Mental Health Budget

Hi Will, We talked on March 15 about the accumulated cuts of $55 million to mental health services in Massachusetts since 2009, more than any other New England state. Yesterday, I tried to verify on-line how much Massachusetts spends per capita on mental health, compared to the other New England states.  Recent facts were scarce, but the …

A Dialogue on Health Care

Q: If health insurance is something one can buy, why not let people buy what insurance they want? A: To call it insurance is a misleading misnomer. Since sickness befalls everyone sooner or later, unlike house fires or auto accidents, we are not protecting ourselves against an event which usually affects other people. The term …

Report on annual hearing of the Department of HealthCare Finance and Policy

  Complex system requires complex changes Consumer involvement needed, perhaps through tiered plans Standardization and transparency in price and quality reporting needed Coordinated care, medical homes, bundled payments—all mean rewarding value and outcomes rather than services IT is critical A slow transition is needed     In June, the Department of Healthcare Finance and Policy …

Analysis of Attorney General’s Report on Healthcare Cost Trends

Analysis of the Attorney General’s report: Examination of Health Care Cost Trends and Cost Drivers Pursuant to G.L. c. 118G, § 61?2(b) Report for Annual Public Hearing June 22, 2011   Wide disparities in healthcare payments exist that are not due to variations in quality Simply changing to global payments does not reduce costs More …