In April 2006, Massachusetts enacted a landmark health reform law, known as “Chapter 58,” to improve access to affordable health insurance for nearly all residents. The Foundation served as a catalyst for the law by funding the "Roadmap to Coverage" initiative. Working with The Urban Institute, the Foundation published comprehensive, objective research to inform the debate about how to best provide health coverage for the uninsured and by convening key stakeholders around these issues. The Foundation continues to monitor the implementation of health reform through participant and provider surveys, reporting, and policy analysis.

Related Publications

• A Convening of Grantees on the Commonwealth Care Bridge Program
  February 09, 2010
  In August, 2009, legal immigrants who have been in the United State for fewer than five years lost their eligibility for health insurance coverage under Commonwealth Care. They now receive coverage under the Bridge Program. In December, the BCBSMA Foundation brought together grantees, government officials, advocates, and health insurers for an informal discussion about how and why these changes were made, and how to improve coverage for legal immigrants.
• 2008 Year-End Report of Connecting Consumers with Care Grantees
  December 09, 2009
  This report summarizes the work of the 2008 grantees in the Connecting Consumers with Care grant program area.
• National Health Care Reform And Its Impact on Massachusetts
  November 03, 2009
  This analysis, conducted by the University of Massachusetts Center for Health Law and Economics, outlines the potential impact a national health reform bill may have on Massachusetts, including key areas that bear further monitoring.
• Testimony On Health Care Affordability For the Joint Committee on Health Care Financing By The Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts Foundation
  June 24, 2009
  The Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts Foundation was invited by the Joint Committee on Health Care Financing to offer testimony on the affordability of health care. Foundation Director of Policy and Research Shanna Shulman, Ph.D. offered the following testimony.
• Access To Health Care In Massachusetts: The Landscape In 2009. Presentation by John Snow, Inc. at 2009 Summit on Access.
  May 28, 2009
  Presentation made by John Snow, Inc. at the Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts Foundation's annual Summit on Access May 28, 2009. The presentation summarizes a year of investigation into barriers to health care access that consisted of a literature review, focus groups, interviews with health access experts, and a survey of the newly-insured. This research is part of the Foundation's Care Beyond Coverage policy initiative.
• An Update on Health Reform In Massachusetts As Of Fall 2008: Access To and Affordability of Health Care. Presentation by Sharon K. Long, Ph.D. at the 2009 Summit on Access.
  May 28, 2009
  Presentation made by Sharon Long of The Urban Institute at the Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts Foundation's annual Summit on Access May 28, 2009. The presentation summarizes the results of the third annual Massachusetts Health Reform Survey.
• Shared Responsibility, Government, Business, and Individuals: Who Pays What for Health Reform?
  April 14, 2009
  This report is the first assessment of how spending to insure hundreds of thousands of additional people in the Commonwealth is being shared. It finds that the overall distribution of spending on health insurance by employers, individuals, and government remained essentially the same between 2005, one year before passage of the 2006 Massachusetts health reform law, and 2007, one year into the law’s implementation.
• 1982-2008 Funding Makes a Difference
  January 15, 2009
  This paper traces the complex history of health care reform efforts in Massachusetts over 25 years, focusing on the significant role that philanthropy played. It pays particular attention to the interaction among policymakers, grant makers, and consumer advocates over time as the political landscape evolved and new strategies and alliances emerged.
• Health Reform: Lessons from the Massachusetts Experience
  December 12, 2008
  This report summarizes the impact of health reform thus far and may be used as a point of reference for policy makers who are considering approaches to health reform elsewhere at either the state or national level. If the Massachusetts model continues to work, all or part of this model and its supporting principles may be useful in local or national health reform efforts.
• How Have Employers Responded To Health Reform In Massachusetts? Employees’ Views At The End Of One Year
  October 28, 2008
  This policy brief uses data from surveys of working-age adults to provide an assessment of employers’ responses to the reforms enacted under the Massachusetts health reform law from the perspective of their employees.
• Massachusetts Health Reform: A Public Perspective From Debate Through Implementation
  October 28, 2008
  An examination of public opinion in Massachusetts toward health reform from 2003 through 2008.
• After The Mandates: Massachusetts Employers Continue To Support Health Reform As More Firms Offer Coverage
  October 28, 2008
  An examination of employers' responses to the implementation of the Massachusetts health reform law and whether or not "crowd out" has occured.
• The Impact of Health Reform on Underinsurance in Massachusetts: Do the insured have adequate protection?
  October 01, 2008
  A 10-page issue brief that assesses the extent to which the insurance provided in Massachusetts under health reform in 2007 protects individuals from financial risk in the event of a major illness or injury.
• Who Gained the Most Under Health Reform in Massachusetts?
  October 01, 2008
  An eight-page issue brief that analyzes the impacts of health reform on insurance coverage across different population groups in the state. Specifically, it examines differences in insurance coverage by demographic characteristics (e.g., age, race/ethnicity, and gender), health status, employment, and geography.
• Massachusetts Health Reform Public Opinion Survey Topline Results
  July 01, 2008
  Results of a public opinion survey of Massachusetts residents about health care reform.