CT Health Reform
Connecticut’s uninsured rate stabilizes, retaining ACA gains
Download the report New numbers from the US Census Bureau report that 187,000 or 5.3% of Connecticut residents were uninsured last year. That number is down slightly from the year before when the uninsured rate was 5.5%, but above 2016’s rate at 4.9%. The new data continues the trend of fewer uninsured that began with…
Read MoreCT Medicaid child checkup rates jumped when HMOs were fired
Well-child screenings increased twelve percent for HUSKY children between FY 2001 and FY 2012, according to a new report from the Government Accounting Office. While correlation is not causation, it is important to note that on January 1, 2012 Connecticut Medicaid payment shifted from capitation through private managed care companies to our current managed fee-for-service…
Read MoreCTNJ: CT Medicaid is making the same mistake, again
Despite warnings, the state is about to make a big mistake, again. DSS is planning to renew PCMH Plus, their risky Medicaid experiment that has cost the state more and done nothing to improve care, jeopardizing hard-earned progress. Two years ago, when the state wanted to expand PCMH Plus the first time, advocates raised alarms…
Read MoreCT Health Policy Project’s 20th Anniversary: Progress, but lots of challenges ahead
Read the report Since 1999, when the CT Health Policy Project was founded, Connecticut’s healthcare landscape has changed in both predictable and unpredictable ways. Costs are rising faster than our economy is growing, and those costs are falling disproportionately on consumers. Experts are predicting another recession and it’s unclear if Connecticut’s healthcare landscape is ready.…
Read MoreCTNJ: A recession is coming and it could hit Connecticut healthcare hard
While President Trump disagrees, a recent survey found that three in four economists expect the US economy to enter a recession by 2021. Recessions are a natural part of the economic cycle – it’s not a question of whether it will happen, but when. The last recession, in 2008, hit Connecticut especially hard, and in…
Read MorePCMH + risk scores suggest possible gaming or worse; Advocates call on DSS to delay expansion to protect members and taxpayers
A new analysis of PCMH + members’ risk scores finds unexplained increases compared to the control/comparison group that could signal ACO gaming of the system for financial gain and/or, far worse, a decline in the health of members in the program. PCMH Plus, a controversial new payment model, allows ACO (large health systems) to share…
Read MoreLarge study finds selection bias in Medicare shared savings erases savings and quality improvements – advocates saw this coming
Researchers from the University of Michigan found that the modest savings and quality improvements reported by Medicare’s extensive shared savings program (MSSP) are likely due to adverse selection. High cost clinicians and beneficiaries were far more likely than others to exit the program. When adjusted for the selective bias in MSSP exit, reported savings and…
Read MoreNew tool makes Medicaid business case for CT to address obesity
Twenty nine percent of Connecticut children ages 5 to 17 are overweight or obese, according to the Department of Public Health. That number jumps to 47.8% for children living in households with annual incomes between $25,000 to 50,000. Many, maybe most, of these children qualify for Medicaid. Only 13.1% of Connecticut high school students eat…
Read MorePCMHs in CT – not the “shiny new toy” anymore but moving forward improving care, controlling costs
Ten years ago, patient-centered medical homes (PCMHs) were exotic in Connecticut. PCMHs are one of the best documented innovations to improve health. PCMHs are primary care practices that help keep people well by assessing needs, coordinating care, and giving people the skills and resources to maintain their own health. As a nurse managers told me,…
Read MoreNew PCMH + plans overlook past problems
Wednesday DSS and Mercer unveiled their thinking about plans for Wave 3 of PCMH Plus, Medicaid’s controversial shared savings program. Results from PCMH Plus’s first year, Wave 1, were disappointing with increased state costs and little evidence of improvement in quality. Based on the problems identified in Wave 1, advocates made recommendations to fix those…
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