Controlling Hospital and Health Care Spending in Maryland in the Era of Budget Caps

Abstract

Maryland runs the only all payer hospital payment system in the country. Under this system, the federal government allows a statewide commission, the Health Services Cost Review Commission (HSCRC) to regulate hospital prices. Effective January 1, 2014, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) approved a new, innovative all-payer model for hospitals in Maryland. The forum examined how hospitals and health care providers in Maryland are adapting to the new model, and the likely effect on the populations that hospitals serve.