As Donald Trump’s nominee for Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert Kennedy Jr faces questioning on Capital Hill, many legislators are asking voicing the questions Americans have been asking for quite some time: What’s wrong with healthcare in America?

Much of Kennedy’s testimony (and we’ll include the questions from lawmakers in this), has included a mix of conspiracy theories and facts, making it difficult to share an impartial analysis of events. For instance, Kennedy has linked vaccines to autism (a claim that has been disproven multiple times) while also comparing the CDC to Nazi death camps. At the same time, Kennedy has expressed a mistrust of big pharma echoed by many Americans throughout the 2024 campaign.

One reason it’s so difficult to provide analysis here? Many Americans, and perhaps many legislators, are in the dark on how exactly healthcare works in America. Who exactly approves drugs, sets prices, and creates a standard of care?

Is it the government? The drug companies? Insurance companies? The companies that design and pay for these policies? These are the questions we can answer for our clients—so that you can understand the health plans you offer your employees. Because that’s what’s in everyone’s best interest.