The Economics of Health Insurance: Denials, Pre-Authorizations, and Cost Control

from The Pie: An Economics Podcast · host Becker Friedman Institute at UChicago

The debate over health insurance denials intensified last year after the assassination of UnitedHealthcare’s CEO. In this episode of The Pie, host Tess Vigeland unpacks the economic forces shaping the US healthcare system with economists from the University of Chicago’s Harris School of Public Policy. Josh Gottlieb examines the financial burden of insurance denials, Zarek Brot-Goldberg explores how pre-authorizations influence prescription drug choices, and Maggie Shi reveals how hospitals adjust to oversight by reducing wasteful care.

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This episode was published on February 18, 2025.

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