In an effort to tackle one of the biggest challenges to the Massachusetts economy, members of a special state commission on Tuesday called for regulating the growth in hospital rates to contain health care costs. Commissioners said the Division of Insurance should have greater authority to oversee hospital-insurer contracts, including the amount hospital rates can increase each year. The controversial proposal comes after months of discussions at the commission, which was convened to study the wide variation in prices at Massachusetts hospitals. Studies have shown that price disparities contribute to higher health spending because the most expensive providers also tend to have the top reputations and attract the most patients. Advertisement The panel is scheduled to submit its final recommendations in a month, and divisions among members of the group — especially between hospitals and insurers — still have to be hashed out. Hospitals have typically opposed any kind of rate regulation, while insurers have called for a greater government role in controlling hospital prices. The commission’s proposal to boost regulation of hospital payments follows a similar plan from Governor Charlie Baker last month. Baker included hospital rate caps in his annual budget, which still needs approval from legislators. Get Talking Points in your inbox: An afternoon recap of the day’s most important business news, delivered weekdays. Sign Up Tuesday’s discussion became so heated at one point that the commission’s co-chairman, state Representative Jeffrey Sanchez, chided members to “to stay away from pointing of fingers.” Earlier, some commissioners wondered aloud…more detail
