(See below for a live streaming link to the event at 1PM EST / 10AM PST)
11:55pm
As it turns out, it's difficult to live blog a hearing from the witness testimony seat (but one could dream).
I've just landed on a flight from DC to Denver to meet with our product team and continue building.
But before we move on, here are a few highlights and observations from the day:
- Staffers let me know that this was a very solid turnout for the health subcommittee, which means healthcare affordability is a big issue for them.
- Many subcommittee members came with prepared remarks and key issues. 340B was hit hard (both pro and con), as were hospital transparency compliance and site-neutral payments.
- PBMs came under massive scrutiny from all members. In spite of this, I was surprised that there was no mention of the prescription drug negotiated rates MRF requirement from Transparency in Coverage, which is currently sitting in regulatory purgatory somewhere. I'm not an expert on rx, but there is a huge swell of innovation waiting to take place if this MRF requirement sees the light of day.
- It was interesting to hear a congressman remark as an aside that it pained him the price transparency laws came by way of executive order instead of Congress, but that in this case it was warranted as Congress had been unable to pass anything on its own.
- I was intrigued by references to different state laws and best practices drawn from individual states. I have a note to read about a TX draft law, (I wrote "3218"), which I didn't know about previously and seems to have an interesting spin on guaranteed upfront prices.
- I think we repeated the need for an enforced hospital standard enough times that everyone got the message. However, we'll see if this comes to fruition any time soon. Last we heard, this was targeted for 1/1/25.
- One line of questioning from Rep. Obernolte (CA) really stood out, as he particularly dug into the setup of Singapore's health system. He asked about innovative models such as funded healthcare spending accounts that could roll over into savings if unspent. I think it's always a good idea to look at other developed countries (particularly Singapore and a few others) and either draw ideas to inspire policy or even just business model innovation.
- I was honored to testify alongside the other witnesses; those are some very smart people that know what they're talking about!
- The decorum and etiquette of the Subcommittee was entertaining. They religiously followed the 5 minute timer, never said first names, and used fancy sayings like "I yield the remainder of my time."
That's a wrap on DC until Turquoise is back for a full week in late April. I yield the remainder of my time - to sleep!
1:00pm
12:23pm
Definitely elevated.
12:14pm
Headed to "the Hill." Eager to report back on its actual topography.
10:22am (under 3 hours to hearing time)
My talking points today will stick to what our data is showing us at Turquoise. We're ingesting data from all payer websites every month and all hospital websites every quarter. To get a glimpse of what we're seeing, here's a March 2023 Progress report with some visualizations on the payer disclosures (I've linked to this in my written statement which will be distributed today):
I also have a handy fact sheet with transparency data stats that the Turquoise solutions engineering team prepared. Does anyone know how many ping pong balls could fit in a 747? Just in case they ask.
8:45am
Non-controversial DC take: people dress nicer here than in San Diego. Great prep advice from a confidant!
7:50am
Greetings from DC! I figured it would be fun to live blog the day. I woke up this morning realizing that if I'm going to read prepared remarks, I'll need to print them. Like any real tech CEO, I spent a good amount of time finding a printer. We're good to go and the cherry blossoms are in bloom:
Watch Co-Founder and CEO, Chris Severn as he testifies live before congress.