Publications
In this eighth DataPoints issue, the HPC analyzes growth in these alternative care sites in Massachusetts over time, the geographic areas in which they are located, and the types and costs of services they typically provide.
This seventh publication in the DataPoints series uses data on imaging use and spending for Original Medicare (“fee-for-service”) beneficiaries to compare spending and use in Massachusetts to the rest of the U.S.
The following analyses compare these 14 provider organizations by averaging patient characteristics and spending for commercially insured adult patients (ages 18 and older) whose PCPs are affiliated with each organization.
Health care quality measurement serves an increasingly important role in supporting the delivery of high-value health care, guiding improvement activities, and promoting accountability for health-related outcomes across providers.
The HPC will publish a chartpack in order to better understand the impact of the epidemic on the health care system from 2011 to 2015. While the initial report focused on opioid-related hospital inpatient discharges, the new chartpack includes ED visits as well. Below are some highlights from this upcoming chartpack.
In the 2016 Cost Trends Report, the Health Policy Commission (HPC) reported on an increase in prescription drug claims with no cost sharing in the years following the ACA’s implementation across the three largest commercial payers in the Commonwealth. The HPC has now expanded this analysis to better understand the nature of these claims, including the extent to which they comprised claims for contraception services, which represent high-value care.
In the 2016 Cost Trends Report, the Health Policy Commission (HPC) reported that 42% of all ED visits in Massachusetts in 2015 were avoidable, a share that has remained constant since 2011. HPC expanded this analysis to better understand these avoidable ED visits.
In August 2016, the Health Policy Commission (HPC) reported its findings that a substantial number of emergency department (ED) visits are for preventable oral health conditions. ED visits for oral health complaints are a particularly poor use of the health system for both patients and providers alike.