Healey Announces Public Listening Sessions to Lower Health Care Costs for Families and Small Businesses
The Healey-Driscoll Administration has announced a series of six public listening sessions as it moves forward with recommendations to lower health care costs for Massachusetts families and small businesses. Hosted by the Division of Insurance (DOI), the virtual sessions will gather input from patients, providers, insurers, employers and other stakeholders to help shape new state regulations aimed at lowering costs and stabilizing insurance premiums.
The sessions are a next step in implementing recommendations released this month by Governor Healey’s Health Care Affordability Working Group, which brought together health care providers, insurers, employers, labor and consumer advocates to identify immediate and long-term ways to make health care more affordable.
“Health care costs are too high, and they’re putting real pressure on families and small businesses across Massachusetts,” said Governor Maura Healey. “We created our Health Care Affordability working group and brought together patients, providers, insurers and employers to identify ways to lower costs, and now we’re moving those recommendations forward. These listening sessions are an important next step in delivering meaningful relief.”
“If we want to make health care more affordable, we need to hear directly from the people who are paying these bills and navigating the system every day,” said Lieutenant Governor Kim Driscoll. “These sessions will help us get the details right as we move forward with changes to lower costs for residents and small businesses.”
The listening sessions will focus on two recommendations from the Governor’s Health Care Affordability Working Group that DOI is moving forward:
• Reducing Out-of-Network Costs: Developing new standards to protect patients and reduce excessive out-of-network health care costs.
• Stabilizing the Small Business and Individual Markets: Exploring changes to strengthen the individual and small group insurance market and help moderate premiums.
DOI will hold all six listening sessions virtually. Additional information, including topics and registration details for each session, will be available as the dates approach:
Weds., Sept. 9 at 11 a.m.
Thurs., Oct. 1 at 10 a.m.
Mon., Oct. 5 at 10 a.m.
Mon., Oct. 19 at 10 a.m.
Mon., Nov. 2 at 10 a.m.
Thurs., Nov. 5 at 10 a.m.
Patients, consumer advocates, health care providers, insurers, employers and other interested stakeholders are encouraged to participate. For more information, see Division of Insurance Listening Sessions on Out-of-Network Costs and Listening Sessions on Stabilizing Insurance Markets to Drive Down Premium Costs.
OVERDOSE AWARENESS PURPLE BOW CAMPAIGN KICKS OFF AUG. 20
The 5th annual Adopt-A-Pole for Overdose Awareness campaign, sponsored in part by the City of Revere and local advocacy groups, begins Thursday, Aug. 20. The kickoff event takes place at 12 p.m. at Recovery on the Harbor, 979 Bennington St. in East Boston.
Between Aug. 20 and International Overdose Awareness Day on Aug. 31, volunteers will attach 1,200 purple bows to poles and streetlights throughout Revere, East Boston, Chelsea, and surrounding municipalities. Each bow contains a nametag dedicated to an individual lost to overdose, remaining in place through Recovery Month in September.
The effort aims to bring attention to overdose prevention, foster remembrance without stigma, and support families grieving the loss of loved ones.