ASPE Issue Brief

Home and community-based services (HCBS) are a range of medical and non-medical services provided in the home and community that support individuals with functional limitations, enabling them to reside in the community rather than in institutional settings.

Drug manufacturers may change the list prices of their drugs at any time after launch. Over the period from January 2022 to January 2023, more than 4,200 drug products had price increases, of which 46 percent were larger than the rate of inflation. The average drug price increase over the course of the period was 15.2 percent, which translates to $590 per drug product.

During the COVID-19 public health emergency, states used Appendix K, a standalone appendix available during emergency situations, to modify their existing Medicaid HCBS 1915(c) waiver programs. Using Appendix K, states can make to make temporary changes to access and eligibility, payment, services, and other aspects of their waiver programs.

Development of novel antimicrobials has slowed, and the preclinical and clinical pipeline is likely to be insufficient to support current and future patient needs.

As the United States population ages, a larger proportion of individuals will likely need and use long-term services and supports (LTSS). Much of this support is provided by informal (i.e., unpaid) caregivers. For those that need paid LTSS, most Americans pay out-of-pocket. Some may do so until their personal resources are exhausted, and then rely on the Medicaid safety net.

This project developed a calculator to help people anticipate how a change in earnings from employment would affect their net income, and in so doing, provide public benefit recipients with their estimated effective marginal tax rate on new earnings. Key Points:

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (ASPE) released new research on spending and utilization trends of Medicare Part B drugs, drugs administered in physicians' office or hospital outpatient departments rather than being purchased at the pharmacy counter or by mail order.

This brief provides key considerations for policy designers and funding partners—such as federal staff, technical experts, and philanthropic partners—on incorporating primary prevention into human services delivery.

This brief highlights a new way of delivering primary prevention services that promotes equity by relying on the guidance and leadership of people with lived experience. The policy designers and service providers behind prevention services should have lived experience and/or co-create these services with people who do.

Enrollment in Medicare Advantage plans has increased rapidly in recent years. The share of eligible Medicare beneficiaries enrolled in MA rose from 25% in 2010 to 47% in 2021 (27.6 million enrollees). Payments to MA plans more than doubled between 2015 and 2021 (from $175 to $361 billion), taking the share of total Medicare Parts A & B spending on MA from 38% to 54%.