Gov. Deval Patrick spoke without fear of contradiction when he asserted in his recent state of the state address, "We all know health care costs too much and goes up too fast."
Rising health insurance premiums continue to squeeze family budgets and cause local companies to think twice before taking on new employees. The governor wants to see the Legislature take action to better control health costs in the Bay State, and that's the sole focus of the Joint Committee on Health Care Financing chaired by state Rep. Steven M. Walsh, D-Lynn, and Sen. Richard Moore, D-Uxbridge.
There's no definitive solution to the problem, but we're certain the answer doesn't lie in imposing more mandates on health care providers. Which is why lawmakers should quickly reject the latest union-backed effort to impose minimum nurse staffing requirements on the state's hospitals.
"Codifying in government regulation staffing levels for any entity is ill-advised, counterproductive and costly," according to Associated Industries of Massachusetts. "For all employers, appropriate staffing levels are best determined at the workplace."
Testifying against the bill before Walsh's committee on behalf of AIM was Kristen Lepore of Danvers, a former deputy chief of staff to Gov. Paul Cellucci, who was recently installed as the business group's vice president for government affairs.
Patrick has done a good job using the bully pulpit of the governorship to persuade insurers and providers to look at more cost-effective ways of keeping people healthy. He claims that average premium increases are down from 16.3 percent two years ago to 2.3 percent today, and just this week Harvard Pilgrim announced that premium hikes for its subscribers will average just 1.9 percent.
Interfering in hospital staffing decisions would have the opposite effect by immediately and significantly increasing hospital operating costs, and the idea ought to be quickly dismissed from consideration.
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