription drugs. These include a range of studies for the Commonwealth Fund researching the cost and use of prescription drugs, private individual drug coverage, techniques to reduce adverse selection in private stand-alone drug plans, and trends and issues in coverage of drugs for chronic conditions and disabilities in private drug plans.
We have modeled the long-term financial stability of the Medicare Trust Fund, evaluated the managed Medigap plans (known as Medicare SELECT plans), and evaluated Medicaid managed care and eligibility expansion programs authorized by sections 1915(b), 1115, and congressional mandates. In addition, our assessments of organizational performance (e.g., CAHPS II) and medical technology (e.g., MDAs for DoD) often contribute directly to decisions about financial and human investments made by public and private organizations.