Archive for May 2014
Hospital conversion bill passed, but outcome not clear
In the last hours of the session the General Assembly passed legislation regarding for-profit hospital conversions and hospitals’ ability to merge with physician practices. The legislation was proposed in response to Tenet’s plans to partner with Yale-New Haven, Waterbury, Manchester, Rockville, and Bristol hospitals. The deal required the ability of for-profits to purchase physician practices.…
Read MoreWebsite moving, be patient
Our CT Health Policy Project website is moving to a new home and will be temporarily offline. We expect to be back up with the information you are craving in 12 to 24 hours depending on how long the DNS propagation takes. I am told I have to be patient.
Read MoreMA health reform saved lives
A new study finds that health reform and expanded coverage in MA saved lives. Comparing MA counties with matched counties in other states, researchers found a drop in mortality, especially from causes amenable to health care (i.e. not due to accidents). A completely illegitimate, back-of-the-envelope, they’ll-take-my-degree-away calculation (is that enough disclaimers?) finds that 351 MA…
Read MoreState Employee health plan update
Today’s meeting of the Health Care Cost Containment Committee was short but interesting. The HCCC, the best kept secret in state government, is a joint labor-management committee under the Comptroller’s Office that makes decisions about the $1.2 billion/year program that covers 208,378 state employees, retirees and dependents. Consultants noted that costs in the program rose…
Read MoreCT hospitals safety rankings lower than surrounding states
New rankings of hospital safety by the Leapfrog Group outline sharp differences between CT’s hospitals. St. Francis and Backus earned an A grade. However Charlotte Hungerford received a D and Windham received an F. CT hospitals underperformed compared to surrounding states. MA and RI have no hospitals with D or F grades. 70% of MA…
Read MoreMay Health Reform Dashboard, Webquiz online
Test your knowledge about health risk factors in Connecticut adults. Take the May CT Health Policy Webquiz. May’s Health Reform Dashboard and Progress Meter show the state moving backward. While CT improved in data transparency, we lost ground in the APCD’s decision to reject patient-centered policies and deny sensible privacy rights to state residents (more…
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