Senate Republican Leader Kevin Kelly (R-Stratford), Senate Republican Leader Pro Tempore Paul Formica (R-East Lyme), and Senator Tony Hwang (R-Fairfield), ranking member of the Insurance & Real Estate Committee, applauded a bipartisan effort to advance policies to drive down out of control health care cost growth.
Benchmarking represents a shared goal that total health care spending by all payers in a state will not grow faster than the state’s economy. It works by gathering information from all stakeholders and providers to shine light on the delivery of medical services to produce better health care outcomes at a lower cost for all people.
“For working- and middle-class Connecticut families, health care is anything but affordable,” said Senators Kelly, Formica, and Hwang. “Cost growth is out of control, weighing down family budgets and leaving Connecticut families struggling to make ends meet. Senate Republicans have long advocated for driving down growing health care costs and improving access to quality care, proposing multiple policies to reduce costs and increase transparency, including reinsurance to reduce insurance premium costs, addressing high prescription drug costs, and improving access to mental health care.
“Benchmarking is one of our many proposals, and it works best when all stakeholders are involved, including and especially marginalized and complex care patients. To that end, Senate Republicans have been working with committed advocates from the IDD community to develop language we hope to see adopted this session with the Governor’s strong support. We must learn from other states that have implemented benchmarking, building upon what works and preparing ourselves to monitor and immediately respond to any unintended consequences.
“We appreciate the Governor’s willingness to work with us on this issue, and to hear our calls to include the voices of advocates and complex care patients. Now more than ever Connecticut families know how important quality and accessible health care is. We continue to fight for access and affordability for all families.”
The post Sen. Hwang and Senate Republican Leadership Applaud Efforts to Reduce Health Care Cost Growth appeared first on Connecticut Senate Republicans.
