conflict of interest - CT Health Policy

ANALYSIS | Who In Health Care Made Money on COVID?

By Ellen Andrews | June 4, 2021 |

Many COVID heroes who put their lives at risk or died caring for others. We all owe healthcare providers, scientists, public health professionals, and other frontline workers a huge debt of gratitude. But the healthcare industries did just fine. Four of the ten companies that profited most during the pandemic are in healthcare. Read more

NPR’s Frontline features Waterbury Hospital and private equity impact on hospitals

By Ellen Andrews | May 24, 2021 |

The latest NPR/Frontline investigation focuses on very unequal resources at US hospitals due to market forces and unequal government support. The second half of the documentary focuses on the impact of private equity buying safety net hospitals, which has doubled in the last decade. An expert describes how private equity firms purchase under-valued hospitals, cut…

Public comment opposing sales of medical records to fund HIE

By Ellen Andrews | May 20, 2021 |

Read the full comments and the March 2020 letter from 22 advocates with concerns Today the CT Health Policy Project submitted public comment opposing the Office of Health Strategy’s medical record privacy policy proposals. Specifically advocates oppose selling access to Connecticut residents’ medical records through paid subscriptions. In addition to the harm to individuals, this…

CTNJ: OP-ED | Drug Affordability Requires Limits On Price Gouging

By Ellen Andrews | May 15, 2021 |

Jay Gironimi has cystic fibrosis and he is grateful for the drugs that help him live. But he disagrees with the Epilepsy Foundation’s opinion piece that defends extreme drug price hikes. “While the drugs are saving lives today, the profit margins are slowly tanking the entire US healthcare system.” Read more

OP-ED | When Data Becomes An Excuse To Prevent Change

By Ellen Andrews | April 27, 2021 |

Data is important. The drumbeat for data-driven policymaking in health care isn’t wrong. Policy decisions that aren’t informed by independent, valid analysis can cause more harm than good. But it’s important to know when we have enough data so we can get to work. Read more

CTNJ: Real Conversation Would Beget Lower Health Care Costs

By Ellen Andrews | February 23, 2021 |

I recently had an interesting conversation with a lobbyist for the insurance industry. We planned to talk about our narrow legislative issues to find any common ground. Predictably, we disagreed on some key points, but we agreed on a lot more. We agreed that it’s hard to get people across the health care system onto…

What does the public really think about a public option? Two polls, and we still don’t know

By Ellen Andrews | February 3, 2021 |

Dueling polls released this week find Connecticut residents either love the idea of a public health insurance option or they are not big fans. Not surprisingly, the polls are sponsored by groups with dueling agendas and they don’t give details or survey question wording. According to a poll released Monday by Comptroller Kevin Lembo, 71%…

Half of CT hospitals not compliant with new requirement to post negotiated prices for care

By Ellen Andrews | February 2, 2021 |

Download the report As of January 1st, all US hospitals are required to prominently display on a publicly available website prices privately negotiated with payers for 300 services, under CMS’s Hospital Price Transparency Rule. Hospital “charges” have been available to patients but not the actual prices paid by insurers. CMS requires both a “display of…

ICER seeking members for New England evidence review group

By Ellen Andrews | December 2, 2020 |

The Institute for Economic and Clinical Review (ICER) is seeking nominations for new members to the New England Comparative Effectiveness Public Advisory Council (New England CEPAC). The Council includes leading clinicians, patient and consumer advocates, methodologists, and health economists. The group holds public meetings three to four times per year to discuss evidence reports on…