Washington Health Alliance's 2026 Community Checkup is now out, and the newest analysis shows an 8% year-over-year increase in health care costs as quality improvement remains elusive.

See what is driving the cost increase and where quality of care needs to improve. While the report's findings are difficult to ignore, they also show tremendous opportunities for collaboration to improve health care affordability, quality, and access.

We already have many of our members and partners at the table working on projects from fair pricing to early screening of chronic conditions. The question is whether you and your organization help shape what comes next.

Dig into the 2026 Community Checkup.



Healthcare costs in Washington are accelerating faster than most employers can manage. Costs climb 8 percent annually, pharmacy bills surge by 20 percent, and per-employee spending is heading toward $18,500 in 2026. For HR leaders and benefits managers, these numbers point to a deeper problem: a system that incentivizes volume and complexity over value and prevention.

The real cost multiplies when employees can’t find the right care. They land in emergency departments for conditions primary care could prevent. They skip follow-ups after hospitalization, and conditions worsen. Behavioral health problems fester in silos. Employers end up paying twice: once for fragmented care and again for the preventable issues that follow. The pattern is predictable and expensive.

Navigation programs, which help individuals not only understand and utilize their benefits but get them pointed in the right direction in a complex health system, have been found to reduce emergency department visits and increase the likelihood of accessing health screenings and attending recommended care. Efforts that bolster access to primary care relationship, including advanced primary care models, can compound that success as strong primary care is reported to cost less and receive key preventative care that leads to healthy lives. 

Castlight Health is one of the partners helping employers put these strategies to work.

Read the full blogRead the full blog post st to see how high-value, affordable healthcare becomes possible and join us May 13 for Beyond the Bottom Line: Strategies for High-Value, Affordable Healthcare, where discussion and panels, including one supported by Castlight Health, explore real solutions Washington employers are putting to work right now.

Most employers have no formal menopause benefits, a gap that costs U.S. businesses more than $1.8 billion a year in lost productivity.

One Washington public employer decided to act. In partnership with WHA, they launched a six-month virtual series to destigmatize perimenopause and menopause and connect employees to better care. The results: 545 registrations, 244 live attendees, and a dramatic shift in workplace comfort. In session one, 22% of attendees felt "very comfortable" discussing menopause at work. By the final session, that share reached 63%. By the end, 89% said their employer supported them.

With the sponsorship of Astellas, WHA designed the program, recruited the clinical experts, and refined it in real time. It's a replicable model, and proof that starting the conversation is half the battle.

See how it worked

Our collaborative gets stronger with every new member. We're proud to welcome four organizations that share our commitment to better, more affordable health care for Washington workers and families. Glad to have them at the table.

• First Choice Health
• LEO Pharma
• Pelorus Consulting Group
• Shoestring Valley Holdings

April 2 - Free Webinar: Thriving Employees, Thriving Business: Population Health in the Workforce – Register Now



Most organizations treat employee health as a cost center. Dr. Ray Fabius of HealthNEXT argues it's one of the most underleveraged drivers of business performance. In this session, he'll lay out the business case for workforce population health and show what it takes to move from insight to action.

He's joined by Dr. Drew Oliveira (Medical Director, Washington Health Alliance) and Dr. Wayne Rawlings (HealthNEXT NEXTpert) for a panel drawing on WHA's newly released Community Checkup.

May 13 - All-Day Forum in Seattle: Beyond the Bottom Line: Strategies for High-Value, Affordable Healthcare – Register Now

Costs are rising, quality is falling. Too many Washingtonians can’t access affordable, high-value care. Let’s collaborate on solutions.

Washington Health Alliance and our partners will convene employers, providers, health plans, and community leaders to move from shared challenges to collaborative action.