Uploaded May 2026 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
Clifford F Porter MD PhD, is the Senior Fellow for Healthcare at the Texas Public Policy Foundation. Dr. Porter is a primary and urgent care physician, founding Texas Direct Medical Care, using the Direct Primary Care model.
Porter details the negative consequences of market consolidation, middleman bureaucracies, and anti-competitive practices on America’s healthcare system that drive up costs while reducing quality and access to care. He argues that administrative burdens such as prior authorizations, claims denials, and insurance restrictions result in worse medical care for patients.
He highlights direct access and cash price healthcare options as proof that transparent pricing and patient-controlled care can dramatically lower costs, citing examples of affordable MRIs, lab tests, and medications.
Testimony before the Texas Senate Health and Human Services Committee on improving rising costs in healthcare
The Texas Public Policy Foundation’s mission is to promote and defend liberty, personal responsibility, and free enterprise in Texas and the nation by educating and affecting policymakers and the Texas public policy debate with academically sound research and outreach.
Funded by thousands of individuals, foundations, and corporations, the Foundation does not accept government funds or contributions to influence the outcomes of its research.
The public is demanding a different direction for their government, and the Texas Public Policy Foundation is providing the ideas that enable policymakers to chart that new course.
Website: texaspolicy.com
X: twitter.com/tppf
Facebook: facebook.com/texaspolicy
Instagram: instagram.com/texaspolicy
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/texas-public-policy-foundation
Clifford F Porter MD PhD, is the Senior Fellow for Healthcare at the Texas Public Policy Foundation. Dr. Porter is a primary and urgent care physician, founding Texas Direct Medical Care, using the Direct Primary Care model.
Porter details the negative consequences of market consolidation, middleman bureaucracies, and anti-competitive practices on America’s healthcare system that drive up costs while reducing quality and access to care. He argues that administrative burdens such as prior authorizations, claims denials, and insurance restrictions result in worse medical care for patients.
He highlights direct access and cash price healthcare options as proof that transparent pricing and patient-controlled care can dramatically lower costs, citing examples of affordable MRIs, lab tests, and medications.
Testimony before the Texas Senate Health and Human Services Committee on improving rising costs in healthcare
The Texas Public Policy Foundation’s mission is to promote and defend liberty, personal responsibility, and free enterprise in Texas and the nation by educating and affecting policymakers and the Texas public policy debate with academically sound research and outreach.
Funded by thousands of individuals, foundations, and corporations, the Foundation does not accept government funds or contributions to influence the outcomes of its research.
The public is demanding a different direction for their government, and the Texas Public Policy Foundation is providing the ideas that enable policymakers to chart that new course.
Website: texaspolicy.com
X: twitter.com/tppf
Facebook: facebook.com/texaspolicy
Instagram: instagram.com/texaspolicy
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/texas-public-policy-foundation
