Martha Coakley lays out health care reform plan.

Sorry it took me so long to post about this, but I wanted to be I had the time to read Coakley's entire position paper on health care reform, and not just the press release, because there is a lot of interesting stuff in there.

In the plan, Coakley presents a personal story about her mother's struggle with leukemia, and her (Martha's) resulting experience with the health care system (similar to the way Ted K would use the example of Teddy Jr. when he explained his own passion for health care reform).

She goes on to lay out which elements of Congressional reform she supports (public option, individual mandate, expansion of Medicaid coverage, new Medicaid subsidies, and employer shared responsibility) in the effort to expand access.  Coakley also offers some detailed plans to address cost, which obviously is the great unsolved mystery of personal spending right now (along with college tuition).

Below are some of the strategies for containing costs and improving quality that I found most interesting (although I do encourage you to read the full plan):

Change payment incentives - Coakley argues that "payment incentives should be aligned with quality outcomes and efficiency," and that "providers should be rewarded for keeping people healthy, not simply for treating them after they get sick."  She supports efforts to develop alternative payment systems, such as the Global payment system Massachusetts is considering.

Transparency - Coakley says she will press for the development of a "standard set of core quality measures to be used by all health care providers," and will "promote mechanisms for public reporting of health care cost information using fair methodologies that allow true comparisons."

Improving quality and safety - Coakley supports efforts to curb serious reportable events (SRE - hospital infections, etc) by prohibiting payment to hospitals for these medical errors. 

Administrative simplification - Coakley wants to ensure that health care expenses are focused on care, not administration, by encouraging standardization and the development of uniform administrative systems "such as for billing, claims, processing, credentialing, etc."

Systems delivery change - In the Senate, Coakley will push for "innovative strategies for payment for primary care and explore models such as medical homes as ways to improve chronic disease management."

Primary care and prevention - Coakley recognizes the need to address a growing shortage of primary care doctors (similar to math and science teachers).

Funding for Massachusetts health care and research - Coakley will continue to support critically important federal research funding for Massachusetts hospitals.

End of life - Coakley views "end-of-life care as a matter of ensuring that individuals are able to make their own choices about how they wish to live, and to die." She says it is a "matter of choice and dignity, not saving money," and says health care reform should include measures that encourage adults to learn about their options.

Medical malpractice reform - Coakley does not view malpractice reform as the cure to what ails health care costs.  She argues that the issue is worth study, but must not be a "veiled attempt to limit the rights of individuals who have suffered grave injuries due to avoidable medical errors resulting from negligence."

There is a lot of interesting stuff in her proposal, and I encourage you to check it out.