MassHealth in the News | Archives
Pulse of Region’s Health, Boston Globe, 6/24/07Substantial health disparities exist among the region's suburbs and two of its largest cities, Lowell and Lawrence, where teenagers are more than twice as likely to become pregnant and fewer expectant mothers of all ages receive adequate prenatal care, according to a new state health survey. View Article >>
GAO: LTC Partnerships May Not Help Medicaid, NU Online News Service, 6/12/07
State long term care insurance partnership programs are unlikely to result in savings for Medicaid and may even increase state Medicaid spending slightly. View Article >>
Democrats Aim to Spend Billions on Kids’ Health, CQ, 6/1/07
No matter how Congress renews it, the State Children’s Health Insurance Program is about to become a major consumer of taxpayers’ dollars. View Article >>
A better MGH, but affordable?, Boston Globe, 5/29/07
THERE WASN'T a whisper of opposition last week at the state Public Health Council as Massachusetts General Hospital presented its plan to replace some old buildings with a $498 million complex that will include a larger emergency department, 71 surgical suites, and 150 new beds. The council approved the plan unanimously, but the expansion raises the question of whether the state can afford to rely so heavily on healthcare providers who combine quality with high costs. View Article >>
Study backs senior living facility: Consultant’s early findings support assisted-living units, South of Boston, 5/28/07
A consultant for the Randolph Housing Authority thinks there is a market for an affordable assisted-living facility in the town. View Article >>
Health plan may exempt 20% of the uninsured, Boston Globe, 4/12/07
To remove the threat of a public backlash, the state plans to exempt nearly 20 percent of uninsured adults from the state's new requirement that everyone have health insurance. View Article >>
Board backs plan to create exemption to health care law, Masslive.com, 4/12/07
BOSTON (AP) — A year after it was signed, the board overseeing the state's landmark health care law celebrated with slices of chocolate and vanilla cake Thursday, while acknowledging some of their toughest work is still before them. View Article >>
The Ticker, Boston Herald, 4/12/07
Massachusetts would make health insurance plans even more affordable for the poorest citizens under a proposal to be presented today to the board overseeing the state’s landmark health care law. The recommendations would eliminate monthly premiums in the state-subsidized Commonwealth Care health insurance program for an additional 29,000 low-income Massachusetts residents and reduce premiums for an additional 23,000. View Article >>
State shortchanges mentally retarded: Judge finds accord on care violated, Boston Globe, 4/12/07
A federal magistrate judge has found that the state has failed to provide adequate treatment and services for some 800 mentally retarded people in nursing homes, repeatedly violating a settlement agreement it made seven years ago to settle a class-action lawsuit. View Article >>
Mass. waives premiums for low-income kids, Providence Business News, 4/12/07
BOSTON – Gov. Deval Patrick yesterday directed MassHealth to waive insurance premiums for low-income children, affecting thousands of families with children in or eligible for in the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) whose parents are paying individual premiums for Commonwealth Care coverage. View Article >>
A year later, healthcare experiment has strong vital signs, Boston Globe, 4/11/07
LAST APRIL 12, Massachusetts enacted an ambitious, complex law to expand affordable health insurance to most of the state's half-million uninsured. One year later, how is it going? View Article >>
‘Stuck’ waiting for state: Disturbed youth left to languish, Telegram & Gazette, 4/11/07
The number of severely emotionally disturbed “stuck kids” in Massachusetts hospital psychiatric beds has reached an unprecedented level, forcing state and local officials to scramble to find transitional and residential placements for them while a legal advocacy group and the state iron out details of a federal court order to remake the state’s system of care for them. View Article >>
Healthcare group says state must help more Boston Globe, 4/10/07
The state isn't yet doing enough to help people of low and moderate incomes afford health insurance, a coalition of advocacy and medical groups told Governor Deval Patrick yesterday. View Article >>
No new patients, Cape Code Times, 4/8/07
More Cape Codders are enrolling in MassHealth, but the number of primary care practices taking new patients on the state-subsidized health insurance is shrinking. View Article >>
Too many kids stuck inside psych units: They’re ready to be released, but after-care is lacking, The Patriot Ledger, 4/7/07
More than 150 kids will spend Easter weekend stuck in psychiatric units, even though they are well enough to leave, because there aren’t enough services to care for them at home. View Article >>
Brockton health center fighting to keep universal health insurance affordable, South of Boston, 4/6/07
As the deadline for the commonwealth's universal health insurance plan nears, Brockton health officials remain adamant about the need to make it affordable. View Article >>
Enrollment in subsidized health plans beating projections, Boston Globe, 4/3/07
People are enrolling faster than expected in health insurance plans under a new state law that eventually will require most Massachusetts residents to have coverage. View Article >>
Teens Get Needed Access to Care with State Health Insurance, University of Rochester Pediatric Research News, 4/2/07
When given health insurance through the state children’s health insurance program (SCHIP), teens see their doctors more often, racial disparities are eliminated and more preventive care is received. This often-overlooked age group also received more counseling from their health care providers about guns, smoking, drugs, alcohol and sexuality – all issues that impact their long-term health. View Article >>
Should Congress increase children's health insurance funding? No, Charleston Gazette, 4/1/07
WASHINGTON — Congress should reauthorize the State Children’s Health Insurance Program with healthy increases, but stop well short of the budget-busting $50 billion to $60 billion expansion some lawmakers are seeking. View Article >>
Medicaid citizenship lawsuit dropped, United Press International, 3/30/07
WASHINGTON, March 30 (UPI) -- Plaintiffs have voluntarily dropped a suit challenging a U.S. law requiring Medicaid beneficiaries to prove their citizenship. View Article >>
Mental health center to repay $556,687, Boston Globe, 3/29/2007
A local social services provider has agreed to pay the state more than half a million dollars to settle allegations it billed the state Medicaid program and the Massachusetts Department of Mental Health for services it never rendered, officials said yesterday. View Article >>
Line items and lifelines, Boston Globe, 3/2/07
A BUDGET is a statement of priorities. It answers the two most basic questions of government: Where to get the money, and how to spend it. Deval Patrick, the first Democratic governor in 16 years, is trying to say something important about his governing philosophy with a fiscal vocabulary of very few words. Bequeathed a deficit of $1.3 billion, his first budget is necessarily quiet on anything requiring major new spending. The review below says that running a $26.7 billion government is no easy task. View Article >>
Advocates ‘cautiously optimistic’ about governor’s 2008 budget, Bay Windows. 3/1/07
Gov. Deval Patrick released his Fiscal Year 2008 (FY08) budget proposal Feb. 28, which includes a $550,000 increase in HIV/AIDS funding. View Article >>
Save Assets In Face of Nursing Home Care, Boston Herald, 3/1/07
Statistics show that nearly 50 percent of all persons over age 65 will enter a nursing home at some time during their lifetime. In Massachusetts, the cost of nursing home care averages between $80,000 and $120,000 per year. View Article >>
Good, bad in budget, The Transcript, 3/1/07
BOSTON — Local officials and legislators called Gov. Deval Patrick's $26.7 billion budget a good first step Wednesday but indicated there would be many changes ahead for the freshman governor's budget. View Article >>
Patrick proposes $950M in cuts, Worchester Telegram, 2/28/07
BOSTON— Saying his administration has looked the state’s budget problem “right in the eye” and would “set it right,” Gov. Deval L. Patrick last night outlined a budget that would balance a $1.3 billion budget gap with elimination of almost $300 million in corporate tax loopholes and $950 million in spending cuts and program consolidations. View Article >>
Patrick to unveil budget 'vision', South Coast Today' 2/27/07
BOSTON — Gov. Deval Patrick spent months touring Massachusetts, promising reform and a new way of governing on Beacon Hill. View Article >>
Programs for poor are growing: Critics say welfare reforms fall short, Worcester Telegram, 2/27/07
WASHINGTON— Welfare is bigger than ever despite a decade of policies designed to wean poor people from public aid. View Article >>
Patrick seeks $72m hike in health aid, Boston Globe, 2/26/07
Governor Deval Patrick announced yesterday that his budget would dramatically increase public health spending next year, adding $72 million to strengthen disease prevention services and provide universal state coverage for three new immunizations for children, including a vaccine to help protect girls from the sexually transmitted virus that causes cervical cancer. View Article >>
Bush avoids talk about child health care, Boston Herald, 2/26/07
WASHINGTON - President Bush encouraged governors Monday to support his call for changing the tax code to help more people buy private health care insurance, but did not address their pleas to increase funding for a health care program that insures millions of children of the working poor. View Article >>
States are running out of health dollars, Houston Chronicle, 2/23/07
ATLANTA — Some states are warning that hundreds of thousands of poor children could lose their health insurance if Congress doesn't act soon to come through with more money for the program. View Article >>
Massachusetts spurs health-care debate, ABC News/ Reuters, 2/22/2007
BOSTON (Reuters) - Working the phones of a health-care hotline in Boston, Kate Bicego does something that is unique in the country: she explains how even the poorest people can get state-funded health coverage. View Article >>
Dems troubled by Bush budget, Taunton Gazette, 2/22/07
TAUNTON - Domestic budget cuts in President George W. Bush's proposed spending plan could spell trouble for programs in Greater Taunton and the state as a whole, Massachusetts Democrats said. View Article >>
Government Pays Growing Share Of Health Costs, Wall Street Journal 2/21/07
WASHINGTON -- As pressure grows for the government to pick up more of the nation's health-care tab, new data show its contribution is already at 45% and is expected to approach 50% within 10 years. View Article >>
Don't ignore broad health care progress, Boston Business Journal, 2/16/07
Massachusetts has the lowest rate of "un-insurance" in America. This is a headline worth shouting, but one that has gone unreported in the rash of recent media coverage of health reform. We obsess over every bump and rut in the admittedly rocky road of getting insurance to those without, but we never take time to toast our successes, which are striking. View Article >>
New Law to Boost Senior Home Care. Measure Targets Disabled, Elderly on Medicaid (Globe 8.4.06)
Many more low-income seniors and disabled individuals will be able to get state-funded care at home, rather than in a nursing home, under a landmark bill signed yesterday by Governor Mitt Romney.
View
Article>>
Thousands Face Delay in Healthcare Enrollment (Globe 8.3.06)
More than 100,000 uninsured workers will be unable to sign up for subsidized health coverage on the Oct. 1 start date promised in the state's new health insurance law.
View
Article>>
State Health Plans Likely to be Similar. Some Medicaid Insurers Disappointed by Strategy (Globe 8.2.06)
The four Medicaid plans that will be offered to low-income uninsured Massachusetts residents starting Oct. 1 are likely to be nearly identical.
View
Article>>
Seniors’ Home-Care Prospects Seem About to Improve: Bill That Might Keep Some Out of Nursing Homes Awaits Action by Governor (Patriot Ledger 7.28.06)
BOSTON - Under a proposal on Gov. Mitt Romney’s desk, many more disabled and elderly people needing long-term care would be able to stay in their own homes instead of being pushed into nursing homes.
View
Article>>
Federal Funds Strengthen Mass. Universal Health Insurance Plan: US to still provide Medicaid money (Globe 7.27.06)
The state's landmark health insurance law passed an important hurdle yesterday, with the announcement that the federal government has agreed to continue providing Massachusetts $385 million in annual Medicaid money for the next two years.
View
Article>>
House Votes to Widen Home Care Access: Bill Would Benefit Seniors, Disabled. (Globe 7.25.06)
Low-income senior citizens and disabled state residents would have broader access to state-funded home care under a landmark bill that was approved last night by the House.
View
Article>>
State to Study Outpatient Centers: Task Force to Weigh Pros, Cons of Doctors Setting up Centers Outside Hospitals (Patriot Ledger 7.7.06)
BOSTON - The state Legislature plans to assemble a task force aimed at addressing the kind of imaging and surgical centers that physicians can set up outside traditional hospitals.
View
Article>>
Mitt
Pushes Health-Care Support from Deadbeat Dads (Herald 6.01.06)
Gov. Mitt Romney, whose prospective White House bid is being eyed by conservatives
nationally, is taking aim at out-of-wedlock births - calling for deadbeat
dads to pick up their children’s health costs.
View
Article>>
What
Does Reform Mean for Employers? (Herald 6.01.06)
Massachusetts has taken the national lead in health care reform by passing
innovative new legislation with the goal of providing affordable health
insurance coverage to all its residents and covering most of the state’s
more than 500,000 uninsured.
View
Article>>
Moody's:
Health Law to Aid Hospitals--Firm Sees Gains From Decrease in Uninsured
(Globe 5.3.06)
Moody's Investors Service, the New York firm that rates bond issues, yesterday
confirmed what many already know about the new Massachusetts healthcare
law: It will be good for hospitals.
View
Article>>
Health-Care
Hurry-Up: Lawmakers Race to Approve Bill (Herald 5.2.06)
Legislators rushed to pass a massive health-care reform bill to save nearly
$400 million in federal funds, but the money is still in jeopardy, Gov.
Mitt Romney said yesterday.
The state was supposed to submit a plan by Jan. 15 to show how it would
cut its uninsured rolls, but that plan is just now being put in place.
“The truth is that the heavy lifting is still under way, and there’s
a lot more heavy lifting ahead of us,” Romney said. The bill approved
earlier this year is just a blueprint of how the state plans to move toward
near-universal coverage. It will take months to implement it.
View
Article>>
State
sends its health plan to US agency (Globe 5.2.2006)
Massachusetts has formally submitted its plan for nearly universal health
insurance coverage to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services,
the federal agency that will decide whether the measure will reduce the
number of uninsured enough for the state to keep receiving $385 million
in federal Medicaid money each year. State Health and Human Services Secretary
Timothy Murphy said members of his staff are heading to Washington today
to discuss the plan.
View
Article>>
New
health law not meeting needs of the partially blind (Globe 5.1.2006)
Gladys Dixon can peel potatoes for dinner, but she can't cook them herself.
She's 71 and her eyesight has been eroded by cataracts, so her son has
to operate the electric stove.
View
Article>>
April 2006
House
Rejects Health Changes (Herald 4.26.06)
House lawmakers firmly rejected Gov. Mitt Romney’s changes to a
massive health-care bill yesterday, restoring a measure that requires
businesses that don’t provide health insurance to pay a $295-per-employee
penalty.
View
Article>>
MassHealth
Set to Require ID (The Republican 4.22.06)
WASHINGTON - Massachusetts residents who are members of MassHealth, the
state's Medicaid program, will be required to prove they are U.S. citizens
as of June 30 to continue receiving services under the government-subsidized
health insurance program, according to a new regulation supported by the
White House.
View
Article>>
Bay
State's Nonsmokers Could Save--Health Law Can Reward Lifestyle Gains (Globe
4.16.06)
Many Massachusetts residents who live healthy lives by exercising and
not smoking could enjoy lower insurance premiums under one of several
provisions of the landmark new healthcare law designed to discourage risky
behavior and help control medical costs.
View
Article>>
Democrats
as Models (Globe 4.16.06)
The Democrats lined up behind Governor Mitt Romney on the stage of Faneuil
Hall last week should have negotiated a modeling fee. Imagine the residuals
the fawning extras might have reaped from Romney's inevitable campaign
reproductions of the sham signing ceremony of the bogus ''universal"
health insurance bill.
View
Article>>
A
Bold Insurance Experiment (Globe 4.16.06)
It is starting before the proverbial ink dries on the healthcare reform
bill. The
sniping, that is. Along with the second-guessing.
View
Article>>
Mitt’s
Vetoes on Health Care Make Pols Sick (Herald 4.13.06)
Angry lawmakers vowed yesterday to override Gov. Mitt Romney’s vetoes
of key sections of a major health-care system overhaul.
They said they were surprised and disappointed that Romney didn’t
discuss with them the changes he planned and accused him of putting his
political agenda ahead of the good of the commonwealth.
View
Article>>
Incision
decisions (Herald 4.13.06)
What Romney left in:
Requirement that everyone get insurance. The penalty is up to half of
the lowest-cost plan offered through a new state agency. Penalty expected
to top $1,000 per year.
View
Article>>
Landmark
Health Bill Now Law (The Republican 4.13.06)
BOSTON - Gov. W. Mitt Romney yesterday signed into law a bill for universal
health coverage, but vetoed parts that call for dental coverage for poor
people and an assessment on certain employers who don't provide health
insurance.
View
Article>>
Mass.
Health Plan Requires Patience (Globe 4.6.06)
Not having health insurance could get costly in Massachusetts under a
reform plan that could have far-reaching implications. The bill approved
by lawmakers awaits Gov. Mitt Romney’s signature. He has indicated
that he will sign the plan, which would make the state the first in the
nation to require residents to get health insurance. It’s a measure
some patient activists only reluctantly endorsed.
View
Article>>
To
Fix Ailing Building, UMass Taps Medicaid (Globe 4.13.06)
When defective granite siding buckled on the exterior of the University
of Massachusetts Memorial Medical Center in Worcester, state officials
needed $55 million to fix the problem. They got it from an unlikely source:
the federal Medicaid program.
View
Article>>
Joy,
Worries on Healthcare--As Romney Signs Bill, Doubts Arise About Revenues
(Globe 4.13.06)
Governor Mitt Romney signed most of a sweeping new healthcare bill into
law yesterday at a festive Faneuil Hall ceremony hailed as a hallmark
of bipartisan achievement, even as healthcare specialists expressed concern
that the plan could start losing money in three years.
View
Article>>
Back
to the Legislature (Globe 4.13.06)
Governor Mitt Romney vetoed these provisions in the bill:
An annual ''Fair Share Assessment" charge of $295 per worker on employers
of 11 or more workers who don't provide health insurance, as well as a
report on the impact of the assessment. ''I am vetoing this section because
it is not necessary to implement or finance healthcare reform," the
governor said.
View
Article>>
Governor
Likely to Veto Health Fee--Stance Angers Top Democrats; Override Seen
(Globe 4.12.06)
Governor Mitt Romney is expected to veto a fee of $295 per employee on
some firms that is a key part of the new healthcare bill, angering Democrats
he invited to appear with him this morning for a highly choreographed
signing ceremony at Faneuil Hall.
View
Article>>
Bill
Aids 2 Hospitals That Assist Poor--State Seeks to Ensure They Get Funds
to Replace Those Lost as Free-Care Pool Ends (Globe 4.11.06)
Two hospitals that provide care for the most low-income patients in Massachusetts
won strong market protections in the state's healthcare reform bill, saving
them from a potentially crippling loss of funding.
View
Article>>
US
Rule Demands Proof of Citizenship for Healthcare--Law Could Hurt the State's
Poorest (Globe 4.11.06)
Governor Mitt Romney and US Senator Edward M. Kennedy, political leaders
from opposing parties but allies on the state's new healthcare plan, have
separately begun exerting influence in Washington to ensure Massachusetts
continues receiving $385 million in federal Medicaid funding that hinges
on the new bill.
View
Article>>
Kennedy,
Romney Push Health Plan--Seek Assurance of Funds from D.C. (Globe 4.8.06)
Almost all of the state's poorest residents will have to show proof of
US citizenship to continue getting medical care by July 1, under a little-noticed
federal law that could endanger coverage for many, as Massachusetts is
trying to expand access to healthcare.
View
Article>>
Mass.
Health Plan Requires Patience (Globe 4.6.06)
Almost all of the state's poorest residents will have to show proof of
US citizenship to continue getting medical care by July 1, under a little-noticed
federal law that could endanger coverage for many, as Massachusetts is
trying to expand access to healthcare.
View
Article>>
Health
Bill Premiums May Exceed Predictions--Ability of Some to Pay at Issue
(Globe 4.6.06)
When Governor Mitt Romney dramatically proposed a universal health insurance
plan a year ago, a key element was providing low-cost, pared-down coverage
for about $200 a month.
View
Article>>
Health
Legislation Puts Emphasis on Pay for Performance (Globe 4.5.06)
The hundreds of millions of dollars in new Medicaid payments that will
go to providers under the health reform legislation have a catch: Hospitals
and doctors must show they are meeting quality standards -- and controlling
costs -- before they can collect all of the money.
View
Article>>
State
Passes Insurance Bill (The Republican 4.5.06)
BOSTON - State legislators yesterday easily approved a sweeping bill that
would expand health care by requiring residents to have health insurance.
The House of Representatives voted 155-2 in support and the Senate voted
37-0. Legislators sent the bill to the desk of Gov. W. Mitt Romney, who
now has 10 days to act.
View
Article>>
Lobbyists
Took in $7.5m on Health Bill--Industry Boosts Spending by Third (Globe
4.5.06)
Lobbyists for hospitals, insurance companies, and other major players
in the healthcare industry were paid at least $7.5 million in 2005 as
the Legislature took up a major healthcare bill, records show.
View
Article>>
Pols
Tout Health Solution: Insurance Vote Expected Today (Herald 4.4.06)
Bay State residents could be forced to get health insurance or face fines
of more than $1,000under a massive health-care reform package lawmakers
are expected to vote on as early as today. The plan would also require
businesses with 11 employees or more that fail to provide health insurance
to pay a penalty of $295 a year per employee.
View
Article>>
Bill
Provides Insurance To All (The Republican 4.4.06)
BOSTON - Legislative leaders yesterday unveiled a comprehensive bill aimed
at providing health coverage for up to 95 percent of the state's uninsured
within three years, partly by requiring those individuals to buy insurance
or face a penalty.
View
Article>>
Mass.
Bill Requires Health Insurance-Romney May Get Compromise Today (Globe
4.4.06)
Every Massachusetts resident would be required to have health insurance
on July 1, 2007, under a landmark healthcare bill the Legislature could
send to Governor Mitt Romney as early as today.
View
Article>>
House,
Senate Set to Vote on Final Version of Health Care Bill (Globe 4.4.06)
BOSTON --Massachusetts residents who can afford health insurance but refuse
to pay for it would face increasing tax penalties under a sweeping health
care reform package designed to dramatically expand coverage to the more
than 500,000 uninsured residents in the state.
View
Article>>
Highlights
From Final Health Care Bill (Globe 4.3.06)
Some highlights from the compromise health care bill unveiled by House
and Senate leaders on Monday. The bill, which could be approved as early
as Tuesday, would:
View
Article>>
Lawmakers
Unveil Final Version of Health Care Bill (Globe 4.3.06)
House and Senate leaders unveiled a sweeping health care reform package
Monday that set Massachusetts on a path to dramatically expand coverage
to the more than 500,000 uninsured residents in the state, and impose
penalties on those who refuse to insure themselves.
View
Article>>
Healthcare
Reform -- With a Dose of Profit (Globe 4.2.06)
The rich get richer. Can that economic reality coexist with true healthcare
reform? The rich -- in this case Partners HealthCare, the parent of Massachusetts
General Hospital and Brigham and Women's -- insist it can.
View
Article>>
State
to Cease Paying for Drugs (The Republican 3.16.06)
WASHINGTON - The emergency intervention Massachusetts provided for MassHealth
members who were having difficulty getting their drug prescriptions filled
at the pharmacy under the new federal Medicare Part D program ends today.
View
Article>>
Romney
Rebuffed on Health Proposal: Bid Rejected to Cut Employers' Fees (Globe
3.15.06)
Democratic legislative leaders rejected a last-ditch effort yesterday
by Governor Mitt Romney and his allies to water down a proposed business
assessment that would help pay for a comprehensive healthcare bill, a
move that would have rescued Romney from a politically difficult decision
on whether to veto the legislation.
View
Article>>
Health
executives emerge as state's new power players (Globe 3.13.06)
In a scene right out of the days of the Vault, the secretive group of
Boston business executives that for decades influenced public policy,
Jack Connors, chairman of Partners HealthCare, convened a March 1 meeting
of local powerbrokers to deal with a crisis in the healthcare industry.
View
Article>>
Health-Care
Plan Rift Rocks Hub Biz Groups (Herald 3.8.06)
A sharp divide has opened up in the business community over a compromise
plan to overhaul the state’s health-care system - even as several
key business groups prepare an all-out bid to win support for the proposal.
At issue: A plan to charge businesses that don’t provide health
insurance a set fee for every employee they have.
View
Article>>
Romney
Backs Portions of Health Care Compromise, Unsure of Others (Globe 3.6.06)
BOSTON --Gov. Mitt Romney held off Monday on saying whether he'd support
a sweeping health care reform bill crafted by legislative leaders until
he can determine if it would require a tax increase to pay for it.
View
Article>>
Lischko
Gets Health Post (Globe 3.5.06)
Amy M. Lischko of Topsfield is the new head of the state's Division of
Health Care Finance and Policy, charged with improving the cost and delivery
of healthcare in Massachusetts. The agency, with a $12.7 million budget
and 100 employees, plays a broad role in the state's healthcare industry.
It sets payment rates for MassHealth, the state's insurance program for
low-income residents, and for injured workers who seek compensation under
the state's workers' compensation laws.
View
Article>>
Needs
Should Guide Reform (Globe 3.5.06)
Healthcare reform is not about Salvatore F. DiMasi or Robert E. Travaglini.
It is not only about the interests of Peter Meade, Jack Connors, and Michael
Widmer.
It is a positive step that the House speaker and Senate president are
moving toward providing coverage for some of the more than 500,000 uninsured
in Massachusetts. It is encouraging that some business leaders are acknowledging
their responsibility to share the cost. But could we hold the laurel wreaths?
Where is the comprehensive plan to expand eligibility for MassHealth to
those not now covered by the state's Medicaid program and to subsidize
care for the working poor? Where is the plan to pay for it?
View
Article>>
Mass.
Groups Back Ballot Initiative on Universal Healthcare (3.5.06)
Backers of universal health insurance yesterday refused to throw their
support behind a compromise to expand coverage that is emerging in the
Legislature unless the plan becomes law, and vowed to continue pushing
for a far costlier 2006 ballot initiative that would hike cigarette and
payroll taxes to bring healthcare to all in Massachusetts.
View
Article>>
Deal
Would Charge Firms That Don't Insure Workers: State legislators End Stalemate
on Healthcare (Globe 3.4.06)
After a three-month stalemate, House and Senate leaders yesterday agreed
to charge assessments on businesses that do not provide health insurance
to their workers, clearing the way for the Legislature to enact a sweeping
healthcare bill and make the state eligible for $385 million in federal
Medicaid money.
View
Article>>
Health
bill impasse overcome (3.4.06)
BOSTON - Ending a long stalemate, the two leaders of the Massachusetts
Legislature reached a compromise on a health care bill that would require
5,400 employers who don't provide insurance to pay $295 for each employee.
The agreement also includes a provision to require people to buy health
insurance if they can afford it.
View
Article>>
Feds
Trigger Health Brawl, Take Mass. $$
Congratulations to Senate President Robert Travaglini for hustling through
his health-care reform bill, although it can probably now be filed vertically
- in a wastepaper bin. “Oh, that’s just speculation in and
around the building,” chuckles House Majority Leader John Rogers.
“The House will give this bill serious review.” Not everyone
is convinced.
View
Article>>
Senate
OK's Scaled-Down Health Bill: The Uninsured Could Pay Costs or Penalties
(3.1.06)
The state Senate passed a scaled-down healthcare bill yesterday that includes
a controversial requirement that could force uninsured residents to purchase
private health plans within two years.
View
Article>>
Plan
Penalizes Some Uninsured: Care Free for Low-Income People (Herald 3.1.06)
Individuals could be forced to buy health insurance or face losing their
tax refunds under a plan approved by the Senate yesterday. The measure
includes a new program to provide free or subsidized insurance to low-income
individuals.
View
Article>>
Lawmakers
Water Down Health-Care Reform Plan (Herald 2.28.06)
After failing to pass ambitious health-care reform, lawmakers are eyeing
scaled-back plans in hopes of saving nearly $400 million in federal funds.
Senate leaders yesterday unveiled a less-ambitious plan that would provide
free or subsidized health insurance to low-income residents. It doesn’t
include controversial measures to require employers to provide health
insurance or force people to buy it.
View
Article>>
State
addresses budget concerns (The Republican 2.28.06)
HOLYOKE - A senior administrator for the Sisters of Providence Health
System warned legislators yesterday that some other revenue has to be
developed for hospitals to offset the loss of some profitable testing
procedures and what he called inadequate Medicaid and Uncompensated Care
Pool money.
View
Article>>
New
Senate Bill Would Cover Half of State Uninsured (Globe 2.28.06)
The state Senate, in an 11th-hour bid to keep $385 million in annual federal
Medicaid money coming into Massachusetts, will debate a slimmed-down health
care bill today that aims to cover roughly half of the state's un insured
residents through new subsidized insurance plans.
View
Article>>
Negotiation
scheduled over children's care (The Republican 2.25.06)
SPRINGFIELD - Talks between lawyers representing the state and those representing
children with serious emotional problems will continue until June 5 in
an attempt to come up with an adequate health service plan for the children.
View
Article>>
Lawmakers
Still Sparring Over Healthcare for Uninsured (Globe 2.22.06)
An agreement on a landmark bill to provide healthcare to the state's uninsured
appears to be as far away as ever, with House and Senate leaders openly
expressing frustration with each other and Governor Mitt Romney chiding
the Legislature for its lack of progress.
View
Article>>
Debate
on Health Produces Gridlock (Globe 2.14.06)
Three months after the Massachusetts House and Senate approved competing
healthcare plans, Senate President Robert E. Travaglini said yesterday
he is "very concerned" that there are "significant differences"
between the two sides endangering the search for a compromise.
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Delay
Seen for Healthcare Bill (Globe 2.15.06)
Governor Mitt Romney said yesterday that Massachusetts almost certainly
will miss a July 1 federal deadline for launching a new health program,
a delay that could cost the state millions in federal Medicaid money.
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Lack
of Health Plans a Worrisome Trend (The Republican 2.13.06)
AnnaRosa Rotundo of Holyoke thought she had it made when she was hired
as a medical assistant with full benefits at the University of Massachusetts
three years ago. For $100 a week, the 35-year-old mother of four was able
to cover her entire family under the university's insurance plan. Then
she got laid off - an unexpected detour that has left her on a sixth-month
odyssey to find another job with health-care coverage while her children's
care is shifted to the Medicaid rolls.
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Medicaid
Funds Tied to State Reform Bill (The Republican 2.08.06)
WASHINGTON - The Bush Administration said yesterday Massachusetts doesn't
have to face a 16 percent cut in federal Medicaid reimbursements - some
$758 million. But the money is contingent upon the state completing a
health-reform bill.
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Many
Employees Turn to Medicaid (The Republican 2.07.06)
SPRINGFIELD - A recent report by the Division of Health Care Finance and
Policy notes that many Massachusetts companies have more than 50 employees
using MassHealth, the state's Medicaid health insurance program for the
poor.
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Budget
Lands Solid Blow on Bay State (The Republican 2.07.06)
WASHINGTON - The president's $2.77 trillion budget submitted yesterday
level-funds the federal home heating program despite sharp increases in
energy prices, puts in jeopardy $758 million of Medicaid reimbursements,
and cuts by $22 million the Community Development Block Grant program,
used by Bay State communities for economic development.
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Article>>
Costs
for Uninsured Workers Up (Globe 2.2.06)
The price of providing healthcare at no charge to some Massachusetts workers
has gone up. The state Office of Health and Human Services said the government
spent $213 million during the 2005 fiscal year to pay for the healthcare
of about 160,000 employees and their dependents covered under MassHealth,
the state Medicaid program, and free care provided by hospitals. Some
chose to receive free healthcare even though their employers offered subsidized
health insurance plans. The amount is about four times what the state
estimated last year. "This study demonstrates a broken healthcare
system," said Tim Murphy, secretary of health and human services,
in a statement. "We need to ensure that both employers and employees
act responsibly."
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Article>>
Romney
Lobbies in Person on Health (Globe 2.2.06)
Knock knock.
Who's there? Mitt.
Mitt who?
It's Governor Mitt Romney, who wants a sweeping healthcare plan before
he leaves office and is apparently willing to play postman to get it.
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Article>>
Medicaid
Cash Lifts Hospital Profit (Globe 1.31.06)
When UMass Memorial Medical Center disclosed its $79 million year-end
profit for 2005, administrators at the Worcester hospital took credit
for cutting costs and attracting more patients but effectively ignored
an important reason for the strong showing: a key lobbying victory.
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Article>>
Children
Cheated by Health System (The Republican 1.27.06)
When UMass Memorial Medical Center disclosed its $79 million year-end
profit for 2005, administrators at the Worcester hospital took credit
for cutting costs and attracting more patients but effectively ignored
an important reason for the strong showing: a key lobbying victory.
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Article>>
Judge
Rips State on Care for Mentally Ill Children (Globe 1.27.06)
SPRINGFIELD - In a landmark decision that has national ramifications,
U.S. District Judge Michael A. Ponsor ruled yesterday that the state has
failed to provide adequate, timely health services to about 15,000 impoverished
children with serious emotional problems.
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Article>>
Romney
Unveils his Budget Plan (Republican 1.26.06)
BOSTON - Gov. W. Mitt Romney yesterday unveiled a $25.19 billion budget
proposal for the upcoming fiscal year that calls for changing the formula
for distributing general education aid in a way that hurts districts like
Springfield, but benefits fast-growing school systems such as Belchertown.
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Article>>
Compromise
Near on State Health Plan, Senator Says (Globe 1.20.06)
Legislators are close to reaching a compromise on a healthcare plan for
the uninsured, Senator Richard T. Moore said yesterday, adding that he
expects to have a bill on Governor Mitt Romney's desk by mid-February.
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Changes
to State Health System Would Benefit Firms, Study Says (Globe 1.18.06)
Proposed reforms to the Massachusetts healthcare system would provide
an overall cost benefit to the majority of the state's employers, according
to a study to be released today by a national consumer advocacy group.
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Article>>
Feds
Promise Fixes for Rx Plan Glitches (Herald 1.18.06)
Medicare officials have a message for members of the program’s new
drug benefit: Don’t leave the pharmacy without your medicine.
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Interim
Measure will Provide Short-Term Meds to Elderly (Herald 1.17.06)
Pharmacists and consumer advocates are hoping a move by the Bush administration
to clear up confusion around the new federal prescription drug plan will
soon bring relief to older people.
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Article>>
Action
by State Fails to Fix Drug Plan Woes (Globe 1.11.06)
A day after state health officials took emergency action to ensure senior
citizens are not denied medications because of confusion surrounding the
new federal Medicare drug benefit, there are reports that some are still
leaving pharmacies empty-handed.
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Article>>
As
Medicare Tangles, State Guarantees Prescriptions (Globe 1.10.06)
State health officials yesterday ordered pharmacists to fill prescriptions
under the new Medicare drug plan after learning that some senior citizens
are being denied their medications.
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Pharmacists
Can’t Verify Many on Drug Plan (Herald 1.10.06)
Low-income seniors and disabled people already enrolled in the federal
government’s new drug plan are being turned away by Bay State pharmacists
— forcing state officials to step in and foot the bill.
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State
Helping Elders with New Medicare Drug Program (Patriot Ledger 1.10.06)
The state has stepped in to help more than 262,000 seniors and disabled
people get prescriptions filled under the new Medicare drug plan. Some
people in Medicare who are also covered by MassHealth (the state Medicaid
program) or the state’s Prescription Advantage program for low-income
people have been turned away from pharmacies when they tried to fill prescriptions.
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Article>>
Urgent
Care (Globe 1.06.06)
With a Jan. 15 deadline approaching, the Legislature ought to be near
agreement on a healthcare bill that would expand coverage to Massachusetts
residents who are uninsured. Yet leaders are deadlocked. It's time the
House and Senate came together on a plan that provides the revenue needed
to make a permanent dent in this problem.
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Article>>
Mass.
Dems Decry Senate Vote to Cut Aid to Poor (Herald 12.22.05)
Bay State Democratic leaders are labeling U.S. Senate Republicans as grinches
for passing legislation yesterday that will slash aid to the poor to trim
$39.7 billion from the federal deficit. “It’s a bill that
stole Christmas from many people,” said Boston Mayor Thomas M. Menino.
“The budget reconciliation bill passed by the Senate earlier this
morning cuts important programs for low-income families and will significantly
impact Boston across the board.”
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Article>>
Romney
Restores Dental Benefits to Women in MassHealth (Globe 12.20.05)
Faced with a class-action lawsuit, the Romney administration has agreed
to restore dental benefits to pregnant women and certain mothers who receive
health coverage from MassHealth, the state's Medicaid program.
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Article>>
Health
Industry Grows Stronger: Most Mass. Hospitals Boosted Results in '05 but
Need More Cash for Improvements (Globe 12.20.05)
Most Massachusetts hospitals earned larger profits in fiscal year 2005,
and the number of hospitals losing money continued to shrink, according
to a snapshot of hospital finances released by the state.
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Article>>
Tax
Revenue Slowdown in Forecast: State's Plans for Spending Could Suffer
(Globe 12.13.05)
The state's recent surge in tax revenues will probably slow in the next
two years, according to economic forecasters who testified on Beacon Hill
yesterday, dampening expectations of a big spending spree and the income
tax cut sought by Governor Mitt Romney.
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Article>>
Young,
Uninsured, and Unconcerned. Citing the Expense, Some Balk at Health Plan
Mandate (Globe 11.13.05)
East Boston realtor Ulises Rosa is 31 years old and healthy. He has a
taste for fine wine, likes to host catered dinner parties, and travels
often. But he bristles at the idea that the state may force him to buy
health insurance, just as he must buy auto insurance.
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Article>>
Healthcare
Plans' Similarities, Differences (Globe 11.13.05)
Both Governor Mitt Romney and House Speaker Salvatore F. DiMasi have proposed
healthcare plans that would require everyone to have some sort of health
insurance, a so-called ''individual mandate." The two measures share
many features, but there are also significant differences between them.
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Article>>
State
Senate OK's Healthcare Plan. Proposal is at Odds with House, Romney (Globe
11.10.05)
Setting up a battle with the House, the Massachusetts Senate approved
a healthcare plan yesterday designed to cover about half of the state's
roughly 500,000 uninsured residents over the next two years.
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Senate
launches debate on health care plan (Globe 11.09.05)
BOSTON --Senators began debating a major health care overhaul on Wednesday,
and though their version is more modest in scope than one approved by
the House last week, Senate leaders say it's more likely to accomplish
their goal of cutting in half the number of the uninsured.
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Article>>
Travaglini
Doubts that the State can Afford House Healthcare Bill
Senate to Consider a Narrower Plan (Globe 11.08.05)
Senate President Robert E. Travaglini said yesterday that Massachusetts
''can't financially sustain the cost" of the sweeping healthcare
plan the House approved last week. He said the Senate will take up a more
cautious proposal tomorrow that aims to cover half the state's uninsured
in two years.
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Article>>
Senate
set to debate health care proposal (Globe 11.08.05)
BOSTON --Senate leaders aren't ruling out the possibility of a new tax
to help pay for expanding the state's health care system -- but say there's
no need for one now.
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House
Leader Defends Tax Bill (The Republican 11.05.05)
BOSTON - A leader of the Massachusetts House of Representatives yesterday
defended a bill that creates a new payroll tax to help provide health
insurance to about 500,000 uninsured residents.
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House
Approves Healthcare Overhaul. Tax at Odds with Plans by Romney, Travaglini
(Globe 11.04.05)
The Massachusetts House of Representatives overwhelmingly approved last
night a sweeping healthcare bill that promises to cover nearly all the
state's 500,000 uninsured residents within three years.
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Article>>
Landmark
Bill: State Takes Step Closer to Universal Health Care (Patriot Ledger
11.04.05)
BOSTON - Universal health insurance, or nearer to it than any state has
come, is moving closer toward reality in Massachusetts.
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DiMasi
Vows Prompt Health Plan Vote (Globe 11.03.05)
House Speaker Salvatore F. DiMasi vowed yesterday to push forward with
today's scheduled debate on the House's far-reaching healthcare plan,
even as business leaders stepped up their efforts to delay a vote.
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Article>>
Low
Reimbursements Leave NSMC Bleeding Red (Boston Business Journal 10.28.05)
SALEM -- North Shore Medical Center is on track to have one of the state's
larger hospital operating losses for fiscal 2005 and is the only Partners
Healthcare-affiliated hospital expected to lose money. Officials blame
much of the red ink on Medicaid and free-care reimbursements that haven't
kept up with inflation or basic costs, even as legislators gear up to
potentially address the problem also faced by other hospitals.
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Article>>
DiMasi:
Health Care Reform Bill on Its Way (Patriot Ledger 10.26.05)
RANDOLPH - Massachusetts House Speaker Salvatore DiMasi says he plans
to have a health care reform bill out for debate in his chamber by Monday.
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Settled
for $704 Million: Local Firm Accused of Bribing Docs, Faking Drug Tests
(Patriot Ledger 10.18.05)
A lawsuit filed by a whistle-blower from Marshfield has prompted one of
the largest health care fraud settlements in history, with drug company
Serono agreeing to pay $704 million to settle federal conspiracy charges.
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Article>>
Audit:
State Losing Hundreds of Millions to Medicaid Fraud (Herald 10.13.05)
BOSTON - The state may be losing hundreds of millions of dollars to Medicaid
fraud, according to a new report from the state auditor which criticizes
state officials for not doing more to detect and discourage such abuses.
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Article>>
Dental
clinic to provide needed care (The Republican 10.11.05)
SPRINGFIELD - With construction crews at work since last month, a two-chair,
dental clinic at German Gerena Community School will open early next year.
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Article>>
Study
Questions Impact of Health Proposals: HMOs Say Rule Changes Alone Won't
Trim Rolls of Uninsured (Globe 10.07.05)
Efforts to cut the number of uninsured people in Massachusetts merely
by changing the rules in the regulated insurance market are unlikely to
have much impact, according to a draft study commissioned by the Massachusetts
Association of Health Plans, a trade group for health maintenance organizations.
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Article>>
Grants
Promote Effort to Boost Medicaid Rolls (The Republican 10.05.05)
BOSTON - The state yesterday awarded $500,000 in grants for community
groups to scour soup kitchens and shelters, launch marketing campaigns
and undertake other efforts to increase enrollment in Medicaid.
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US
Threatens Cutoff of $385m for Medicaid: State Told to Reduce Number of
Uninsured (Globe 10.04.05)
The US government is warning that it may stop sending as much as $385
million in Medicaid money it gives to Massachusetts annually if the state
fails to pass healthcare legislation by early next year.
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Romney,
Kennedy Lobby for Keeping Medicaid Funds (Globe 9.28.05)
WASHINGTON -- Concerned that millions of dollars in federal Medicaid contributions
to Massachusetts could be at risk, Governor Mitt Romney and Senator Edward
Kennedy met with a top Bush administration official yesterday to argue
that the funding is critical in providing healthcare to the poor and uninsured.
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Article>>
Slow
Push for Health Care Reform Raises Frustration:
Political Wrangling, Lost Momentum Hobbling State House Efforts (Boston
Business Journal 9.23.05)
With another year of double-digit health insurance rate hikes looming,
some Massachusetts business lobbyists are becoming increasingly frustrated
about the prospects for legislative reform this year that could bring
much needed relief.
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Pain
from MassHealth (Globe 9.22.05)
Sitting in her lawyer's office Tuesday, Ashley Shaw didn't come across
as the type of teenager who would opt for needless cosmetic surgery.
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Article>>
Dialysis
Supply Company Pays Fine to Settle Overbilling Charges (Globe 9.21.05)
BOSTON --A company that provides supplies and equipment to patients undergoing
kidney dialysis at home