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Massachusetts selected to participate in State Quality Improvement Institute
April 24, 2008 ... Massachusetts has been selected to participate in the State Quality Improvement Institute, a highly competitive and intensive program to help states plan and implement efforts to improve health care quality, according to Sen. Richard T. Moore, D-Uxbridge. The Institute is a collaboration of AcademyHealth and The Commonwealth Fund. “As the first phase of health care reform in Massachusetts – expanding access – is well underway, it is now appropriate to turn our attention to the next phase: providing quality, affordable health care for every citizen of the Commonwealth,” said Moore. “Massachusetts’ involvement will absolutely assist in developing a more rational, systemic, and effective approach to ensuring health care value and containing costs.” Dr. JudyAnn Bigby, the Commonwealth’s Secretary of Health and Human Services, will lead the Massachusetts team participating in the State Quality Improvement Institute in a highly interactive process for developing policy and program strategies. The other team members participating on behalf of the Commonwealth with Secretary Bigby and Sen. Moore include: Group Insurance Commissioner Dolores Mitchell; Medicaid Director Thomas Dehner; Massachusetts Hospital Association President & CEO Lynn Nicholas; Tufts Health Plan President & CEO James Roosevelt; Health Care Quality Cost Council Executive Director Katharine London; and Representative Patricia Walrath. This team of health care stakeholders will work with experts from around the country to identify current challenges facing Massachusetts; assess strategic policy options; and revise or refine current state-specific plans. They will also meet with policymakers from other states to share experiences and best practices. As part of the State Quality Institute, participants will discuss various quality domains including; value-based purchasing; data collection and transparency; care coordination; and disease prevention and wellness. Massachusetts will also benefit from technical assistance and research support. “Massachusetts is honored to be participating in the State Quality Improvement Institute, which will help focus the state’s efforts to make measurable improvements in quality and efficiency,” said Dr. Bigby. “Being selected for this very competitive program reflects Massachusetts’ commitment to improving the quality of health care and complements a range of efforts already underway through the Health Care Quality and Cost Council, the Department of Public Health, the Office of Medicaid and other agencies.” “This program provides us with an opportunity to share the valuable quality and safety initiatives we are implementing here in Massachusetts while at the same time learning about some of the best practices being implemented in other states,” said Lynn Nicholas of the Massachusetts Hospital Association. “On behalf of all hospitals in Massachusetts, I am honored to join with this distinguished team of stakeholders to improve care for all patients.” AcademyHealth and The Commonwealth Fund selected nine states through a competitive process designed to identify states with the commitment, leadership, and resources necessary to build on previous success and conceptualize and implement substantive new quality improvement efforts. The eight other states chose for the Institute were: Colorado, Kansas, Minnesota, New Mexico, Ohio, Oregon, Vermont, and Washington. |
