742,000 CT residents with pre-existing conditions’ access to coverage will be protected under ACA

New estimates from Families USA finds that 742,000 non-elderly CT residents have been diagnosed with serious conditions often linked to individual coverage denials. Beginning in 2014 under the Affordable Care Act, no Connecticut resident can be denied coverage, charged a higher premium, or sold a policy that excludes coverage of important health services simply because…

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CT health reform progress up to 15.2%

CT made impressive progress toward health reform in August. We moved from 13.7% of the way to 15.2% this month. Highlights include negotiation of a compromise Essential Health Benefit Package and CMS grant funding to the insurance exchange. The grant is very exciting – the state plans to use most of the funding for a…

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HHS approves CT application for more insurance exchange funding

Today Health and Human Services, the federal agency tasked with approving and funding state insurance exchanges under the Affordable Care Act, announced that CT’s Level II insurance exchange application has been approved for $107 million, along with new grants for seven other states. A large part of CT’s grant is meant to fund development of…

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Update on patient-centered medical homes in CT

A recent CT Health Foundation blog highlights progress toward building patient-centered medical homes in our state. The post outlines initiatives by DSS, the CT State Medical Society, ProHealth, Qualidigm, the Community Health Centers Association of CT, CHC Inc., and Community Health Network. CT now has 730 NCQA certified PCMHs and that number is growing.

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Great student journalism articles

CT Health I-Team’s summer journalism boot camp students produced some great work this year. Articles this summer include CT suicide rate hits 20 year high, mental health issues for delinquent girls, and exercise equipment and basketball injuries are up. C-HIT runs summer workshops for high school students interested in investigative journalism, in partnership with Quinnipiac…

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CT health care spending growth roughly tracks our GDP

Is health care spending skyrocketing? Yes and no. It is true that total health spending in CT averaged 7.9% annual increases from 1980 to 2009, higher than the 6% growth rate for our overall state economy (Gross State Product, GDP). However when overall economic growth slows, health care spending growth does as well, according to…

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Last chance: Seeking nominations for CT thought leaders

We are refreshing our invitation list for the CT Health Thoughtleader Survey. The survey has been cited by policymakers as a tool in evaluating our state’s progress toward reform. It is part of our CT Health Reform Dashboard. To keep the list robust and ensure a broad reach, we are seeking nominations for the survey.…

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CT 42nd among states in adult obesity rates

CT is doing better than 41 other states in adult obesity rates for last year, according to new CDC numbers. We are tied with Nevada and New York. However even at that level, one in four CT adults (24.5%) is obese, and that rate is up from 18% a decade earlier. A recent IOM report…

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Four CT hospitals earn highest Medicare readmission penalty

Starting in October, Medicare will begin reducing reimbursements to Griffin Hospital, St. Raphael’s, Masonic Home and Hospital, and Midstate Medical Center by 1% because of high patient readmission rates. Eight CT hospitals – Hartford, Hebrew Home and Hospital, Manchester, Middlesex, Rockville, Sharon, Backus and Windham hospitals – will have no deductions to their Medicare payments…

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Updated CT Health Policy 101

Our CT Health Basics primer/training module for the CT Health Policy Project is updated. Check www.cthealthbook.org regularly for other resource updates.

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