Bill > S3116

This bill aims to strengthen primary care by establishing new definitions for primary care expenditures and independent primary care practices, and by creating an office of primary care policy and payment within the Health Policy Commission (HPC). This office will study primary care access and payment, develop a uniform payment model called the "advanced primary care payment model" for all insurance carriers, and issue regulations to improve the primary care system, workforce, and integration with behavioral health. The bill also sets targets for increasing aggregate primary care expenditures as a percentage of total healthcare spending, starting at 9% in 2028 and rising to 15% by 2030, with mechanisms for accountability if these targets are not met. Additionally, it mandates that certain health insurance plans and providers pay federally qualified health centers (FQHCs), which are community-based health centers, at rates at least equivalent to what they would receive from MassHealth, and establishes a graduate medical education payment for training in community-based primary care settings.