Employers, Tired of ‘Bloated’ Health Costs, Back Public Option

Many employers who provide health coverage for their workers want the option of a government-run health plan and a lower Medicare age.

They also support capping hospital prices in noncompetitive markets, as well as having the government negotiate prices for high-cost, sole-source drugs or set limits on drug price increases.

Those findings were from a survey of 302 employers with at least 5,000 employees released Thursday by the Kaiser Family Foundation and the Purchaser Business Group on Health. The companies were surveyed in December 2020 and January.

This is the first survey showing that business leaders believe a public option, ...