Archive for August 2014
CSG/ERC Hopkins tour highlights patient safety, care coordination and cancer innovations
Yesterday’s off-site trip to Johns Hopkins from the CSG/ERC annual meeting was impressive. We heard about out of the box thinking by a clinical scientist that led to a breakthrough in treating lung cancer – that very low, but longer term doses of chemotherapy drugs worked better than full doses in shrinking tumors and helped…
Read MoreMoving video and panel on the opiod addiction epidemic, with policy options to address the problem
This morning’s standing-room-only panel at CSG/ERC’s annual meeting in Baltimore on the epidemic of opiod addiction combined emotion with constructive options for policymakers. We first watched part of The Hungry Heart, a movie about the rising toll of addiction on rural communities and heard from a former addict and a physician from the movie.…
Read MoreCSG/ERC panel on Medicaid innovations
Today’s health committee meeting at the CSG/ERC annual meeting in Baltimore featured updates from NY and CT about what is working in state Medicaid programs, and an update from CMMI on what’s next for the State Innovation Model program. Sen. Terry Gerratana moderated the panel that included Asm. Richard Gottfried (NY), Olivia Puckett (MAPOC) and…
Read MoreCA’s exchange keeps coverage affordable through negotiation
Premiums on California’s exchange will rise only 4.2% next year, due in large part to active purchasing. Overall health spending is expected to rise 6.2% next year. Through active purchasing, CA’s exchange negotiates premiums with insurers to get the best deal for consumers. Connecticut’s exchange does not negotiate premiums on behalf of consumers. CT’s insurance…
Read More