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The good and bad news on health care costs

Center for Policy Integrity on health care costsThe bad news: medical costs are rising. The good news: Washington state is leading the way to keep costs down.

Back in 2005, the Legislature created the Health Technology Assessment. The committee, compromised of doctors and nurses, is charged with evaluating medical procedures for cost-effectiveness and safety.

Their oversight has led to the elimination or scaling-back of coverage for several procedures – saving the state about $40 million/year.

What may seem like a small, common-sense change is now getting attention on the national stage. According to the non-partisan Center for Policy Integrity:

In order to cut costs and put Medicare on a stronger footing, many health policy experts say the program must stop covering procedures that do little to improve patient health or are not worth the price tag…Washington state, however, is making the tough choices… If Medicare had followed Washington state’s lead and cut funding for the same procedures, experts say it would have saved billions.

Click here to read the entire article from the Center for Policy Integrity.