A study released by two Boston University researchers found that rising hospital costs, not Massachusetts’ 2006 health care reform law, led to increased hospital spending in the state.  Massachusetts hospitals spent roughly 55 percent more per person than the average U.S. hospital in 2007.  The BU study determined that Massachusetts’ hospital cost growth has outpaced the national average for all but two years from 1997 to 2007.  They noted that, although the most significant increase occurred in 2006, the law had little time to take effect before the fiscal year ended and hospital spending growth slowed the year after reform despite a 5.7 percent increase in the state’s insurance rate.  The researchers conclude that the state’s heavy reliance on teaching hospitals, high surgery rates, and a high number of doctors per-capita are among factors contributing to the higher hospital expenses.

From the report: This report documents and investigates the excess in Massachusetts hospital costs per person above the average for the United States. It examines the recent rise in this excess after a prolonged earlier decline, analyzes the many causes of the excess, assesses their reasonableness, and offers recommendations for addressing the state’s resurgent hospital cost crisis.

Full report:  Massachusetts Hospital Spending Reached 55.4 Percent per Person above the U.S. Average in 2007: Most of Excess Is Unjustified, and State’s Health Reform Law Is Negligible Factor (PDF | 810.65 KB)

Boston University Health Reform Program.  (2010).  Massachusetts hospital spending reached 55.4 percent per person above the U.S. average in 2007: most of excess is unjustified, and state’s health reform law is negligible factor.  Sager, A. and Socolor, D.