Business and trade groups now point the finger at hospitals and doctors as the culprit for rising healthcare costs, according to a Boston Globe report.
The business and trade groups reported providers charging the highest prices aren't always giving the best quality care, based on a study funded by the Associated Industries of Massachusetts, Massachusetts Association of Health Plans, Retailers Association of Massachusetts and National Federation of Independent Business.
The study examined two reports from the Massachusetts attorney general's office to find trends that increase costs. The report concluded:
1. There is wide price variation from one hospital to another, and the disparities contribute to higher costs; providers treating the most patients also have the highest costs.
2. Strategies such as setting budgets for patient care haven't controlled prices to the desirable degree. Instead, the budgets "embed high rates of payment into the payment structure," said MAHP's chief executive Lora Pellegrini in the report.
3. The higher costs at some facilities, including Massachusetts General Hospital and Brigham and Women's hospital, were attributed to "high quality" care, care complexity, training facilities and research done at the medical centers.
4. Healthcare spending in Massachusetts was up 4.8 percent in 2014, over the 3.6 percent goal set. The spending was up due largely to higher spend on Medicaid, according to the report.
5. The Massachusetts Hospital Association chief executive defended healthcare providers, saying insurance companies negotiate various rates with different providers and suggested more transparency from the insurance plans going forward.