Nominations open for New England comparative effectiveness voting panel

The New England Comparative Effectiveness Public Advisory Council is seeking nominations for new members. New England CEPAC is a group of clinicians, economists, and patient/consumer representatives that meets three times each year to take a deep dive into the evidence on the effectiveness and value of new drugs, devices and delivery system innovations. At the…

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CT gets a C for pre-term births

A new report highlights CT’s disappointing performance in reducing pre-term births and ensuring our state’s newest citizens have a healthy start. Almost one in ten (9.4%) CT births happen before 37 weeks, ranking us 31st among states. Hartford County was worst at 10.1%; Litchfield was best at 7.7%. There is wide disparity in pre-term birth…

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CT Medicaid only state to earn A+ for access to HepC drugs

A new report finds that CT’s Medicaid program leads the US in access to new Hepatitis C medications. Hepatitis C affects 3.5 million Americans and causes more deaths than any other infectious disease. CT Medicaid imposes no liver damage, sobriety or prescriber restrictions to HepC drug access that are common in other states.  The report…

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New CT insurer report card online

CT’s best kept secret, the latest CT health insurer report card is out. Part of the managed care reform law passed twenty years ago, the report allows consumers, policymakers and other stakeholders to compare health plans across dozens of key performance standards, customer satisfaction rates, provider participation by county, and claims denial rates. As in…

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President’s plan to end cost sharing payments would cost CT plans $7 million this year

An analysis by Avalere Health estimates that health plans in CT’s insurance exchange, Access Health CT, would lose $7 million in reimbursements this year unless Congress acts to restore payments. Nationally, plans stand to lose over $1 billion this year. Under the Affordable Care Act, low to moderate income Americans purchasing exchange coverage are protected…

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CT ranks 3rd highest among states in high-deductible health plans

Analysis of new federal data by SHADAC finds that most people (59.3%) in CT covered by employer-sponsored health plans were in high-deductible plans last year, up from 40% in 2013. For purposes of this study, high-deductible plans are defined as meeting the minimum deductible amount required for Health Savings Account eligibility ($1,300 for an individual…

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Antibiotic prescribing down in CT but more needs to be done

Between 2010 and 2016, antibiotic prescriptions per person have declined 8% in CT, according to a report by the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association. The rate declined even faster (15%) for children. Unfortunately, CT’s rate is still higher than all but 16 other states. Overuse of antibiotics is blamed for contributing to the rise of…

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