Agency that spends $2b a year wants to cap payments to hospitals

Eileen McAnneny, president of the Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation and a member of the GIC board, acknowledged she has some reservations about setting rates. But current efforts to control costs, including a 2012 state law, have not been enough, she said. “We are trying to think longer term,” she said. “The caps will begin to address the provider price variation as somewhat of a blunt instrument. “I do think five years after Massachusetts enacted reforms targeting health care cost containment, we haven’t made significant progress.”