Tag Archives: health care

A Public Meeting on “Dual-eligibles” and the Future of Health Care

31 Oct

A local group called Disability Advocates Advancing our Healthcare Rights (DAAHR) is holding a public meeting tomorrow from 1-3pm at The Paulist Center at 5 Park St. in Boston. Everyone with an interest in shaping health care delivery methods is encouraged to attend, but this meeting should be of particular interest to so-called “dual-eligibles.”

What’s a “dual-eligible?” In plain English, a dual-eligible is any person who qualifies for both Medicare and MassHealth. If this is a new term for you, that’s because it’s a fairly new term for all of us. Part of President Obama’s health care reforms called for a tighter and more efficient coordination between Medicare (which is administered by the federal government) and Medicaid (which is administered by the states). According to federal estimates, dual-eligible people make up 15% of Medicaid enrollment but account for nearly 40% of Medicaid costs. The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act—better-known as Obamacare—awarded $1 million each to Massachusetts and 14 other states to implement pilot programs to deliver care in a seamless, cost-effective way for dual-eligible people.

On the national scale, this is Obamacare in action: a federally funded drive to let states create the health care models that will save us all money in the 21st century. On a local scale, this is a fantastic opportunity to make your voice heard and to help create a program that could become a model for the rest of the country.

If you are dual-eligible or know someone who is, I encourage you to attend tomorrow’s meeting. To request accommodations or for more information, please contact Allegra Stout (astout@bostoncil.org; 617-338-6665) or Florette Willis (willisflorette@yahoo.com; 617-297-2030).

Tim Celebrates Signing of Child Hearing Aid Law with Governor Patrick, Rep. Garballey, and Other Elected Officials

28 Sep

This afternoon, a group of concerned parents gathered with Representatives and Senators for Governor Patrick’s ceremonial signing of H.52, “An Act to Provide Access to Hearing Aids for Children.” I cannot tell you how many times I heard people at the ceremony saying, “This is such a good bill,” and that’s a testament to the hard work of my colleague Representative Sean Garballey, who was the chief sponsor of H.52.

Governor Patrick listens to parents describe the hardship of learning that their child was diagnosed with permanent hearing loss, and of the relief and hope that Rep. Garballey’s bill has brought to them and their children.

And it really is a good bill: H.52 plugs a critical gap in early-childhood health care by expanding on a 1998 law that mandates post-natal hearing screenings. While newborns have been screened for hearing loss for more than a decade, insurers were not required to cover the vital medical devices that would restore the gift of sound to these young lives.

I listened today as one mother after another talked about the sorrow they felt when they learned their children faced hearing loss, and the fear they felt when they learned that hearing aids were not covered by their health insurance. One mother, holding the hands of her 6-, 7-, and 8-year-olds, told us how her family faced a $15,000 decision every year, a decision that forced her and her husband to answer questions no parent ever wants to face. With the passage of this bill, that economic uncertainty—that sick, empty feeling in the pit of a parent’s stomach when an unexpected medical bill arrives—is a thing of the past for thousands of Massachusetts families.

As Governor Patrick pointed out, this hearing aid bill is part of a larger decision we all made as a Commonwealth, namely that “health care is a public good,” and one to which we all deserve access. With the passage of this bill, Massachusetts becomes the 20th state nationally to require insurers to cover the cost of hearing aids, and I’m proud to have co-sponsored this piece of legislation

Cambridge Health Alliance Modernizes for the Future

27 Sep

I spent part of this morning with the Cambridge Health Alliance (CHA), as they marked their transition to a medical home model of health care delivery.The medical home model is part-and-parcel of the health care bill we passed last session, emphasizing the need to identify and learn from accountable care organizations and mandating a transition to global payments away from the traditional fee-for-service model.

Tim speaks about his personal connection to the Cambridge Health Alliance and the importance of the progress that they continue to make as one of the Commonwealth’s safety net hospitals

The CHA is partnering with state and federal authorities as part of a $628 million program designed to increase the effectiveness of care delivery and to reduce operating costs. The program, known as the Delivery Services Transformation Initiative (DSTI), seeks improvement in four major areas: integrated delivery systems, innovative care methods, alternative payment models, and population-level healthcare services.

In plain English, this means that the CHA is moving forward with best-practices such as electronic health records to arm both providers and patients with up-to-the-minute information. In practice, electronic health records function the same way as a patient’s “chart,” only without the possibility of mistakes due to transcription errors or loss of paper records. Electronic health records also make it possible to instantaneously check patient prescriptions against known allergies, integrate lab results with x-rays and MRIs, and let patients bring their chart with them on a smart phone or any other connected device.

The DSTI program is another important step forward on the road toward affordable, high-quality health care for all. As the Governor has pointed out in the past, DSTI funds benefit our “safety net hospitals,” the caregivers who serve our most vulnerable communities, and it’s good to see that the proverbial cavalry has arrived to support our doctors and nurses. I will continue to fight for a single-payer health care system, but the transition of the CHA to a medical home model with the help of the DSTI program is an unequivocal win for our district and for our neighbors. I played an integral role in the creation of the CHA, and I’m proud that they’re continuing to find new ways to improve patient care.