NPR Morning Edition: Health insurers control costs with narrow networks states MPH Program’s Van Horn
When open enrollment began on the nation's healthcare exchanges on November 1, many people who bought insurance for 2015 found that the 2016 plans they had to choose from have narrower networks of hospitals. Insurers are trying to control costs by funneling more patients to fewer hospitals. Larry Van Horn, associate professor of management and the executive director of health affairs at Vanderbilt University, who researches healthcare management and economics, said "to negotiate better rates, they've got to be able to focus more patients into a particular facility, such that they have more bargaining power at the negotiation table."