A recent report showed that health insurance rates on MNsure could rise by double digits again next year. If the rate hike is approved by regulators, these increases would add to the financial challenges already facing families across the state. Employer-sponsored health coverage could also rise by about 9 percent next year. These increases are part of a broader and disheartening trend. Healthcare costs have been climbing for years, and it’s time for Minnesota to get serious about fixing the issue.

Minnesotans are feeling the effects of the high costs in very real ways. Families have to make tough choices between paying medical bills and covering other basic expenses like housing, groceries, and childcare. Seniors on fixed incomes are especially vulnerable, as well as those who rely on Medicaid and other public programs. At the same time, we’re hearing about billions of dollars lost to fraud in Minnesota’s Medicaid system, all while pharmaceutical companies spend billions on television ads that drive up the cost of prescription drugs for everyone else.

Since I was elected to the Senate in 2016, I’ve worked on legislation aimed at increasing transparency and giving patients more control over their healthcare spending. One of the most basic steps we can take is making prices clear before care is delivered. Right now, most people have no idea how much a test or procedure will cost until long after it’s done, when the bill arrives weeks or months later. I’ve authored bills that would require hospitals and clinics to post prices upfront and disclose hidden facility fees that often surprise patients after treatment.

I’ve also pushed the Patient Right to Shop Act, which would allow patients to compare prices for services and keep some of the savings if they choose a lower-cost provider. Another bill I carried this year would prohibit pharmaceutical companies from advertising prescription drugs directly to consumers on television. These ads cost billions of dollars each year and ultimately raise prices while interfering with the doctor-patient relationship.

These are just a couple practical steps that could help slow the growth of healthcare costs. Long-term solutions will require leaders to treat this issue as a serious priority instead of something to manage with short-term fixes from one budget cycle to the next. Costs continue to rise, fraud continues to drain public programs, and average Minnesotans are left paying more while receiving less care and having less confidence in the system.

I’m leaving the Senate after this term, but I hope that future lawmakers will take this challenge more seriously than we have so far. If we don’t get healthcare costs under control, the burden on families, seniors, and taxpayers will only continue to grow, and the consequences will be felt across the state for years to come.