peterson milbank

Peterson-Milbank Program for Sustainable Health Care Costs

The Peterson-Milbank Program for Sustainable Health Care Costs supports state-led efforts to make health care more affordable for everyone. Starting with setting a target for reasonable cost increases, states across the country are collecting data on their annual health care spending and analyzing it to find the cost growth drivers. With this information, everyone in the state who has a stake in health care can work together to identify community-wide solutions to improve affordability.

  • "To even begin looking at what's happening in health care spending on a state level rather than national is an enormous accomplishment. Washington has different trends, different players, and a different landscape than other states. A state-specific look at the data is critical. "

    Emily Brice, JD

    Deputy Director, Northwest Health Law Advocates, Washington

  • "The health care cost growth benchmark is an important initiative. We have to be concerned with cost growth in health care because we need health care to be sustainable, affordable, and accessible without impacting quality. I believe that everyone feels they have a stake in that outcome, and that they can contribute to the goals of the initiative."

    Joanne Borduas, MSN, MBA

    Chief Executive Officer, Community Health and Wellness Center, Connecticut

  • "The cost growth benchmarking initiative in Rhode Island has been thoughtful and considered in their approach. They've gotten buy-in from both providers and payers and made it a collaborative effort. "

    Sam Salganik
    Sam Salganik

    Executive Director, RIPIN, Rhode Island

Highlights

  • Making Health Care More Affordable: A Playbook for Legislators

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  • Connecticut's First Cost Growth Benchmark Public Hearing

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  • Minnesota Takes Steps to Open the “Black Box” of Health Care Spending Amid Industry Opposition

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    Blog Post

    Costenheimer

    August 2023
    Christopher F. Koller
    This summer could well be remembered for two things — record heat and “Barbenheimer.” The first phenomenon may be a harbinger of what’s to come while the latter is a mash-up of two contemporaneous but seemingly unrelated stories.    “Barbenheimer” refers to the simultaneous release of two blockbuster movies: “Oppenheimer,” the biopic of atomic bomb researcher […] More

    News Article

    Health Affairs Article Covers 2021 Health Care Spending Growth in Five States with Cost Growth Targets

    July 2023
    Mary Louise Gilburg
    In early 2023, Connecticut, Delaware, Massachusetts, Oregon, and Rhode Island publicly reported on commercial, Medicaid, and Medicare state-level health spending growth in 2021 compared with their state growth targets. In a new Health Affairs Forefront article, January Angeles of Bailit Health examines these trends and discusses how market trends will likely affect spending growth in […] More

    News Article

    Connecticut’s First Cost Growth Benchmark Public Hearing

    July 2023
    Christine Haran
    Last month, the Connecticut Office of Health Strategy (OHS) held its first Cost Growth Benchmark Hearing to discuss health care affordability challenges in the state with consumers, employer purchasers, and representatives of the health care industry More

    Blog Post

    Minnesota Takes Steps to Open the “Black Box” of Health Care Spending Amid Industry Opposition

    June 2023
    Keanan Lane and Rachel Block
    Minnesota just took an important step toward improving residents’ financial security and health by establishing a center for health care affordability as part of a landmark health care bill. This center will provide valuable health care data, analysis, and recommendations to inform opportunities to enhance affordability and invest in better health for Minnesota residents. However, amid major industry opposition, the bill fell shy of including valuable measures that would increase accountability and transparency to help the state address years of health care cost increases. More

    News Article

    Milbank Quarterly Webinar: Trends in the Financing and Ownership of US Health Care

    June 2023
    Christine Haran
    Over the past century, US health care has become increasingly publicly financed yet investor-owned, according to a recent Milbank Quarterly study. At the same time, health care costs have soared and population health has stagnated. On June 21, The Milbank Quarterly held a webinar to discuss of these trends, including the role of health care […] More

    News Article

    Making Health Care More Affordable: A Playbook for Legislators

    May 2023
    Mary Louise Gilburg
    The Peterson-Milbank Program for Sustainable Health Care Costs advances state-led efforts to make health care more affordable for residents, employers, and states by supporting cost growth target programs. This slide show offers a high-level look at how, by starting with a cost growth target, these programs establish the infrastructure necessary to gather data, measure spending […] More

    Publication

    2022 Virtual Convening of Peterson-Milbank State Cost Growth Target Programs

    April 2023
    Mary Louise Gilburg
    This two-part virtual meeting on state cost growth target programs convened states participating in the Peterson-Milbank Program for Sustainable Health Care Costs to reflect on Phase I of the program and discuss Phase II, which will shift the emphasis from establishing cost growth target programs to reporting and policy action. More

    News Article

    The Rising Profile of Health Care Cost Growth Target Programs

    February 2023
    Mary Louise Gilburg
    Health care cost growth targets, benchmarks for per capita total health care spending, are gaining national attention as one of many tools that can address high health care spending in the US. More

    News Article

    Peterson Center on Healthcare and Milbank Memorial Fund Expand Partnership to Improve Healthcare Affordability

    February 2023
    Mary Louise Gilburg
    The Milbank Memorial Fund has received a new grant from the Peterson Center on Healthcare to drive innovative healthcare affordability research at the state level, building on existing work through the Peterson-Milbank Program for Sustainable Health Care Costs. More

    Publication

    Making Health Care More Affordable: A Playbook for Implementing a State Cost Growth Target

    January 2023
    January Angeles
    More and more states are building the infrastructure needed to gain transparency into statewide health care spending through cost growth target programs. Now, a new playbook explains how all states can move toward sustainable health care cost growth. More