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Committee hears broad support for ‘Primary Care for You’ plan to double primary care spending and change payments
Summary
Lawmakers and clinicians urged the Joint Committee on Health Care Financing to approve bills that would raise the share of health-care dollars spent on primary care, create prospective monthly payments, and require accountability so new funds reach frontline primary-care practices.
Boston — Lawmakers, physicians and patient advocates told the Joint Committee on Health Care Financing that Massachusetts must increase and reconfigure how it pays for primary care to improve access, health outcomes and long‑term costs.
Representative Michael Haggerty, sponsor of House Bill 13 70, framed the legislation as “Primary Care for You,” a proposal to double primary care investment and shift to prospective monthly payments that would support team‑based care and longer visits. “If we invest more in keeping people healthy, we can avoid the much higher cost of treating them when they get sick,” Haggerty told the committee.
Why it matters: Testimony emphasized two trends — access to primary care in Massachusetts has worsened despite large overall health spending, and stronger, stable payments are needed so clinics can hire teams (nurses, behavioral‑health staff, medical assistants and community health workers) and offer same‑ or next‑day care that prevents…
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