This budget brief comparing the House and Senate Fiscal Year 2012 (FY 2012) budget proposals for MassHealth (Medicaid) and other health care programs is the fifth in a series of fact sheets that are published by the Massachusetts Medicaid Policy Institute (MMPI) and produced by the Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center in partnership with the Massachusetts Law Reform Institute. MMPI is publishing budget fact sheets at each stage in the FY 2012 budget process, as budget proposals move through the legislature.

This report, by Beth Waldman from Bailit Health Purchasing and Kate Nordahl of the Massachusetts Medicaid Policy Institute, provides an in-depth discussion of the provisions from the Affordable Care Act (ACA) which impact Medicaid programs and how these provisions will be applied in Massachusetts.

This budget brief describes the sections of the Fiscal Year 2012 (FY 2012) final budget bill as signed by the legislature and including the Governor's vetoes' that are relevant to MassHealth (Medicaid) and other programs that support health care coverage for the state's low- and moderate-income populations. It is the final in a series of fact sheets published by the Massachusetts Medicaid Policy Institute (MMPI) and produced by the Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center in partnership with the Massachusetts Law Reform Institute.

Comprehensive report presenting combined Medicare and Medicaid spending data for non-elderly adults (ages 21 to 64) dually eligible for Medicare and Medicaid in Massachusetts. This report was created by Ellen Breslin Davidson and Tony Dreyfus of BD Group. MMPI produced this report in collaboration with the Office of Medicaid in the Executive Office of Health and Human Services. Designed to support use of the charts in slide presentations.

Released on the fifth anniversary of the passage of Massachusetts health reform, this comprehensive slide deck pulls together the findings of surveys and other efforts to monitor the impact of the 2006 Massachusetts health reform law. The charts in this report track the impact of Massachusetts health reform efforts on coverage and access to care, the response to the individual mandate, employer participation in providing coverage to employees, and public opinion. Data come from surveys and analyses by state government agencies including the Massachusetts Division of Health Care Finance and Policy, the Massachusetts Department of Revenue, and the Massachusetts Health Insurance Connector Authority. In addition, highlights from health reform tracking surveys conducted annually by the Urban Institute are included. Updated regularly.

This poll, fielded in late September 2011 and led by Robert Blendon at the Harvard Opinion Research Program, probed 1002 Massachusetts adults on various questions surrounding health care costs, including their perceptions of major cost drivers, who they believe should take the lead on addressing costs and how important is it for the state to take major action. The results reveal that the public is greatly concerned over rising costs and ready for the state to take major actions to tackle them.

This report by Colleen Barry of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health explores opportunities and issues around integrating behavioral health care and primary care under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and payment and delivery system reforms in Massachusetts. The report provides preliminary recommendations on how these major policy changes might be implemented with the goal of improving the coordination, quality and outcomes of mental health and addiction care in the Commonwealth.

Chart pack, prepared by the Center for Health Law and Economics at the UMass Medical School, including summary data on MassHealth enrollment and spending.  Designed to support use of the charts in presentations. 

Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts Foundation report by Alan G. Raymond on the first five years of Massachusetts health reform implementation, including comprehensive assessments of how the law is working, impacts on coverage and access to care, and cost and funding.

This toolkit offers resources to help states determine health benefit designs to be offered on state health insurance exchanges. (11/2011)

Report summarizing the results of a series of interviews conducted by the Center for Health Care Strategies with key Medicaid stakeholders from across the country on cutting-edge Medicaid strategies including: purchasing strategies to optimize delivery systems; payment strategies to leverage existing funds; integrated models of care to improve services for complex populations; and opportunities for improved organizational capacity.

This toolkit offers resources to help states plan and implement a successful risk mitigation strategy for the state's health exchange. 

Summary of the MassHealth 1115 waiver renewal including a brief overview of four new provisions approved under the waiver renewal.

This report, written by Tony Dreyfus and Ellen Breslin Davidson of BD Group, provides an overview of the federal and state experience with risk adjustment in programs serving persons dually eligible for both Medicare and Medicaid.

This report is the latest in a series by the Urban Institute analyzing the impact of the Massachusetts health reform law. Findings show that despite the state's economic recession Massachusetts has maintained record low levels of uninsured and access to needed health care has improved. This report is based on the 2010 Massachusetts Health Reform Survey (MHRS), which has tracked the impact of the law annually since 2006.