Massachusetts' 2006 healthcare reform law, signed by former Gov. Mitt Romney and often considered the model for President Barack Obama's Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, did not cause increases in hospital use or costs, according to a report from U.S. News & World Report.
The findings are based on a new study led by Amresh Hanchate, PhD, an economist with the Veterans Affairs Boston Healthcare System, and presented at an American Heart Association conference.
Massachusetts' law included an individual mandate clause similar to the 2010 PPACA, under which Massachusetts residents would face a penalty — a minimum of $1,200 per year — if they did not acquire health insurance by a certain date.
When the law was implemented, about 8.4 percent of Massachusetts citizens were uninsured. But by 2010, that number dipped to 3 percent.
Uninsured rates decreased most among minorities. For instance, in 2006, 15 percent of African-Americans were uninsured, but in 2010, that rate fell to 3.4 percent. In that same timeframe, uninsured rates for Hispanics in the state fell from 20 percent to 9.2 percent.
Dr. Hanchate said he and his team were surprised to find little effect on healthcare utilization after the Massachusetts law went into effect. In fact, changes in healthcare utilization were similar to those observed in New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania — all states that do not have individual healthcare reform laws.
However, the study was only able to analyze inpatient hospital costs, not standard outpatient visits to general care providers. Dr. Hanchate said this omission could skew numbers. "There are laws that require hospitals to submit information for every hospitalization to the state. There's no such mechanism for outpatient centers, so we're a little bit constrained there," he said in the report.
In February 2012, Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick said the law has cost "about 1 percent in additional new state spending" and only about 1 percent of Massachusetts taxpayers ended up paying any penalty under the law by that time.
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The findings are based on a new study led by Amresh Hanchate, PhD, an economist with the Veterans Affairs Boston Healthcare System, and presented at an American Heart Association conference.
Massachusetts' law included an individual mandate clause similar to the 2010 PPACA, under which Massachusetts residents would face a penalty — a minimum of $1,200 per year — if they did not acquire health insurance by a certain date.
When the law was implemented, about 8.4 percent of Massachusetts citizens were uninsured. But by 2010, that number dipped to 3 percent.
Uninsured rates decreased most among minorities. For instance, in 2006, 15 percent of African-Americans were uninsured, but in 2010, that rate fell to 3.4 percent. In that same timeframe, uninsured rates for Hispanics in the state fell from 20 percent to 9.2 percent.
Dr. Hanchate said he and his team were surprised to find little effect on healthcare utilization after the Massachusetts law went into effect. In fact, changes in healthcare utilization were similar to those observed in New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania — all states that do not have individual healthcare reform laws.
However, the study was only able to analyze inpatient hospital costs, not standard outpatient visits to general care providers. Dr. Hanchate said this omission could skew numbers. "There are laws that require hospitals to submit information for every hospitalization to the state. There's no such mechanism for outpatient centers, so we're a little bit constrained there," he said in the report.
In February 2012, Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick said the law has cost "about 1 percent in additional new state spending" and only about 1 percent of Massachusetts taxpayers ended up paying any penalty under the law by that time.
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