From State House News Service:
The Massachusetts Health Care Quality and Cost Council will miss its March 1 deadline to make comparative health care information available on its website. “We’re not going to make it,” said Katharine London, executive director of the Massachusetts Health Care Quality and Cost Council. State law calls for the council to include comparative cost information by health care facility and by categories such as physician, diagnostic test, and therapeutic procedure. London told the News Service the council has conducted a phone survey and a focus group to get feedback on the the site’s design, which is complete. The council approved last week the hiring of Cambridge-based Medullan to build the site, she said. The council’s site does list cost and quality information by hospital and for specific medical procedures, but the data isn’t easy to get to, said London. “We want to make something that’s really user-friendly,” she said. “We’re just going to try to meet the spirit of the law as fast as we can.” The council is chaired by Health and Human Services Secretary JudyAnn Bigby. London said the council plans to have the site up in June.
