Category: Jessica Leving
Massachusetts is Seventh best in State Health Care
MASS. HEALTH
Worcester Telegram & Gazette
Jessica Leving
Boston University Washington News Service
10/07/09
WASHINGTON—Massachusetts placed seventh in a national state-by-state ranking of health care quality by the Commonwealth Fund Commission on a High Performance Health System.
The rankings, made public Thursday, were broken down according to access to health care, prevention and treatment, avoidable hospital use and costs, equity, and healthy lives of citizens.
Nationwide, the study found wide variations in health care quality among the states and reported that insurance coverage and affordability is a growing concern.
Massachusetts was first among all states in access, and made the top 10 in all other areas except avoidable hospital use and costs, where it came in at a startling 33. That number is up three from 2007, when the first Commonwealth Fund report appeared. Massachusetts was ranked eighth overall in the 2007 report, and has improved or stayed near the same in most areas.
“In Massachusetts, you see an intense effort to improve,” said Cathy Schoen, senior vice president of the Commonwealth Fund. “Every time we do this report, there’s a lot of scrutiny on getting the numbers right because Massachusetts would like to be number one in all the indicators, not just one.”
Robert Klugman, chief quality officer at UMass Memorial Medical Center, said some of the hospital usage numbers in the report might be skewed by demographics.
“Some of that data is not really reflective of reality,” he said. “There’s definitely room for improvement, but that particular area is a little bit skewed. We have some world-class academic organizations that tend to attract some of the sickest people not only from the state but from the region. There’s an educational cost factor as well in educating the next generation of new doctors and testing new technologies. That makes it difficult to compare apples and oranges.”
Despite the blemish in avoidable hospital use and costs, Toni McGuire, president and CEO of the Great Brook Valley Health Center in Worcester, said there is a lot to be proud of in Massachusetts.
“The best care comes through coordination with the patient as a partner,” she said. “We have really good primary care doctors, which is maybe why our numbers are so high. Where we fall short is where primary care doctors get paid. That’s it. It’s really managing the patient, keeping them informed and doing it in a way that works with the entire system of care—and that means making sure you can recoup your costs.”
Jean C. Sullivan, director of the Center for Health Law and Economics at UMass Medical School, said she was concerned about the slight drop in rankings on equity measures.
“While still relatively high, at seventh overall, this rank is a drop from the first-in-the- nation ranking in 2007,” she said. “It appears that those who remain uninsured in this state are having increasing difficulty getting preventive care and seeing a doctor. Massachusetts health care leaders know that primary care capacity must be addressed and have taken effective steps in that direction; for example, the significant increase in class size at the University of Massachusetts Medical School.”
Jennifer Kritz, spokesman for the Massachusetts Executive Office of Health and Human Services, noted that she had not yet reviewed the full report but added that the state is taking measures to improve health care quality.
“Massachusetts now leads the nation in insurance coverage, and we have also seen improved access to medical and dental care,” she said. “A state commission recently issued recommendations for reforming how we pay for health care. Instead of our current ‘fee-for-service’ system—which rewards more care but not necessarily the right care — the commission endorsed a ‘global payment’ model that prioritizes coordinated, efficient and effective patient care and will ensure the long-term sustainability of reform.”
Neighboring New England states made a good showing in the report as well, with Vermont ranked first overall, and Maine, New Hampshire, Connecticut, and Rhode Island all in the top 25 percent. Mississippi came in last of all the states.
The goal of the study was to examine how states have done and spur action across the country, Ms. Schoen of the Commonwealth Fund said. “Where you live matters… and it shouldn’t,” she said.
Karen Davis, Commonwealth Fund president, added that this report should act as further evidence in support of national health reform and noted that despite the battles in Congress over different versions of a bill, all versions contain some basic overlap in certain areas.
“The cost of not acting is too high,” she said. “This report definitely underscores the urgent need for action on health reform. The proposals pending in Congress would vastly improve health insurance coverage.”
The Commonwealth Fund is a private foundation that supports independent research on health policy reform and performance.
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Bolton Woman Honored for Adoption and Foster-care Advocacy
ANGELS
Worcester Telegram & Gazette
Jessica Leving
Boston University Washington News Service
10/01/09
WASHINGTON—The usually quiet, austere halls of the Russell Senate Office Building were filled with toothy smiles, bright pastel dresses and miniature suit-jackets as children and their families from across the country flocked to Washington for the annual Angels in Adoption award ceremony Wednesday afternoon.
Etta Lappen Davis, 58, of Bolton, was among Wednesday’s honorees, after being nominated by her daughter and selected by Rep. Niki Tsongas, D-Mass., for recognition for her work helping adoption programs gain accreditation.
Ms. Lappen Davis, who heads an independent consulting company, said, “My intent is to ensure that the organizations I’m working with do a better job, so that the kids are safer and receive better services because of the work I do.”
“Most of what I do is to assist organizations with regulatory compliance,” she added. “In Worcester, I have been involved with the Henry Lee Willis Center for many years. They achieved accreditation and are now working to get reaccredited.” The Willis Center coordinates many programs to help children and families in Worcester.
Angels in Adoption is a program of the Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute, which gives members of Congress a chance to honor constituents who have done exemplary work in the adoption field.
Ms. Lappen Davis was one of 87 award recipients who came to Washington for the ceremony and the only honoree from central Massachusetts. The awards were presented by Kathleen Strottman, the institute’s executive director and a 1994 graduate of the College of the Holy Cross.
“Etta Davis has devoted her life to helping children find safe, loving homes and families,” Ms. Tsongas, who was not present at the ceremony, said in a statement. “After being asked by a constituent to nominate Etta for this award, I was pleased to learn of her extraordinary efforts to improve the lives of children from those who have worked closely with her. It is highly fitting that Etta is recognized with this award in honor of her many years of adoption and foster-care advocacy in Massachusetts and across the country.”
Ms. Lappen Davis, who started out as a music therapist for children with special needs and worked for Massachusetts as a licensing specialist for several years, “goes above and beyond” in both her work and personal life, said her daughter, Sarah Davis, 30. “It’s such a combination for her. It’s about her level of commitment as a human being.”
In her nominating letter, her daughter, who is a professional grant writer, wrote, “What makes my mother a true ‘angel’ goes much deeper than her impressive credentials and lifelong professional achievement. I have witnessed first-hand the multifaceted support she provides to two specific families—families that I believe have managed to stay intact due to her guidance, love and expertise. She spends countless hours counseling the parents, speaking with collaborative professionals, attending team meetings and being on call for moments of crisis.”
In Washington, Ms. Lappen Davis was joined by her daughter, who flew in from Pennsylvania, as well as her own mother, who flew in from Florida.
“We met up here yesterday,” said Ms. Davis. “We’re having a three-generation sleep-over.”
In the days leading up to Wednesday’s ceremony, all three family members met with members of Congress, toured the city and attended a reception at the State Department with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
“I did not want to miss that,” said Ms. Lappen Davis, of the reception. “I really wanted to see Hillary.”
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Paul Kirk Sworn in as Interim Junior Senior
KIRK OATH
Worcester Telegram & Gazette
Jessica Leving
Boston University Washington News Service
9/25/09
WASHINGTON—Paul G. Kirk Jr. was sworn in as interim Massachusetts senator Friday afternoon, just hours after a state judge blocked a Republican bid to stall the proceedings, and exactly one month after the death of Sen. Edward M. Kennedy.
“It’s the highest honor in my life and I accept it with humility,” Mr. Kirk said after being sworn in by Vice President Joe Biden in the Senate chamber. The ceremony was attended by only a handful of other members of the Senate.
Moments after Mr. Biden said, “Congratulations, senator,” Mr. Kirk waved and gave a thumbs-up to his wife Gail, who was seated next to Victoria R. Kennedy, the late senator’s widow, in the family box in the gallery.
Sen. John F. Kerry, D-Mass., hugged Mr. Kirk warmly after he took his oath, as did U.S. Rep. Patrick J. Kennedy, D-R.I., Mr. Kennedy’s son, who stood with Senate Democratic Party Majority leader Harry M. Reid, D-Nev., and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif.
Sen. Kennedy’s other children, Edward M. Kennedy Jr. and Kara Kennedy, and their stepbrother Curran Raclin, also were in the balcony.
The first senators to congratulate Mr. Kirk were Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., and Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz.
Since photography is not allowed on the Senate floor, the ceremony was reenacted afterwards in the old Senate chamber.
“As we were driving up I was contemplating the responsibility I was about to undertake, and the honor of being designated the voice of Sen. Kennedy’s constituents and the one from his state who will vote for his causes,” said Mr. Kirk after the reenactment. “Combine that with the love and friendship we had for each other…it’s almost overwhelming.”
Before being sworn in, Mr. Kirk’s first stop in Washington was at Arlington National Cemetery, where he paid his respects to the late Mr. Kennedy.
Mr. Kirk said he felt a “combination of emotions” in taking Mr. Kennedy’s place, including “a profound absence as a friend” and “a sense of humility.”
Mr. Kirk said he was not yet sure which committees he would serve on, but planned to meet with the leadership next week.
When asked whom he would support for the special election in January, Mr. Kirk said, “It was always Sen. Kennedy’s idea that the appointed person should not try to taint the playing field, and I intend to honor that.”
Mr. Kirk’s appointment to the Senate gives the Democrats the 60 votes that they need to defeat a filibuster when it comes to passing the highly controversial health-care bill.
“If they think there’s a role I can play, I’d love to,” Mr. Kirk said of his possible endorsement of the reforms.
He added that he hoped a bipartisan bill would be possible, and planned to get a better sense of the dialogue after being in Washington for a week or so.
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$10 Million Granted in Beetle Money; McGovern to Request $30 Million more
BEETLES
Worcester Telegram & Gazette
Jessica Leving
Boston University Washington News Service
9/23/09
WASHINGTON—Massachusetts will receive $10 million from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to combat the tree-destroying Asian longhorned beetle in the next 12 months, and Rep. James P. McGovern, D-Worcester, said he plans to ask for approximately $30 million more in emergency funds.
“We want to go in there with an ideal number,” Mr. McGovern said in an interview Wednesday. “$40 million [total] sounds like a good number to me.”
The white-flecked black insect bores into hardwood trees and feeds on the tree’s nutrients. Ultimately the tree dies, denuding wide swaths of infected neighborhoods.
Agriculture Department spokeswoman Rhonda J. Santos confirmed Wednesday that $10 million of federal funds will “definitely” go toward the beetle eradication effort in Massachusetts in the fiscal year that begins Oct. 1, but added, “We cannot speculate on whether the congressman will get additional funds or not.”
Massachusetts, she said, received a sizable amount of federal aid in the current year “because it was an emergency program to start the effort.”
The invasive beetle species has led to the removal of some 25,000 trees in the Worcester area since their arrival in 2008.
Mr. McGovern said he is working on a letter to the Secretary of Agriculture and that more resources are needed.
Rick K. Sullivan, commissioner of the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation, said of the battle to defeat the beetle in Worcester, “It is a robust program. It does need to be aggressive in terms of survey work and inoculation work, and there’s still significant tree removal that needs to happen over the next season.”
Mr. Sullivan praised Mr. McGovern’s efforts to obtain additional funds, and said if the money is not granted, the program will have to focus mainly on tree removal and survey work at the expense of chemical treatment and other preventive efforts.
“You have to make the budgets work with the numbers you ultimately are given,” he said, noting that “$40 million would allow us to do the tree removal and continue the aggressive surveying work not only on the ground but by climbing into the trees, which is much more effective [in preventing the spread of the beetle.] We could also do the chemical treatment and the awareness and education efforts. If you’ve got money, you can do all those things.”
Mr. McGovern said that most of the money would probably go to removing trees infested with the pest.
“Some money will go to replanting,” he said. “The urgent thing is to get rid of infested trees.”
Gary Rosen, chairman of the city council’s Public Health and Human Services Committee, agreed that cutting down infested trees was a major priority, but said that he hoped money would be appropriated for preventive chemical treatment of potential host trees that are not currently infested.
“I think the money will probably be used for taking down the infested trees, and we want to continue that process,” he said in an interview Wednesday.
“We also want to start a program in the spring where we use the pesticide imidacloprid in hardwood trees that are not infested to protect them from the beetles. I hope money would be used for that too. It’s an expensive chemical and an expensive process.”
Though Mr. Rosen called the money that Mr. McGovern hopes to attain “a good start,” he said the city is going to need a lot more than that to sufficiently protect all of the trees in the Worcester area.
“It’s never going to be enough,” he said. “The problem is so widespread. It’s beyond Worcester.... There will probably be several thousand more [infested] trees over the next year or two.”
District 1 Councilor Joffrey A. Smith added that the money “would definitely be a great help” and said that he hoped some of the funds would go toward rebuilding forests and replanting trees.
The city council Tuesday night unanimously voted to apply all future doses of imidacloprid through direct injection into the tree trunks, not by drenching soil near the tree. The injection process is costlier but more effective, Mr. Smith said.
“While it may take a little longer to do and require a little more manpower, it’s a more effective way,” he said.
Mr. Rosen said the injections are also less hazardous to the environment. He noted, however, that they require annual application, and said that “there has to be follow-up” in terms of additional federal funds over the next few years.
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House Representatives Passes Bill to Reform Student Loans
STUDENTS
Worcester Telegram & Gazette
Jessica Leving
Boston University Washington News Service
9/17/09
WASHINGTON—A bill that would overhaul the student loan market and effectively put the federal government in charge of student lending passed in the House of Representatives on Thursday.
The Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act would convert all new federal student lending to the government-run Direct Loan program. In addition, the bill would increase the maximum annual Pell Grant scholarship, expand the Perkins Loan program, simplify the application process for federal student aid and boost support for community colleges, historically minority universities and low-income kindergartens.
U.S. Reps. James P. McGovern, D-Worcester, Richard E. Neal, D-Springfield, and John W. Olver, D-Amherst, all voted in favor of the bill, which passed 253-171.
“It’s a down payment on our future,” Mr. McGovern said in an interview in his office. “We’re starting to lose our competitive edge, and that should scare everyone. One way we can regain it is to provide more access to education.”
“This legislation saves the government nearly $90 billion by cutting out the middleman,” Mr. Olver said in a statement. “The bottom line is: do we want this money going to private lending companies, or to make college more affordable and accessible? To me, it’s a no-brainer.”
Mr. Neal said in a statement, “In western and central Massachusetts alone, tens of millions of dollars will be invested in higher education.”
Most colleges in the Worcester area said they heartily support the measure.
“I’m 100 percent in support of the bill,” said Lynne M. Myers, director of financial aid at the College of the Holy Cross, in an interview.
Ms. Meyers said the university already made the switch to the Direct Loan program two years ago.
“We went to that to make sure our students had a secure loan market,” she said. “Students are relying on private loans to help them meet higher education costs, and that is not sound financing. The federal government looking at this makes good sense.”
She also said she approves the push to simplify the Free Application for Federal Student Aid.
“As an aid administrator, any time we can move in the direction of simplicity is great,” she said. She called the application process “a hurdle” that is “more complicated than it needs to be.”
Mary Ellen Severance, director of the Office of financial assistance at Clark University, agreed. “Those of us in financial aid are always in favor of legislation that would help prevent some of the barriers that our students are presented with for private higher education,” Ms. Severance said.
She said Clark also has already made the switch to direct lending.
Quinsigamond Community College’s assistant vice president of enrollment management, Iris Godes, said she supported the bill, but was concerned about rumors that new Pell Grant regulations might cut loans to part-time students.
Ms. Godes said her institution was also already part of the Direct Loan program.
“We actually like it a lot,” she said. “It works well for our students.”
Ms. Godes added that she strongly supports simplification of the application process. “Especially for students that are first-generation college applicants, they get confused and frustrated,” she said. “If they can’t complete the process, they can’t get their financial aid.”
Linda Mularczyk, director of financial aid at Assumption College, showed less enthusiasm for the proposed changes.
She said there are questions on theapplication form “that our institution needs,” adding that Assumption College administrators might need to develop a supplemental form to replace the old questions.
“As far as direct lending, my only concern is that most students and families have received such excellent customer service from our current lenders,” Ms. Mularczyk added. “I hope that direct lending is able to provide the same support.”
Jack Carrozzo, a senior at Worcester Polytechnic Institute, said he was happy to see some changes to financial aid.
Mr. Carrozzo called the current system “quite a mess” and added that “dealing with it every year is quite a task.”
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Worcester-Area Protesters Join Taxpayers March on Washington
TEA PARTY
Worcester Telegram & Gazette
Jessica Leving
Boston University Washington News Service
9/12/09
WASHINGTON—Pat Leroux, 67, of Barre, Mass., left home at 4:30 a.m. Friday to catch the bus to Washington from Worcester for Saturday’s taxpayers march on the Capitol.
Bright-eyed and chipper as she rode the subway to the march the next morning, Leroux said the journey was worth it.
“We’re here because we’re frustrated,” she said. “No one is listening to us.”
Ms. Leroux, and her brothers Jack Haley, 65, of Leominster, Mass., and Mike Haley, 68, of Lunenburg, Mass., were among three busloads of New England protesters who participated in the march, joining tens of thousands of Americans in a rally against big government and what the group’s Web site calls “massive government spending.”
Carrying the Massachusetts state flag and sporting red t-shirts that read “Silence No More,” the Worcester Tea Party delegation made its presence known at the march, chanting “Massachusetts, believe it or not!” and “Dump Barney Frank!”
“We are trying to encourage smaller government and more transparent government,” said Ken Mandile, 50, of Webster, Mass., one of the main organizers of the Worcester Tea Party group. “We do this through recruiting, training, informing and activating people. That’s what these rallies are about.”
Mandile added that the group is nonpartisan, and tries not to align with any one party’s agenda.
“We have lots of people who are independents and libertarians, and we have a lot of Republicans and some Democrats too,” he said.
“It’s not just Obama,” said Erica Damico, 38, of Oxford, Mass. “It’s all of them. I’m pretty fed up.”
Ms. Damico said she hoped the strong turnout at the rally would send a powerful message to Congress and the media.
“I hope everyone will look and see that enough is enough,” she said. “People in this country are not going to stand for this. Just because we don’t have an eight-year doctorate degree doesn’t mean we’re stupid. I’m hoping people see this is not a Republican convention; it’s Americans united as one group for one cause.”
Ms. Leroux echoed Ms. Damico’s sentiments, and said she was tired of the government acting like “they’re the good parent and we’re the stupid children…. We got this far on our own.”
Coming three days after President Obama’s address to a joint session of Congress on proposed health care reforms, the event held extra meaning for those like Ms. Leroux and her brothers who oppose the public option.
“Health care is gonna be a horror show,” said Jack Haley. “I don’t want government to have anything to do with it.”
“I’d like to see Medicare and Social Security stop being given to illegal immigrants,” said Ms. Leroux. “That’s why they’ve gone broke.”
“If Obamacare passes, our country is bankrupt,” added Bill King, of West Brookfield, Mass. “Someone has got to say no, and that’s why we’re here.”
In addition to the buses from Worcester, other Massachusetts residents came to Washington on their own. Matt Runkle, 20, and Jason Codding, 21, both computer science majors at Worcester Polytechnic Institute, flew in to the capital Friday night.
“We recently started the College Republicans group at WPI,” Mr. Runkle said.
“We went to the Tea Party protest in Worcester last spring, and had a blast,” Mr. Runkle added. “We’re here because of out-of-control spending. We’re the ones that will have to pay for it in a few years.”
The event was sponsored by the FreedomWorks Foundation, a conservative action group led by former House majority leader Dick Armey, along with the National Taxpayers Union and Grassfire.org.
Other sponsors included organizations ranging from the Ayn Rand Center for Individual Rights, which promotes a laissez-faire capitalist government, to the National Association of Rural Landowners – whose Web site says, “Unless we come together in a cohesive, fighting unit, our freedoms and liberties shall fade into the dark chasm of socialism and radical environmentalism” – and encourages members to act on their right to bear arms.
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Local Representatives Applaud Obama Health-care Speech
OBAMA
Worcester Telegram & Gazette
Jessica Leving
Boston University Washington News Service
9/10/09
WASHINGTON— Local health care administrators said they liked President Obama’s address on health care reform to a joint session of Congress Wednesday night but wanted to hear more details.
Toni McGuire, president and CEO of Worcester’s Great Brook Valley Health Center, said she would have liked to hear Obama say more about community health centers.
“But while he didn’t say the actual words, he has before,” she said in an interview. “And the message was there. Taking care of primary care before you get to the emergency room is what this is all about. Often we don't see people until they are too sick to treat.”
Jean C. Sullivan, director of the Center for Health Law and Economics at the University of Massachusetts Medical School, said the speech was lacking in specifics.
“I would have liked to see more detail about the specific way the changes would work,” she said in an interview.
She said the comment Obama made that 1/10 of 1 percent of a reduction in health expenditures in the next four years could save $4 trillion “was a very dramatic piece of data. I’m not sure whether that was based on actual costs now or expected projection.”
U.S. Rep. James P. McGovern, D-Worcester, said he thought the speech made “a compelling argument” for health-care reform.
“I think he made a very convincing speech,” Mr. McGovern said in an interview. “Now we have to get to the process of legislating. We have to work out the details.”
In response to an outburst by U.S. Rep. Joe Wilson, R-S.C., who called out, “You lie”, during the speech when the president said proposed reforms would not grant insurance to illegal immigrants, Mr. McGovern said, “I thought it was rude, and I thought Congressman Wilson dishonored the institution that he was representing.”
McGovern added that the comment was unfounded. “There are no loopholes. Illegal immigrants aren’t covered, period. It’s written specifically in the legislation,” Mr. McGovern said. “It’s crystal clear.”
U.S. Rep. John W. Olver, D-Mass., also applauded the President’s address, and said the Republican opposition’s role right now is “to deny our President a victory.”
“Who gains politically from this pales in comparison to what happens if we do not do it,” he said in a statement.
John G. O’Brien, president and CEO of University of Massachusetts Memorial Health Care, praised Obama’s efforts to reach out to the opposition.
“Despite misbehavior by members of Congress, [Obama] extended an olive branch to not only the Republicans but also to the Blue Dogs,” Mr. O’Brien said in an interview, referring to moderate Democrats in the House of Representatives. “He was very conciliatory. I was surprised when he spoke about medical malpractice reform, which typically has been a polarizing issue, and clearly that resonated.”
Mr. O’Brien said he thought Obama was “particularly critical” of the insurance industry.
“I was wincing a little bit because while some of the huge national plans can behave horrendously, there are states like Massachusetts where we are extremely fortunate as a population to have some terrific health insurers,” he said. “There are variations across the country.”
As a Massachusetts resident, Mr. O’Brien said he was especially moved by Mr. Obama’s reflections about the late Sen. Edward M. Kennedy.
“His personal reflections about Kennedy were very moving, and really identified that this is not just a cost issue and a deficit issue, but a moral issue, and an issue of social justice,” Mr. O’Brien said.
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