Publications

A key aspect of the affordability challenge in Massachusetts is rising out-of-pocket (OOP) costs. The HPC has found that average OOP spending among commercially-insured residents increased by 20% from 2015-2017, with an estimated 100,000 Massachusetts residents facing persistently high OOP spending.

Despite favorable outcomes associated with midwifery care, and the potential of midwife-led care to help to address ongoing racial disparities in birth outcomes, rates of midwife-attended births in the U.S. remain low. The Certified Nurse Midwives (CNMs) and Maternity Care in Massachusetts report examines the state of midwifery in the Commonwealth and provides recommendations to improve this landscape.

In this annual report for 2021, the HPC presents new research to enhance the collective understanding of health care spending trends and cost drivers and evaluates progress in meeting the Commonwealth’s cost containment, care delivery, and payment system goals.

This legislatively-mandated report analyzes the impact of COVID-19 on the health care delivery system in Massachusetts, including short-term and long-term implications.

The Massachusetts Health Policy Commission (HPC) estimated that nearly 40 cents of every additional dollar earned by Massachusetts families between 2016 and 2018 was spent on health care and that 23% of middle class families in Massachusetts with employer coverage devoted more than a quarter of all earnings to health care.

Podium presentation shared at the virtual AcademyHealth Annual Research Meeting in 2020, sharing findings on the utilization and spending impact of prescription drug coupons in Massachusetts.

This legislatively-mandated report examines the use and impact of prescription drug coupons in Massachusetts, focusing on coupons issued by pharmaceutical manufacturers that reduce a commercial patient’s cost-sharing.

This chartpack provides an update on out-of-network billing in Massachusetts, examining the type of services that are prone to “surprise billing,” the potential increased spending for patients and insurers, and particular provider types that have high volumes of out-of-network claims.

In this issue of DataPoints, the HPC analyzed commercial claims for telehealth services from 2015 to 2017 (the most recent data available at time of publication) to characterize the extent and growth of telehealth usage among Massachusetts residents.