From 2006 to 2008, Massachusetts implemented extensive health reform that expanded access to public medical insurance and created exchanges for more affordable private insurance. The reform served as a model for the Affordable Care Act.
For the study, researchers analyzed and compared patient discharge information collected from minority-serving and safety-net hospitals in Massachusetts, New York and New Jersey between 2004 and 2009. Study results indicated a 5.8 percent increase in Massachusetts minority discharges from minority-serving hospitals when compared to New Jersey and a statistically insignificant 2.1 percent tick upward when compared with New York. Across all three states, 62 percent of patients categorized as safety-net hospital users continued to receive care at safety-net facilities post-reformation.
Karen Lasser, MD, primary care internist at BMC and associate professor of medicine at Boston University School of Medicine and lead author of the study, said, “While Massachusetts safety-net hospitals (many of which are minority-serving) received large cuts in payments with the idea that other hospitals would assume the care of previously uninsured patients, this study demonstrates the importance of securing the future of safety-net and minority-serving hospitals through policy-based interventions to assure the continued care of vulnerable and underserved patient populations.”
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