Earlier this year, Massachusetts released health data which found that insurance companies were paying some hospitals significantly more than others for providing similar care, even though the higher paid hospitals were not producing better outcomes. The cause of the cost disparities was difficult to determine, but a report by state Attorney General Martha Coakely argued that the difference may be partly attributed to provider market clout, which allows dominant (so-called “brand name”) providers who hold monopolies to charge more without necessarily offering better care.

Yesterday, House Minority Leader Ronald Mariano introduced a measure that he claims would address the problem and save the state up to $267 million. Under the bill “Massachusetts health insurers would be required to pay lower rates to some of the state’s most expensive health care providers, while boosting rates for some of the lowest-paid providers”:

Mariano, D-Quincy, said the bill would immediately address the price disparities. It would potentially impact the 20 percent of hospitals and physicians at the high end of the rate spectrum, along with the 20 percent at the lowest.

High-cost providers would not be allowed to renew contracts or enter into new ones with insurers unless their rates are lowered to below the 80th percentile of all health plan rates. Conversely, insurers would be prohibited from entering into or renewing contracts with the lowest-cost providers unless those rates are increased beyond the 20th percentile of all plans.

In a statement, Mariano added that the measure would compliment Gov. Deval Patrick’s (D) ongoing effort to control health spending by shifting the state from a fee-for-service payment system to one that rewards outcomes and better care coordination. “Changing the payment system will take several years but employers and consumers can’t wait that long,” he said. “If we expect the health care system to function properly and more efficiently, closing the gap between lower-paid providers and higher-cost providers needs to be a priority and we must start now.”

Indeed, eliminating price disparities that don’t result in better health outcomes could be a serious money saver — both for the state and individuals. But she state could even go a step further and create an authority that would negotiate set prices with all providers, thus undercutting hospital monopolies and ensuring that health dollars are spent delivering better health care rather than paying for some kind of business “brand.”

Rep. Joe Walsh (R-IL) — a strong proponent of Paul Ryan’s Medicare privatization scheme — told students at Mundelein High School on Tuesday that he would support transforming Medicare into a “safety net” program of last resort for seniors with no other coverage options:

But he spent the most time talking about the need to cut spending on federal health programs, including Medicare. Medicare should be used only as a “safety net” for those who cannot get health care anywhere else, he said. “We have got to begin to pay for and be more responsible for our own health care costs,” he said.

Those who are affluent should pay more for medical care, he said. He cited as an example his parents, who live in a “fancy retirement home in Barrington.” Teacher Thomas Kuhn asked Walsh what type of reaction he was hearing from senior citizens regarding cuts.

“Maybe I’m wrong and I won’t be in Congress two years from now … but most people say: ‘I’m in. I know we have got a big problem,’” Walsh said. But he noted people 55 and older would not be impacted if the reforms he supports become law.

Walsh would be happy to know that more affluent seniors are already paying more for Medicare Part B and that the government-run program has delivered care far more efficiently than private insurers. Medicare expenses per beneficiary have certainly increased since it was enacted in 1965, but they’ve risen significantly less than private insurance premiums — unraveling the program and forcing beneficiaries into other kinds of insurance plans would actually increase health care costs, not lower them.

In fact, as the largest U.S. purchaser and regulator of health care, Medicare exerts major influence on the rest of the health care system and “its reimbursement and coverage policies have been widely adopted by private insurers and other public programs.” For instance, since Medicare has emphasized payment reform, “private plans generally use the public Medicare plan’s criteria for covering treatments as their standard of medical necessity, and they have adopted many of Medicare’s innovations in payment methods.”

An anti-abortion group has announced that Rick Perry supports Ohio’s controversial “heartbeat bill,” one of the most radical and restrictive abortion measures in the country. The bill — designed to establish a direct challenge to the 22 to 24 week viability standards in Roe v. Wade — outlaws abortions if a fetal heartbeat can be detected, which can be as early as “six to seven weeks into pregnancy” and offers no exception for cases of rape, incest, or mental health of the mother:

“We’re grateful to Governor Perry for his strong support of the Heartbeat Bill. I don’t think there’s a bill in America with more support,” declares Faith2Action President Janet (Folger) Porter. She adds, “Come to the Statehouse Atrium on September 20 and get a glimpse of the statewide support for the Heartbeat Bill!”

At a meeting in Texas, Governor Perry announced his support before a group of 250 pro-life and pro-family leaders. His response of support to a question about the Heartbeat Bill received an extended standing ovation.

The radical bill is being pushed by the equally radical Faith2Nation’s Jane Porter, a believer in “dominion” theology — “the idea that Christians are called to take complete control over every aspect of human life in order to bring about the return of Christ” — and the former co-chair of Mike Huckabee’s Faith and Family Values Coalition when he first ran for president. The Ohio House passed the heartbeat measure in June, during a bizarre session when Republican lawmakers compared opponents of the law to slave owners and argued that abortions make people more likely to smoke pot. The state Senate is expected to take-up the measure this month.

Last week, a federal judge blocked a Texas law signed by Perry that requires women seeking abortions to undergo sonograms and listen to the fetal heartbeat at least 24 hours before the procedure.