Pediatric Home Care Patients Study
SECTION 132.
The center for health information and analysis shall provide a report related to costs associated with the hospitalization of medically complex pediatric home care patients. The report shall include: (i) the number of medically complex pediatric home care patients, including those who have aged into adulthood, who are hospitalized annually and the length of their stay; (ii) the estimated cost to MassHealth of the annual hospitalization of medically complex pediatric home care patients; (iii) the estimated cost to private payers of the annual hospitalization of medically complex pediatric home care patients; and (iv) a cost analysis comparing continuous skilled nursing service costs to the cost of likely avoidable hospitalizations.
The center shall consult with the Massachusetts Pediatric Home Nursing Campaign and the Home Care Alliance of Massachusetts, Inc. and may consult with providers of continuous skilled nursing for children with complex medical needs. The report shall be made publicly available on the center's website and shall be filed with the clerks of the senate and house of representatives, the chairs of the joint committee on health care financing and the senate and house committees on ways and means on or before December 1, 2017.