Report on MA Health Reform: Racial disparities in coverage eliminated, enjoys broad support

A new report from the Urban Institute is out this week on the effects of health reform in Massachusetts. Our friends up North have a four-year head start on the national reform effort since MA’s former Governor Mitt Romney implemented a very similar plan to the national reform bill in 2006. While starting to grapple with the major changes needed to reduce costs for the long term, the report finds health reform in MA continues to enjoy broad support, has increased the percentage of people covered to 95% and has also had an amazing effect on racial disparities in health coverage:

Most notably, with the strong increase in insurance coverage among racial/ethnic minority adults in the state under health reform, there was no longer a difference in coverage between minority and white, non-Hispanic adults in fall 2009.

MA and the national reform bill represent a uniquely American brand of health care reform – while it may not be perfect, it’s clearly a reform model that can really work.