As Nation Braces For Obamacare, Mass. Tackles Health Costs

If for some reason you’re not already drowning in the rough waters of U.S. health policy — what with the Affordable Care Act’s health exchanges launching today and Congress and President Obama still duking it out over the four-year-old law upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court — well, you’re in luck. Because in the midst of all this Obamacare angst and government shutdown, our fair state this week kicks off the Oscars of health wonkdom, aka, the Massachusetts Health Policy Commission’s Annual Health Care Cost Trends Hearing.

It’s a time for state health care officials and bureaucrats to conduct a little reality check with insurers, hospitals, businesses and consumers to ensure that everyone’s making a good-faith effort to hold down medical costs.

Stuart Altman, economist and professor of National Health Policy at Brandeis University and chair of the board of the Massachusetts Health Policy Commission, says the role of the commission is to keep all of the players involved in the health system accountable and sharply focused on driving down costs while improving quality. “We’re like a big searchlight on the system to say ‘Hey this is good’ or Hey, this is not good,” and then follow up, Altman said on WBUR’s Radio Boston Monday.

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Source: WBUR