Worcester Business Journal

www.wbjournal.com February 2, 2015 • Worcester Business Journal 11 JAMIE BARTON Presents in recital with Bradley Moore A rising star of the Metropolitan Opera performs works of Turina, Chausson, Schubert, Dvorak The Return of Artist Night SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2015, 8 PM Mechanics Hall Tickets & Information at MusicWorcester.org WORCESTER Untitled-1 1 1/28/2015 3:42:13 PM 28 Franklin Street • Worcester, MA 01608 508-890-9000 | 800-244-8161 www.baystatesavingsbank.com We Take Banking Personally... ...is not just a tagline at Bay State Savings Bank. We pride ourselves on treating our customers the way we would like to be treated - with courtesy and with their best interests in mind. Since 1895, Bay State Savings Bank has been helping its commercial and retail customers realize their financial goals with customized products, personalized service and local decision making. Call us today at 800-244-8161 or visit: www.baystatesavingsbank.com We're ready to assist you with all your banking needs! Celebrating 120 years of business in the Worcester Community status with insurance companies because of its large number of patients covered through Medicare and Medicaid. The money Harrington loses on them has to be made up through somewhat higher commercial rates, Moore explained. But by holding the line on insurance rate increases, Harrington was recently able to move into a lower-cost tier within the Blue Cross Blue Shield network. Moore hopes that will incent more Blue Cross patients to seek care at Harrington rather than shop around. He hopes that what Harrington loses in payments by moving into a lower-cost tier will be made up by higher patient volume. "We think, philosophically, that more patients would rather stay local," Moore said. Better care at higher prices? A look at pricing disparity for spe- cific medical procedures at various Massachusetts hospitals reveals that higher spending does not actually lead to better outcomes for patients, accord- ing to the Massachusetts Health Policy Commission's 2014 Cost Trends Report. The HPC, an independent state agency that oversees cost and quality of care, analyzed 2012 data on spending and outcomes for three common, high- cost procedures, including hip and knee replacement, and angioplasty, or "percutaneous coronary intervention," which prevents heart attacks. The report compared prices between academic medical centers and the state's teaching hospitals, as well as New England Baptist Hospital, which specializes in orthope- dic surgery and musculoskel- etal diseases, and found that academic medical centers received higher-than-average payments for the same ser- vices, but quality was not bet- ter, based on such outcomes as patient mortality and readmission and complica- tion rates. The HPC report suggests that this "indicates a potential opportunity to decrease health care spend- ing, either by shifting care to more efficient settings or by increasing efficiency and decreasing payments within a given setting." Despite factors that hospitals often cite to explain higher costs, David Seltz, the HPC's executive director, said the difference in how much hospitals are paid is "most closely tied to market leverage and the ability of the provider to negotiate contracts with commercial insurers (to their advantage)." But as the number of high-deductible insurance plans grows, requiring consumers to pay for more of their medical expenses, Seltz predicted patients will begin to shop around for the most affordable services, and that should put pressure on provid- ers to cut costs. n Becker College Center for Global Innovation and Entrepreneurship: The school recently received a $1 million gift toward the site that will help serve the school's focus on inno- vation. Clark University Alumni and Student Engagement Center: This $23.8 million building on Main Street will house student services, while offering flexible learning and recre- ation space for students. It's scheduled to be completed in August 2016. Framingham State University New residence hall and Hemenway Hall science renovation and addition: The school is building a $44 million, 286-bed residence hall scheduled to be com- pleted in 2016. The school will also expand and renovate science facilities at its largest academic building. Holy Cross Arts center: A $62 million building next to the student center will house perfor- mance and classroom space for the performing arts. Completion is targeted for 2019. Nichols College Academic building: The $10 million, LEED-certified structure will house class- rooms, faculty offices and academic services. It's scheduled to open in 2016. Quinsigamond Community College Healthcare and Workforce Development Center and science center. In 2014, the school completed the 73,000-square-foot expansion project into the former Telegram & Gazette building on Franklin Street in downtown Worcester. Meanwhile, construction of a $23.5 million Quinsigamond Engineering, Science and Technology Center (QuEST Center) is underway. Also, construction of a $15.9 million academic building will begin once the QuEST Center is com- pleted in 2016. Worcester State University Wellness center and student housing. The college continues an expansion that includes the Sheehan residence hall, which opened in 2014, and construction of a $52.6-million wellness center that will be completed this year. Building projects at 7 Central Mass. colleges David Seltz: Patients' price shopping should press providers to come down on costs.

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