consumer info
CMS finalizes important patient-friendly informed consent payment proposal
CMS has finalized their proposed Medicare rule (regulation) for how hospitals are paid that includes a new measure assessing the quality of hospital informed consent documents given to patients before elective procedures. (The relevant section, Potential Inclusion of the Quality of Informed Consent Documents for Hospital-Performed, Elective Procedures Measure starts hereon p. 373 of the…
Read MorePractical info for HUSKY parents losing coverage you won’t get anywhere else
Statewide Legal Services of Connecticut has posted practical advice for the 17,688 working parents about to lose HUSKY coverage at the end of next month. Budget issues forced state lawmakers to cut parents’ eligibility. Preparing for the likelihood that many of them will become uninsured, SLSCT has drafted very consumer-friendly fact sheets in Englishand Spanish…
Read MoreCalls for HUSKY parents notice to include help for uninsured
Today’s CT New Junkie highlights the lack of information to 17,688 working parents scheduled to lose HUSKY coverage July 31st. Based on prior experience, it is expected that some will qualify for Medicaid in other categories, a smaller number will purchase coverage from AccessHealthCT, but many will lose coverage altogether. Notices from the state to…
Read MoreDSS publishes a consumer-friendly PCMH description
For last week’s MAPOC Consumer Access Committee meeting, DSS developed a clear and simple descriptionof Person Centered Medical Homes (PCMHs). The presentation focuses on what person-centered means – both provider and member responsibilities. Members learn what they can expect from providers, and what is expected of them. “Care is organized around you” balanced with “Support…
Read MoreCT Medicare members have saved over $285 million on prescription drugs under the ACA; almost half a million received free preventive care last year
Thanks to the Affordable Care Act (ACA) thousands of elderly and disabled Medicare beneficiaries in CT have saved millions of dollars on prescription drugs and free preventive care, according to new numbers from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. The ACA includes discounts for Medicare Part D beneficiaries on their prescription drugs that increase…
Read MoreFunds available to pay medical bills for Hartford area residents
There are funds available to cover Hartford area residents’ medical bills that aren’t being spent. Responding to requests, Nelson and Elsie Brainard started the fund in 1957 to help people “of modest means” facing unemployment and bankruptcy because of high medical bills. The Fund now spends hundreds of thousands each year covering bills, but as…
Read MoreAdvocates’ guide to underservice recommendations
SIM is seeking to radically transform our state’s $30 billion health system and has chosen a shared savings payment model for those reforms. Advocates are concerned about incentives to deny necessary care under the new payment model, as happened in the past. SIM’s Equity and Access Council was charged with developing protections to limit and…
Read MoreCT earns an F on heath price transparency laws, again
CT joined all but five states nationally earning an F grade for public reporting of health prices according to Catalyst for Health Care Reform’s 2015 Report Card on State Price Transparency Laws. The report assesses state laws, regulations and public websites to make health care prices public, allowing consumers to base purchasing decisions on the…
Read MoreGuest blog: It’s Not Patients’ Fault!
No, really, it’s not our fault. According to a study published last month by JAMA Oncol, it is a myth that escalating health costs are driven by patients “demanding” tests and treatments. It simply is not happening. Rather, it would appear that responsibility for factors ranging from poor communication, to “defensive medicine”, to deliberate overpricing…
Read MoreCTNJ op-ed: Privacy and trust concerns at CT’s APCD
Advocates are raising concerns about the privacy of sensitive medical records at Access Health Analytics, our state’s all-payer claims database (APCD). At the CT Health Policy Projects we have been great supporters of an APCD for CT knowing that, if done well, it could be a powerful tool to give consumers information about the cost…
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