By Chelsea Conaboy, Globe Staff Massachusetts senators, in a near-consensus vote yesterday, passedtheir version of a bill to control the growth of health care costsin the state. The bill calls for bringing the rate of growth ofhealth care costs more in line with growth of the overall stateeconomy. Lawmakers debated the bill, and 265 amendments, for two days, reported Shannon Young for the Associated Press : Among the amendments senators passed were the creation of a fund toimprove and expand the ability of certain community hospitals tobetter serve those in need. Other changes to the legislation callfor establishing both a residency grant program to finance trainingof primary care providers at community health centers, and acommission to study the value of graduate medical education in thestate and recommend a sustainable model for funding it. During the debate, Senator Harriette Chandler, Democrat ofWorcester, praised the bill, which builds on the 2006 landmarkuniversal health care law signed by Mitt Romney, then governor.Chandler said the country is watching to see what will happen inMassachusetts, as far as health care is concerned. Pet Carrier Bags
It s a brilliant bill because it s an infrastructure bill.It s a health care payment infrastructure bill, which provides uswith a long-run, long-term approach to dealing with healthcare, she said. Matt Murphy of the State House News Service lays out a major point of tension between the Senate s bill and a cost containment plan now beingconsidered by the House: The bill now moves to the House where leaders have already detailedtheir own version of a bill that differs from the Senate in severalkey areas, including the House s proposal for a luxury tax onhigh-cost hospitals whose price variations from lower-costcommunity hospitals cannot be justified. Asked if she would entertain the luxury tax in eventualnegotiations with the House, Murray said, No. Senate leadership celebrated the bill s passage. China Foldable Shopping Bags
President ThereseMurray said in a statement that, by controlling health costs, thebill will remove a major roadblock to long-term job creationand growth in other sectors in the state, such as education. As Martha Bebinger of WBUR explains , in her comprehensive coverage of the debate, it has its critics: The amendments, as I watch them, many of them really do add tothe cost rather than contain the cost of health care, said BillVernon, with the National Federation of Independent Businesses inMassachusetts. Vernon is skeptical that the bill, with new fees, boards andcommissions, will save the estimated $150 billion over 15 years. I have a very hard time believing that it s actually going toreduce the cost of health care for small businesses and the peoplewho work there, Vernon said. China RPET Bag
The Associated Industries of Massachusetts has advocated for moreaggressive cost control than either the House or Senate haveproposed. Patrick said earlier this week that I think the industry can dobetter than GSP. AIM agrees, Vice President of GovernmentAffairs Kristen Lepore wrote on the group s blog . This is a once in a generation opportunity to pass a bill thatwill solve the state s health care cost crisis.
Former chief executive of Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center PaulLevy writes on his blog that the Senate bill falls short: Perhaps the House will offer more, as this Senate provision willmainly allow folks to document -- again -- what has been going onfor years, disparate rates paid by insurers for the same servicesunder a system of ratemaking that has no accountability, that isguided mainly by market power. While the Senate bill offers much good in other respects, this is adisappointing result for the state s consumers and employers. Chelsea Conaboy can be reached at cconaboy@boston.com. Follow heron Twitter @cconaboy.
It s a brilliant bill because it s an infrastructure bill.It s a health care payment infrastructure bill, which provides uswith a long-run, long-term approach to dealing with healthcare, she said. Matt Murphy of the State House News Service lays out a major point of tension between the Senate s bill and a cost containment plan now beingconsidered by the House: The bill now moves to the House where leaders have already detailedtheir own version of a bill that differs from the Senate in severalkey areas, including the House s proposal for a luxury tax onhigh-cost hospitals whose price variations from lower-costcommunity hospitals cannot be justified. Asked if she would entertain the luxury tax in eventualnegotiations with the House, Murray said, No. Senate leadership celebrated the bill s passage. China Foldable Shopping Bags
President ThereseMurray said in a statement that, by controlling health costs, thebill will remove a major roadblock to long-term job creationand growth in other sectors in the state, such as education. As Martha Bebinger of WBUR explains , in her comprehensive coverage of the debate, it has its critics: The amendments, as I watch them, many of them really do add tothe cost rather than contain the cost of health care, said BillVernon, with the National Federation of Independent Businesses inMassachusetts. Vernon is skeptical that the bill, with new fees, boards andcommissions, will save the estimated $150 billion over 15 years. I have a very hard time believing that it s actually going toreduce the cost of health care for small businesses and the peoplewho work there, Vernon said. China RPET Bag
The Associated Industries of Massachusetts has advocated for moreaggressive cost control than either the House or Senate haveproposed. Patrick said earlier this week that I think the industry can dobetter than GSP. AIM agrees, Vice President of GovernmentAffairs Kristen Lepore wrote on the group s blog . This is a once in a generation opportunity to pass a bill thatwill solve the state s health care cost crisis.
Former chief executive of Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center PaulLevy writes on his blog that the Senate bill falls short: Perhaps the House will offer more, as this Senate provision willmainly allow folks to document -- again -- what has been going onfor years, disparate rates paid by insurers for the same servicesunder a system of ratemaking that has no accountability, that isguided mainly by market power. While the Senate bill offers much good in other respects, this is adisappointing result for the state s consumers and employers. Chelsea Conaboy can be reached at cconaboy@boston.com. Follow heron Twitter @cconaboy.