TYLER, Texas (KLTV) – At Prime 102 in Tyler, owner Steve Barnhart said he has 34 employees. Of those workers, about half receive healthcare coverage. <\/p>\n
He said it costs more than $8,000 a year to pay for one employee\u2019s healthcare coverage. Paying that some months, he added, is difficult in an industry known for tight margins. <\/p>\n
\u201cSome months it\u2019s a challenge and some months it\u2019s not,\u201d Barnhart said. \u201cRestaurant businesses ebb and flow up and down, so some months it\u2019s easier than others.\u201d<\/p>\n
Aiming to reduce costs for folks across the state, a group of Texas House lawmakers met on Tuesday to hear testimony on ways to lower costs. <\/p>\n
\u201cHealthcare isn\u2019t broken from a clinical standpoint, but it is absolutely broken from a pricing standpoint,\u201d said state Rep. James Frank (R-Wichita Falls). <\/p>\n
Mark Cuban, co-founder of Cost Plus Drugs and former Shark Tank cast member, testified during the over six-hour hearing about what lawmakers can do to lower prices. <\/p>\n
\u201cLet patients shop for cheaper drugs,\u201d Cuban said. \u201cIf someone\u2019s insurance says a prescription costs $500 but they can buy the exact same drug for $100 cash, let them buy it for $100. Then credit that $100 towards their deductible and out-of-pocket maximum wherever Texas has authority to do so.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPatients should be rewarded for saving themselves and their health plan money, they shouldn\u2019t be punished for it,\u201d Cuban continued. \u201cThat\u2019s how you create something healthcare desperately needs: price competition.\u201d <\/p>\n
Scott Burns, chief executive officer of KerixHealth, proposed a solution involving a direct primary care model. <\/p>\n
\u201cIn direct primary care patients decide what they value,\u201d Burns said. \u201cThey can choose a practice based on access, responsiveness, service, price, and the quality of the relationship with the physician.\u201d <\/p>\n
Lawmakers could consider ways to reduce healthcare costs during the next legislative session, which begins in January. <\/p>\n
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