Taming Healthcare Costs: Promise and Pitfalls for Women's Health

When it comes to healthcare, women are often the primary decision makers for their families. Therefore, focusing on women and their health needs can have a profound effect on health reform efforts to control costs and improve quality for all segments of the population. The promise and pitfalls of cost containment reform in Massachusetts can serve as an informative case study for policymakers at the local, state, and federal levels as they attempt to reduce costs while maintaining quality of care. Massachusetts cost containment law, Chapter 224, seeks to control the healthcare cost growth through innovative approaches to increase efficiency and transparency including the adoption of new delivery system models, investments in wellness and prevention programs, and implementation of standard quality and evaluation measures. In this paper, we outline four approaches to delivering on the promise of cost containment reform to maximize women's access to comprehensive, quality healthcare while avoiding the pitfalls of cost containment's adverse impact on women's health.