HEALTH CARE
CommonWealth Beacon dives into the present and future of health and wellness in Massachusetts through its coverage of medical breakthroughs, regional disparities, insurance reshuffles, and the nitty-gritty of health policy.
Report: Health insurers denied one in five claims in 2024
“Out of 45.9 million total claims in 2024, 20.4% were denied by health insurers in Massachusetts, the Health Policy Commission said in a report released Thursday. Denials due to ‘strictly clinical reasons’ like medical necessity represented ‘at most’ 1% of denied requests.”
Growing health care pressure drives up spending in Healey’s annual budget
MassHealth spending would increase more than 7 percent under Gov. Maura Healey’s new state budget proposal, roughly twice as much as all other state spending in a reflection of the challenge Beacon Hill faces to control health care costs.
Trump administration targets program for chronically homeless residents, sparking fear for vulnerable populations in cities like Springfield
The overhaul has been temporarily and partially blocked by a federal judge, but the move is impacting local administrators of the federal program across Massachusetts and has threatened millions of dollars in funding for permanent housing and thousands of beds for the chronically homeless.
What’s behind Massachusetts’s $250m investment in health insurance subsidies
The state still has a few days left of open enrollment through the Massachusetts Health Connector. And from executive director Audrey Gasteier’s perspective, Massachusetts saw “exactly what we worried we would see this open enrollment,” both due to “congressional inaction” on renewing the subsidies and the so-called One Big Beautiful Bill Act passed last year.
Healey unveils $250 million health insurance relief plan
Federal enhanced premium tax credits expired at the end of December, creating turmoil for residents whose subsidies had protected them from steep premium hikes.
As cases rise, flu-related illness claims lives of two Boston children
TWO BOSTON CHILDREN under the age of two have died from flu-related illness, marking the city’s first pediatric influenza deaths since 2013 and raising alarms as flu cases surge and vaccination rates remain low. One of the deaths was reported by the Massachusetts Department of Public Health earlier this week, while the second was confirmed overnight, bringing the statewide total of pediatric flu-related deaths this season to four. “This is obviously a devastating loss for both of their families,” Boston Public Health Commissioner Dr. Bisola Ojikutu said Tuesday. “And we actually in Boston have not had a pediatric flu death…
What to expect when you’re expecting (legislative action)
Major policy issues like housing affordability, primary care access, and utility bills loom over Beacon Hill in 2026, when voters could also decide a dozen ballot questions and pick statewide elected officials.
Healey explores options to cover Mass. residents losing health insurance
Healey said Tuesday that the loss of subsidies will translate into “upwards of 350,000” Mass. residents losing their health insurance.
Primary care spending proposal sets the stage for legislative action in 2026
Pressure will rise on the Legislature to take action after a panel created to review primary care reforms coalesced around a “fundamental rebalancing” of how the state spends money on health.
State audit claims 2023 maternity unit closure in Leominster was preventable
The issue appears to be a spat about accounting records, but it highlights the struggles health providers had during the height of the first COVID waves, when frontline medical personnel were stretched thin, and how the business of health care has made it increasingly difficult to deliver services like maternity care across the state.
Health care workplace violence bill finding traction
According to a bill summary, someone in a Massachusetts health care facility is assaulted, threatened or verbally abused every 38 minutes.
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