Maine

Maine has had an impressive history and continued commitment to improve the health of its citizens through strengthening its system of primary care across the State. In the fall of 2007, the Maine Legislature convened the Commission to Study Primary Care Practice to examine the issues facing primary care and ways to stabilize and support it. In the 2008-2009 State Health Plan, the Governor’s Office for Health Policy and Finance identified the need to promote primary care as the foundation for our state’s health system.

Formed in 2003 and incorporated in 2006, Maine Quality Counts (QC) has provided leadership, advocacy and support for improving primary care in partnership with the State through several multi-stakeholder initiatives including PCMH learning collaboratives, a Multi-payer Advanced Primary Care Practice program, Coordinated Care Teams, Quality Counts for Kids, and Integrated Behavioral-Physical Health, to name a few. Maine Quality Counts, as one of the State’s designated partners in the State Innovation Model (SIM) Initiative, is working to ensure all State health improvement measures build upon the success of these and other established PCMH programs. Quality Counts is leading the learning collaborative to implement the new Maine Behavioral Health Home Initiative. 

CHIPRA: 
Yes
MAPCP: 
Yes
Dual Eligible: 
No
2703 Health Home: 
Yes
CPCi: 
No
SIM Awards: 
Yes
PCMH in QHP: 
No
Legislative PCMH Initiative: 
No
Private Payer Program: 
Yes
State Facts: 
Population:
1,312,200
Uninsured Population:
10%
Total Medicaid Spending FY 2013: 
$2.9 Billion 
Overweight/Obese Adults:
64.8%
Poor Mental Health among Adults: 
34.2%
Medicaid Expansion: 
No

Lessons Learned From Maine’s Nation-Leading Vaccination Efforts

Maine has been a leader in the nation over the past four months, from March through June 2021, in terms of the proportion of its population that has been fully vaccinated. This accomplishment is in spite of several major demographic and infrastructure challenges.

News Author: 
Dora Anne Mills, Joan Boomsma

Safest States During COVID-19

WalletHub study

As the U.S. continues its efforts to overcome the COVID-19 pandemic amid a surge in cases caused by variant strains, staying safe is one of Americans’ top concerns. Safety is also essential for getting the economy back on track, as the lower COVID-19 transmission and deaths are in a state, the fewer restrictions there will be and the more confidence people will have to shop in person. While almost all states have fully reopened, we’ll only be able to completely get back to life as normal once most of the population is fully vaccinated against coronavirus. The good news is that the U.S.

News Author: 
Adam McCann

More States Pursuing Primary Care Investment Legislation

The Maine legislature is considering “An Act Regarding Targets for Health Plan Investments in Primary Care and Behavioral Health” (LD 1196 ). It will likely be carried over to next year with a stakeholder workgroup working on details over the summer and fall.

New England States Issue Regional PC Spend Report

A consortium of New England States, known as NESCSO, recently released a first-of-its-kind regional report on levels of primary care investment across six states.

SP 421: An Act To Establish Transparency in Primary Health Care Spending

This bill requires insurers to report primary care expenditures to the Maine Health Data Organization and for the Maine Quality Forum to use this data to report annually to the Department of Health and Human Services and the Legislature the percentage of total medical expenditures paid for primary care by commercial insurers, the MaineCare program, Medicare, the organization that administers health insurance for state employees and the Maine Education Association benefits trust respectively, the average of the percentage of total medical expenses paid for primary care across all organizatio

Primary Care Investments Are Top of Mind for Many New England States

Representatives from state agencies in Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont met earlier this month to hear and discuss reports from multi-state workgroups related to Certificate of Need reform and hospital regulatory issues,  improving the value of community benefits reports, data-sharing opportunites, and primary care investments.

News Author: 
Primary Care Spend

A Vote Expanded Medicaid in Maine. The Governor Is Ignoring It.

PORTLAND, Me. — Brandy Staples, a 39-year-old breast cancer survivor, had expected to become eligible for Medicaid coverage this month after Maine voters approved an expansion of the program last fall. Instead, she found herself in a courtroom here on Wednesday, watching the latest chapter unfold in a rancorous, drawn-out battle over whether she and thousands of other poor people in the state will get free government insurance after all.
News Author: 
Abby Goodnough

Collins: 'Extremely disappointing' ObamaCare fix left out of spending deal

Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) said Wednesday it is "extremely disappointing" that a bill she backed to stabilize ObamaCare markets was left out of a must-pass government funding bill.  

News Author: 
Peter Sullivan

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