Massachusetts Personal Injury Library
Massachusetts promotes transparency in health care – Andover-MA
Massachusetts attorney Thomas M. Kiley, http://www.tomkileylaw.com, concentrates on cases that deal with health care issues. Massachusetts has joined a handful of other states in passing a law to regulate the interactions between drug and medical device companies and physicians. On January 1, 2009, the new law, "An Act to Promote Cost Containment, Transparency and Efficiency in the Delivery of Quality Health Care" took effect. The new law gives the State Department of Public Health new oversight authority over interactions between pharmaceutical and medical device companies, and health-care practitioners by adopting a code of conduct that the companies must follow; and providing for public access to certain payment arrangements between companies and healthcare practitioners. To find out the particulars of the new law, go to http://www.mass.gov.
According to an article in The Boston Globe an official in Governor Deval Patrick’s administration said that the new law gives Massachusetts the strictest law in the country, in terms of banning all gifts to doctors of merchandise, entertainment, and tickets to sporting events; restricting complimentary meals and travel; and requiring public disclosure of payments of at least $50 for marketing activities.
Consumer advocates who are concerned about the cost and availability of health care for all have been pushing for rules that require companies to disclose their interactions with doctors, biotechnology, and drug companies. Members of the Massachusetts Legislature and the governor’s office have developed these regulations to limit undue influence over doctors while not hampering research and requiring disclosure of trade secrets.
In December, the Massachusetts Health Care Quality and Cost Council launched an interactive website designed to promote transparency in the health care industry. The “My Health Care Options” website, mandated as part of Massachusetts’ health care reform initiative, was developed to help control costs and improve the quality of care available to patients. The new site, http://www.mass.gov/myhealthcareoptions, is the first of its kind in the nation to offer consumers, providers, employers, and policymakers comparative cost and quality information about medical procedures performed at Massachusetts hospitals and outpatient facilities.
“Transparency is vitally important in both controlling costs and improving quality in the health care industry,” said Secretary of Health and Human Services Dr. JudyAnn Bigby, who also chairs the Council. “While it remains to be seen how improved access to price and quality information will impact decision-making, our hope is that the website will empower consumers to spend health care dollars more efficiently and motivate providers to improve quality and decrease their costs.”
The development of this new website is part of a group of initiatives within the Council and across state government to promote quality and monitor health care costs. Last spring, the Council issued a number of recommendations for improving quality of care and containing health care costs in Massachusetts. The Council is currently developing a “Roadmap to Cost Containment” that will specify ways that members of health care can work together to contain costs.
In addition, as part of Massachusetts Governor Patrick Administration’s HealthyMass initiative, nine state agencies are working together to decrease administrative burdens on providers; adopt strategies to improve quality of care; focus on decreasing the impacts of chronic disease; and align payments to support primary care and community hospitals. For more information, go to http://www.mass.gov.
