Posts by Ellen Andrews
ICER fair access report finds improvements but problems with transparency
ICER’s third annual Barriers to Fair Access report found that most prescription drug coverage policies met fair rules for patient access. This is an improvement over previous years suggesting that transparency and public sunlight works. But the report also found that policies needed more transparency and are too complex. Policies on which patients are eligible…
Read MoreBook Club: We’ve Got You Covered
I wasn’t looking forward to reading yet another book promoting yet another idea to solve America’s broken healthcare system. But it’s my job, so I dove into We’ve Got You Covered: Rebooting American Health Care by Liran Einav and Amy Finkelstin. I’m a convert now – mostly. The first half of the book is the…
Read MoreOp-Ed: The Charts That Scare Health Insurance Watchdogs
Self-insured small group plans sound innocuous but they’re not – and they are growing quickly. The plans save money for some small businesses, but they have serious risks. It’s kind of complicated but stay with me. I’ll walk you through it; there will be no numbers. Read more
Read MoreSpeaker Series #4 — Healthcare for people with developmental disabilities — Reports from other states
Following up on the first webinars on healthcare access for people with developmental disabilities, the fourth webinar in the Fall Series will focus on Reports From Other States including Colorado, Maine, and Rhode Island. It will be Tuesday, October 31st. The Fall speaker series is sponsored by the CT Council on Developmental Disabilities and UCEDD.…
Read MoreCT commercial insurance enrollment down 5%; several possible explanations
Download the report Last year, total enrollment in Connecticut’s commercial managed care plans was 1,666,972. That was down by 85,019 from 2021 at 1,750,904, according to the this year’s Consumer Report Card from the CT Insurance Department. The drop in enrollment was almost entirely from large group plans with over 50 members and spread across…
Read MoreCT Medicaid primary care redesign: Payment reform
Download the full report with sources Connecticut Medicaid is considering reforms to primary care delivery and payment. The CT Health Policy Project is collecting evidence from other states and programs to help inform that planning. Part 1 focused on Connecting with community services to improve health. A major part of DSS’s planning for reform is…
Read MoreHealthcare for CT residents with developmental disabilities — Webinar #3
Following up on the first webinars on healthcare access for people with developmental disabilities, the third webinar in the Fall Series will focus on Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Access to Healthcare. It will be Tuesday, October 17th. The Fall speaker series is sponsored by the CT Council on Developmental Disabilities and UCEDD. Register here for…
Read MoreNew data finds CT obesity rates grew by 25% from 2011 to 2022
Download the brief New data from the CDC finds that three in ten Connecticut adults (30.6%) were obese last year, up from one in four (24.5%) in 2011. While too high, Connecticut’s rate was 10th lowest among the states. The US average last year was 33.6%, up 21% from 2011. Connecticut’s rate was typical of…
Read MoreAnalysis: Private Equity’s CT Hospital Mess Comes As No Surprise
Yale-New Haven’s plan to buy three hospitals owned by Prospect Medical Holdings, a troubled private equity group, is reportedly on the rocks. Read more from CT News Junkie
Read MoreHealthcare for CT residents with developmental disabilities speaker series – Webinar #2
Following up on the first webinar with national experts on healthcare access for people with developmental disabilities, the second webinar in the Fall Series will focus on Connecticut. It will be Tuesday, October 3rd at 1:00pm and include results of a survey of state residents with lived experience and their experience of accessing healthcare and…
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