CT health provider capacity varies significantly

A new mapping and data tool from CMS allows web visitors to visualize the density of a range of health care providers relative to the number of consumers. The updated Market Saturation and Utilization Tool uses Medicare claims data and can be sorted by state or county. Policymakers can use the Tool for health services…

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ICER seeks comment on Value Framework Changes for Ultra-Rare Condition Treatments

The Institute for Clinical and Economic Review(ICER) has proposed adaptations to its value framework for very rare conditions. ICER is a leader in evidence-based analysis of the effectiveness of drugs and other medical treatments. ICER’s analyses, including benchmark value-based prices for new drugs, are used by a growing list of payers in developing fair prices.…

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Quality challenges remain in CT Medicaid PCMHs

Also at Friday’s meeting, DSS reported on a selection of quality results from 2015, highlighting concerns. The results compared quality measures for patients receiving care from private practice and community health center Patient-Centered Medical Homes. In other programs, PCMHs have improved quality performance over non-PCMH practices. There remains a lot of room for improvement. Only…

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Déjà vu at Medicaid Council meeting

Friday’s Medicaid Council meeting focused on the controversialPCMH+ shared savings program reminding many observers of years of rosy DSS presentations about the very similar, failed HUSKY MCO program. PCMH+ started six months ago with 137,000 members. The concept is to give Accountable Care Organizations (large health systems) a reason to lower the total cost of…

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Sen. Blumenthal holding fifth hearing on ACA replacement bills

Friday at 2pm Senator Blumenthal will convene an emergency field hearing to collect input from Connecticut residents on current proposals to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act. This is the Senator’s fifth hearing on the issue. The latest Senate version of the bill from Republican leaders was published today. The hearing will be held…

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ACA repeal, Medicaid, personalized medicine, and bioscience highlight at ERC Annual Meeting in Connecticut next month

Join CSG-ERC for our 2017 Annual Meeting and Policy Forum August 13 to 16 in Uncasville, CT. Health programming includes a lunch talk on the promise of genomics, the potential of bioscience to improve health and grow state economies, and the potential state impact of federal proposals to replace the Affordable Care Act, significantly change…

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Lowest wage workers least likely to be offered health benefits at work

  Only 22% of Americas earning the lowest ten percent of wages are offered medical benefits by their employer, according to a new report by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. This compares with 93% of the top ten percent of earners who are offered medical benefits at work. Unfortunately, the lowest wage workers also pay…

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