Massachusetts health reform still reforming

Two years ago Massachusetts legislators enabled a health care coverage plan called Commonwealth Care, to all residents in the state. To see how employers are coping with the new reform and the universal health care plan, The Alliance for Health Reform and The Commonwealth Fund hosted a briefing on “Massachusetts Health Reform: A Giant Step Toward Universal Coverage?” inviting experts to deliver remarks on the health care issues still facing the nation.

In October 2008, the Massachusetts health reform got three more years of funding. The state is now able to spend up to $21.2 billion in the following three years. According to the health care coverage plan all residents within the state must have health insurance or they’ll face financial penalties. The New York Times stated in an recent article that the health care coverage plan also requires businesses to contribute to employee health benefits or pay penalties to a fund to support the insurance subsidies.

According to Jim Klocke of the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce the percentage of the state population with health insurance as well as the availability of employee-provided coverage are well above the national average. “There had been signals from the administration that they wanted to see states moving in the direction of expanding people on health insurance rather than providing more funds to provide care to people without insurance,” Klocke said.