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for fiscal year 2025 are provided solely for the attorney general, in 1 collaboration with the office of the insurance commissioner, to study 2 approaches to improve health care affordability including, but not 3 limited to: 4 (i) Health provider price or rate regulation policies or 5 programs, other than traditional health plan rate review, in use or 6 under consideration in other states to increase affordability for 7 health insurance purchasers and enrollees. At a minimum, this shall 8 include: 9 (A) Analysis of payment rate or payment rate increase caps and 10 reference pricing strategies; 11 (B) Analysis of research or other findings related to the 12 outcomes of the policy or program, including experience in other 13 states; 14 (C) A preliminary analysis of the regulatory authority and 15 administrative capacity necessary to implement each policy or program 16 reviewed in Washington state; 17 (D) Analysis of such approaches used in Washington state 18 including, but not limited to, the operation of the hospital 19 commission, formerly established under chapter 70.39 RCW; and 20 (E) A feasibility analysis of implementing a global hospital 21 budget strategy in one or more counties or regions in Washington 22 state, including potential impacts on spending and access to health 23 care services if such a strategy were adopted; 24 (ii) Regulatory approaches in use or under consideration by other 25 states to address any anticompetitive impacts of horizontal 26 consolidation and vertical integration in the health care marketplace 27 to supplement federal antitrust law. At a minimum, this regulatory 28 review shall include: 29 (A) Analysis of research, case law, or other findings related to 30 the outcomes of the state's activities to encourage competition, 31 including implementation experience; 32 (B) A preliminary analysis of regulatory authority and 33 administrative capacity necessary to implement each policy or program 34 reviewed in Washington state; and 35 (C) Analysis of recent health care consolidation and vertical 36 consolidation activity in Washington state, to the extent information 37 is available; 38 (iii) Recommended actions based on other state approaches and 39 Washington data, if any; and 40 p. 42 ESSB 5187.SL