Worcester Business Journal

wbjournal.com | April 7, 2025 | Worcester Business Journal 25 Don't overlook nonprofit home health care BY TODD ROSE Special to WBJ I n response to growing challenges across the healthcare sector, leaders and policymakers have renewed their focus on primary care, recognizing it as the founda- tion of a stronger, more efficient health system. Just last month, the Massachusetts Health Policy Commission sounded the alarm on primary care's decline, warning that access is deteriorating. is growing access gap is forcing more patients into emer- gency departments, an expensive and inefficient alternative straining hospitals already operating at ca- pacity. Strengthening primary care is essential, but it's not enough. Home health care must be part of the solution. Nonprofit home health providers, such as visiting nurse associations, share the same core mission as primary care: keeping patients healthy in their homes. rough skilled nursing, rehabilitation, and chronic disease management, home health clinicians help patients recover safely and avoid hospital readmission by intervening before com- plications escalate. ese clinicians also provide compas- sionate, high-quality care with a deeper understanding of patients' needs based on their environments. As the primary care workforce is shrinking due to an aging physician population and fewer new doctors enter- ing the field, home health care can help bridge this gap and ensure patients receive essential services. Providing care in a home setting is oen more cost-ef- fective than hospital care, making it an attractive solution for policymakers concerned with the rising cost of health care. Beyond cost savings, home health allows patients to remain in their homes and communities, where most people want to be. Yet, despite its value, home health con- tinues to be overlooked in funding and policy discussions. To fully integrate home health into the state's healthcare strategy, policymakers must take action. Reimbursement models should be restructured to fairly compensate home health providers, and funding discussions cannot leave this sector behind. Stronger collaboration between home health agencies and primary care providers must be encouraged to ensure smoother patient transitions and better-coordinated care. Workforce development initia- tives should be expanded to support the growing demand for home-based care. By recognizing home health as an integral part of the healthcare ecosystem, Massachusetts can improve patient outcomes, alleviate pressure on hospitals, and build a more sustainable model of care. As the state works to strengthen primary care, it must embrace nonprofit home health as a key partner in achieving the shared goal of high-quality, patient-centered care. Todd Rose is the recently retired CEO of VNA Care, based in Worcester, the state's largest independent non- profit home health, hospice, and palliative care provider. Supporting our innovators Todd Rose S tartup Week Worcester is upon us, an inaugural event designed to cast light on the Central Massachusetts entrepreneurial ecosystem. e event is the brainchild of the Worcester Regional Chamber of Com- merce and Auxilium Worcester, the innovation hub launched earlier this year by Beverly businessman Cliff Rucker, who owns the Worcester Railers Hockey Club, among other local ventures. e multi-day event highlighting Worcester incubators and successful companies is a logical outgrowth of the effort to turn the region into a viable startup hub. e Auxilium may be the latest high-profile effort to attract and support entrepre- neurs in Central Massachusetts, but momentum has been building for some time. Life sciences incubator Massachusetts Biomedical Initiatives was founded in the city 41 years ago and has spun out nearly 200 startup companies, creating more than 1,800 jobs. e Venture Forum has been serving the entrepre- neur community for decades; originally embedded within Worcester Polytechnic Institute, the organi- zation continues to produce its strong programming and services. Other incubators and coworking spaces like WorcLab, Venture X Marlborough, Venture X Worcester, EforAll, the Wachusett Business Incubator, and Technocopia have been founded over the past decade to offer would-be entrepreneurs advice, as well as a place to build their network and grow. is all comes as startup activity is growing in the region at a faster pace than the state as a whole. Last year, 2,904 new businesses incorporated in Cen- tral Massachusetts, according to the Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth. at's actually down 1.5% since 2023, but it's still the second highest number of new business starts since 2017 when WBJ started tracking incorporation data. And the slight slowdown in new businesses is still better than the statewide total, which saw a 2% drop last year. Despite a few ups and downs, new business growth has been on a steady climb since 2000. Of course, those new businesses run the gamut from tech start- ups to restaurants to real estate holding companies and nonprofits, but the overall rise in incorporations is a sign of overall increased economic activity here. One of the encouraging signs of late is the growth of local financing. While Greater Boston's innovation economy is burgeoning with investors, it's been a dif- ficult sell to get those same firms engaged in Central Mass. e Auxilium will be a full-package accelerator where applicants can receive up to $250,000 to help grow their new enterprise. Over at MBI, Conifer Life Sciences, led by wife-and-husband team Jean Qiu and Peter Li, have opened an office to invest in area startups. Qiu is the founder of Nexcelom Bioscience, a Lawrence-based company developing products to count and analyze cells in scientific research. Aer selling her company for $260 million in 2021, Qiu and Li are reinvesting with their fellow life science entrepreneurs and have already funded three MBI startups. Greater Worcester won't ever be mentioned in the same breath as global innovation hubs like Silicon Valley or Boston-Cambridge, but the entrepreneurial ecosystem being built here holds great promise. With the startup environment becoming more organized with better resources, Central Massachusetts is look- ing like a very good place to start a business. The Worcester Business Journal welcomes letters to the editor and commentary submissions. Please send submissions to Brad Kane, editor, at bkane@wbjournal.com. W W

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