State Representative Daniel Webster (R-Pembroke) was recently invited to sit as a panelist at the New England Chapter of the Healthcare Information and Management System Society’s (HIMSS) Public Policy Forum in Norwood.  HIMMS is an organization which advocates for the advancement of healthcare services through the use of information technology systems.  The panel discussion was entitled “Healthcare Reform – Impact on New England”. 

Representative Webster was asked to join the panel discussion as he was one of two House members to vote against the state’s healthcare overhaul in 2006; the blueprint from which the national healthcare proposal was modeled.  Webster was joined by both national and regional experts to discuss the issues facing the Commonwealth as a result of these reforms.  While speaking at the event, Representative Webster touched on a variety of topics ranging from cost savings to coverage issues and the need for further reforms to better the state’s current system.  

“This was an excellent opportunity to exchange ideas with the experts from the field.  These are the people who are on the front lines of the healthcare industry, and I was humbled to be invited to attend,” stated Webster.  “I am still concerned with the financial burdens the Massachusetts statute places on small businesses and working families.  I will continue to support a shift in the MassHealth system, whereby enrollees would be moved from a fee-for-service program to managed care.  Allowing people to meet with a primary care physician more frequently will certainly stave off potential visits to the emergency room… there is real money to be saved for both the taxpayers and the state in this proposal.”