Event Recordings:

Main Event 
Includes: Reflection on Past, Present, and Future of the Foundation; Presentation of Key findings from MassHealth Impacts Series; and Remarks by Marylou Sudders, Massachusetts Secretary of Health and Human Services
Breakout Session 1: MassHealth and the Behavioral Health System
Breakout Session 2: MassHealth and Schools and School-Aged Children
Breakout Session 3: MassHealth and Justice-Involved People
Foundation 20th Anniversary Timeline

Event Overview:

In 2001, when the Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts Foundation was established, almost 7% of Massachusetts residents (or 500,000 individuals) had no health insurance. During this time, MassHealth coverage and benefits were also being scaled back and rates of uninsurance were growing. Because of a collective cross sector effort that included consumer advocates, providers, insurers, employers, and the work of the Foundation, Massachusetts created a model of near-universal coverage, with MassHealth serving as the anchor for these successful reforms.

Fostering dialogue among stakeholders about MassHealth and promoting the development of effective policy solutions to address the challenges associated with this critical program and access to affordable coverage more broadly remains a key strategy in fulfilling the Foundation’s mission since its establishment. In 2021, the Foundation will continue to pursue solutions that create equitable access to coverage and eliminate barriers to care. 

On Wednesday, June 30^th the Foundation hosted a virtual event in recognition of its 20^th anniversary. We reflected on the past, present, and future of the Foundation with Foundation leadership including: our President and CEO, Audrey Shelto, and members of our Board of Directors - Andrew Dreyfus, President and CEO, BCBSMA and first President of the Foundation and Manny Lopes, President and CEO, East Boston Neighborhood Health Center, and current Chair of the Foundation’s Board of Directors.

Our colleagues at Manatt Health Strategies then shared findings from a series of issue briefs commissioned by the Foundation’s Massachusetts Medicaid Policy Institute about the key role of MassHealth on the health and finances of its members, families, and communities, as well as on the wide variety of stakeholders and sectors outside of the traditional health care realm that benefit from the program. And we heard reflections about MassHealth’s role and future in these realms from state leaders including Marylou Sudders, Massachusetts Secretary of Health and Human Services, providers, and consumers.

Guests had the opportunity to choose between breakout sessions that focus on MassHealth’s impacts on:

• the Commonwealth’s schools and school‐aged children, teens, and young adults;
• the behavioral health care system, addressing how MassHealth provides coverage, access, and delivery of services across the full behavioral health care continuum; and
• justice-involved persons, describing how MassHealth supports re-entry into the community

Problem Management Plus (PM+) is a community-based, low-intensity mental health intervention that can be delivered by trained non-clinical workers for adults experiencing mild to moderate mental health distress and practical problems of daily living. PM+ fills a gap in the behavioral health services system by providing early intervention and potential prevention of more acute behavioral health service needs. By helping to build the capacity of the workforce, PM+ holds promise for improving access to community-based mental health supports. Earlier this year, the Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts Foundation (Foundation) launched its Advancing Community-Driven Mental Health (ACDMH) grant program which leverages the evidence-based PM+ intervention to enhance access to mental health supports among five community-based organizations in Massachusetts.

To help broaden the understanding of community-based mental health supports the Foundation hosted a webinar on Tuesday, November 7^th from 1-2:30 PM on the topic of PM+. The webinar focused on how this evidence-based intervention – which was originally developed by the World Health Organization to address mental health treatment gaps in low- and middle-income countries – is now being implemented in the United States. The webinar provided an overview of the key components of PM+ and describe lessons learned based on the experience with implementing the intervention in the United States. It featured several guest speakers, including the leaders from three U.S. sites that have recently implemented PM+, and included a brief overview of the Foundation’s ACDMH initiative.

Featured Speakers:

• Adam Brown, PhD, Associate Professor of Psychology (Clinical) and Vice Provost for Research, The New School
• Piper Derenoncourt, LICSW, Assistant Director, Mental Health Equity Programs, The Family Van
• Jerome Galea, PhD, MSW, LCSW, Associate Professor of Social Work, University of South Florida
• Giuseppe Raviola, MD, MPH, Director, Mental Health, Partners In Health
• Rainelle Walker-White, Associate Director, Health Equity Programs, The Family Van

Click here to view a recording of the webinar.

Long-term services and supports (LTSS) allow hundreds of thousands of people of all ages with disabilities and chronic conditions to live their daily lives with independence and dignity. The number of Americans needing LTSS is expected to surge from 12 million in 2010 to 27 million in 2050. In Massachusetts, roughly 750,000 people report having a disability. Meanwhile, the state’s population is projected to age rapidly over the next two decades, with the number of seniors (those over age 65) increasing by 46 percent. MassHealth, as the dominant payor of LTSS in Massachusetts, – accounting for nearly half of all LTSS spending – could see its LTSS costs more than double by 2030. Facing a growing elder population and people with disabilities living longer, now is the time for an important discussion about improving LTSS services to better meet the needs of people with disabilities and do so in a more cost effective manner.

On Tuesday, May 10, the second in a series of Foundation events and publications on LTSS picked up where the first had left off. Carol Raphael of Manatt Health Solutions provided an overview of options for reforming the way MassHealth purchases and supports access to LTSS. Following the presentation, Alice Bonner, Secretary of the Executive Office of Elder Affairs and Daniel Tsai, Assistant Secretary for MassHealth and Medicaid Director, participated in a community conversation around the future of MassHealth LTSS. The event concluded with a reactor panel of experts and stakeholders.

Long term services and supports (LTSS) are the critical services and supports that people with disabilities and people of all ages with chronic conditions of use to meet their daily living needs, remain independent, and participate in their communities. Last month the Foundation released a primer intended to help stakeholders better understand LTSS in Massachusetts: what these services are, who uses them, and how they are delivered and paid for. As a follow on to the release of this resource, the Foundation hosted a webinar with the primer’s authors from Manatt Health on Monday, June 10, 2024, from 12-1 PM. The webinar focused on a review of key facts and data on LTSS payers, utilization and spending, workforce, and quality in Massachusetts.

Click here to view a recording of the webinar.

The Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts Foundation hosted an event featuring the release of the 2018 Massachusetts Health Reform Survey (MHRS) results. In addition to updated data on its core measures of health care access and affordability, the 2018 MHRS includes data on access to care for mental health and substance use disorder services for the first time. MHRS has been conducted periodically since 2006 to track changes in the health care system in Massachusetts.

Following the presentation of MHRS data, there were two panel discussions on key survey topics, including health care affordability and access to care for mental health and substance use disorders.

This webinar featured a review of the Foundation's recently released Massachusetts Health Equity Initiative Inventory. During the webinar the speakers discussed the impetus for the Inventory, shared key takeaways and lessons learned from compiling this resource, and highlighted how it may be used by organizations in various phases of their health equity journey. The webinar also featured a demonstration of how to use this interactive tool.

The Massachusetts Medicaid Policy Institute (MMPI) hosted a webinar with author Bob Seifert, Principal Associate, from the Center for Health Law and Economics, University of Massachusetts Medical School to review the updated summary data on MassHealth enrollment and spending that was featured in our recently updated edition of MassHealth: The Basics - Facts and Trends.

The Foundation hosted a webinar on Wednesday, May 28th from 11:00 AM – 12:00 PM with author, Robert Seifert, who reviewed key findings from a recent issue brief, which is intended to lay the groundwork for future research and analysis on state health planning. The webinar also featured remarks from the Massachusetts Health Policy Commission focused on the recently enacted law that established the Office of Health Resource Planning. As the name suggests, this new office has a clear health planning mandate. 

The Massachusetts Medicaid Policy Institute, a program of the Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts Foundation, and Pine Street Inn held an event to present the findings of a study analyzing the impact of the Community Support Program for Persons Experiencing Chronic Homelessness (CSPECH) on the utilization and cost of health care services. CSPECH is an innovative program through which MassHealth reimburses community-based support services provided to chronically homeless individuals residing in permanent supportive housing. Findings show that coupling supportive services like the type provided by CSPECH with permanent housing can lead to substantial improvements in housing stability and significant reductions in the utilization of acute health care services. The event also featured a former CSPECH client who shared how the program resulted in significant improvements to his life. 

Last fall, the Massachusetts Medicaid Policy Institute (MMPI), a program of the Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts Foundation, released a report identifying reform of long-term services and supports (LTSS) as one of five priority issue areas with regard to MassHealth for the new administration.

As the primary payer of LTSS in Massachusetts – accounting for nearly half of all LTSS spending – MassHealth could see its LTSS costs more than double by 2030. Facing a growing elder population and people with disabilities living longer, Massachusetts has the opportunity to improve its LTSS services to better meet the needs of people with disabilities and do so in a more cost effective manner.

This event featured an examination of the current state of LTSS in Massachusetts by Carol Raphael of Manatt Health Solutions who is one of the foremost national experts in LTSS, was President Obama’s appointee to the federal Commission on Long-Term Care and serves as chair of the AARP board and chair of the Long-Term Quality Alliance. The event also included a discussion of innovative models and strategies in use by Medicaid programs in Minnesota and Washington states, as well as a presentation by the National Association of Medicaid Directors. The event also featured a panel of people who are currently on the frontlines of the Massachusetts system.

Social Equity & Health: Laying the Groundwork
Understanding the relationship between social factors and health

The relationship between social factors and health outcomes is widely discussed in academic circles but implementing policies and practices that reflect this relationship continues to prove challenging. This event featured presentations from three experts who are breaking new ground in this field and discussion on how we can work together to identify innovative opportunities to address this important issue.

A special thanks to Dr. Monica Bharel & Boston Health Care for the Homeless Program for their help in making this event possible.

With the enactment of Chapter 224 of the Acts of 2012, Massachusetts begins a first-in-the-nation effort to bring health care spending into line with growth in the economy. Please join us on the morning of October 1, 2012, for a lively discussion of how the law will shape our state's health care system in the years to come. This event will be moderated by Martha Bebinger of WBUR.

If you were unable to attend this event, please click the links below to see it online:

• Opening Remarks 
• Panel 1
• Panel 2

This event presented the results of an in-depth analysis of claims data for Massachusetts residents dually eligible for Medicaid and Medicare and featured an expert response panel discussing the implications of the findings.

This event included a presentation of a report by Colleen Barry of the John Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health on options for integration behavioral health given the push towards payment and delivery system reform. The morning featured two expert panels one with representative from programs in other states and another with stakeholders from Massachusetts discussing the opportunities and implications of the research.

The Foundation's Massachusetts Medicaid Policy Institute (MMPI) hosted a webinar with chart pack authors Rachel Gershon and Lissette Victoriano from the Commonwealth Medicine Division at the University of Massachusetts Medical School. The goal of the webinar was to provide participants with basic background information about MassHealth, including what benefits MassHealth covers, who it serves, program spending and cost drivers, and a status update on the state's delivery reform efforts.

Click here to access the webinar recording. 

For more resources on the MassHealth program, visit our MMPI page.