A state senator has already introduced a bill to cap provider payments at 110 percent of Medicare charges, but he indicted he would accept a higher percentage.
A state commission last year proposed replacing the current payment system with a per-patient annual fee to cover a patient’s entire medical care, but the system would take five years to implement and many legislative leaders want caps until then.
In addition, Gov. Deval Patrick has proposed giving state officials power to review and reject rates set by hospitals, physicians and other providers, as well as insurers.
The state Division of Health Care Finance and Policy, which is currently holding hearings on rate increases, reported medical spending on privately insured residents grew more than 15 percent from 2006 to 2008, primarily because of outpatient care in expensive hospitals.
A separate report found healthcare spending in the state is 54 percent above the national average, partly because Massachusetts relies heavily on academic medical centers for care.
Read the Boston Globe’s report on Massachusetts payment caps.
