What We Know About Health Reform in Massachusetts

The brief’s key findings are:

• Numerous studies have examined the impact of Massachusetts’ landmark 2006 health care reform, the basis for the national Affordable Care Act.
• The results suggest that the Massachusetts reform has largely succeeded by:
  • reducing uninsurance rates;
  • improving health care access and health outcomes; and
  • inducing more firms to offer coverage, without raising unemployment.
• At the same time improving access to non-employer coverage may have reduced labor force participation for men age 55-64.
• Finally, while health care cost growth has slowed in recent years, cost control remains a challenge.