The state of Montana has a health plan for state employees run by the Health Care and Benefits Division (HCBD). A few years ago, Montana was in the spotlight of healthcare reformers for adopting a reference-based payment model, which had not been done on such a large plan. The result was savings on the order of 10s of millions of dollars for the state in just a few years.Recently, the state announced a new contract with Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Montana to change how the health plan is administered. This signals a step away from the payment model.So what exactly is reference-based pricing, and why did Montana decide to put a pause on it?
Share this post
All Eyes On Montana
Share this post
The state of Montana has a health plan for state employees run by the Health Care and Benefits Division (HCBD). A few years ago, Montana was in the spotlight of healthcare reformers for adopting a reference-based payment model, which had not been done on such a large plan. The result was savings on the order of 10s of millions of dollars for the state in just a few years.Recently, the state announced a new contract with Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Montana to change how the health plan is administered. This signals a step away from the payment model.So what exactly is reference-based pricing, and why did Montana decide to put a pause on it?