RAND Corp. News

Obamacare Premiums Called Affordable in 17-State Survey

A 25-year-old New Yorker earning $25,000 a year will pay as little as $62 a month for health insurance next year, and a peer living in Vermont may pay nothing, according to a 17-state survey of premiums under the U.S. …

Premium Increases Under Obamacare Are Exaggerated, Rand Says

Predictions of sharp increases in health-insurance premiums for people getting coverage under the U.S. Affordable Care Act have been overstated and many states will see little to no change, researchers at Rand Corp. found. Out-of-pocket premiums for most individuals who …

Dixon, Feinberg to Head New RAND Catastrophe Research Center

The RAND Corp. is launching a new research center that will analyze different approaches to compensating individuals, businesses and others following catastrophes ranging from natural disasters to terrorist attacks. The new Center for Catastrophic Risk Management and Compensation will be …

Passing of Torch at California Workers’ Compensation Institute

Workers’ compensation wonk Alex Swedlow will become the fourth president of the California Workers’ Compensation Institute in 50 years following the announced retirement on Monday of J. Michael Nolan as president of the group. Nolan’s retirement is effective May 1. …

Consumer-Directed Health Plans Show Mixed Results

Employer-sponsored health insurance plans with low premiums and high deductibles could cut U.S. healthcare costs significantly but not without potential risks for workers, according to a study published on Monday. A Rand Corp. study, published in the May issue of …

RAND Study: Ending Individual Mandate Would Cut Coverage, Hike Government’s Costs

Eliminating the federal mandate in the new healthcare law that every individual carry health insurance would sharply lower the number of people gaining coverage, but would not dramatically increase the cost of buying policies through new insurance exchanges, a new …

Former Cal-OSHA Chief Defends Workplace Safety Program

The former chief of the California Occupational Safety and Health Division defended its Injury’s Illness Prevention Program following a study by think tank RAND Corp. showing the occupational safety program that requires California businesses to eliminate workplace hazards only works …

Study: California Workplace Safety Program Only Superficially Enforced

An occupational safety program that requires California businesses to eliminate workplace hazards only works when it’s adequately enforced. That revelation comes from Santa Monica, Calif.-based think tank RAND Corp., which recently released a study evaluating the California Injury and Illness …