Research Library

This report finds that America's largest companies could be increasing their profits by identifying opportunities to reign in the costs of health insurance coverage — while still maintaining or improving the quality of benefits for their employees.

A regulation from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) required that, starting January 1, 2021, all U.S. hospitals publicly display the cash price as well as the minimum and maximum negotiated charge for 300 “shoppable services.”

This report finds that less than half of Texas hospitals are complying with federal price transparency regulations, despite a measure passed by the state Legislature intended to increase the financial penalty for noncompliance.

The director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) plays a central role in advising the president on the impact of science and technology on domestic and global affairs, and on federal funding of scientific research. This paper provides recommendations for the next president to consider when choosing a science advisor and establishing science and technology policy priorities. The project also offers guidance to the next science advisor for developing effective policy while serving in the White House. The recommendations are based on lessons learned from past presidential science advisors as well as feedback from more than 60 reviewers, including individuals who currently serve or have served the OSTP, the President’s Council of Advisors for Science and Technology, federal agencies, Congress or congressional staff, and nongovernmental organizations as well as policy scholars.

In March 2009, the James A. Baker III Institute for Public Policy and the Qatar Foundation for Education, Science and Community Development co-hosted a workshop in Doha, Qatar, on stem cell research, policies, and regulations. The event highlighted current stem cell science, as well as stem cell policies and ethics. The discussion focused on policies around the globe and the religious views of embryonic stem cell research from the Christian, Jewish, and Muslim perspectives. The workshop was organized so that outcomes from the event could be relevant to the development of Qatar"s up-and-coming stem cell research. Based on the presentation from the event, the advisory panel for the Baker Institute International Stem Cell Policy Program made a series of recommendations for the new stem cell initiative in Qatar, including the suggestion for outreach to the Qatari community.

What can policymakers do to curb the rising sea level?

Neal F. Lane, Senior Fellow in Science and Technology Policy