(Salem, Ore.)—April 15, 2015— The Senate Committee on Health Care today passed Senate Bill 440 out of committee with unanimous support. The bill, sponsored by Senator Elizabeth Steiner Hayward of NW Portland/Beaverton, would establish a committee convened by the Oregon Health Authority to agree on a core, shared set of quality goals and corresponding metrics for carriers, hospitals, clinics, providers and overall population health.
“You can’t manage what you can’t measure,” said Felisa Hagins, Political Director of SEIU 49. “With five independent agencies separately administering five different standards, measuring the true quality of Oregon’s healthcare system is nearly impossible. That’s a barrier that stands in the way of meaningful reform.”
SB 440 will also align quality metrics and increase transparency by establishing systems to collect and use health care data, as well as creating a core, shared set of quality goals and corresponding metrics for carriers, hospitals, clinics, and providers.
The bill has received broad support from a broad group of labor and industry groups, including: Providence Health & Services, Kaiser Permanente, OHSU, Legacy Health, The Oregon Association of Hospitals and Health Systems, SEIU Local 49 and the Oregon Nurses Association.
During the March 18 public hearing on the bill, committee member Senator Jeff Kruse described it as “one of the most significant health care bills of the session.”
“By aligning quality metrics across programs, labor and health systems alike can move towards common goals and achieve greater success together, rather than diluting attention and resources,” said Senator Steiner Hayward. “SB 440 is an important step forward in our work to achieve the health care industry’s own framework of the Triple Aim: better care and coverage for individuals, better health for the statewide population, and lower per capita costs.”
The bill now moves to the House.
About Act Now for a Healthy Oregon:
Act Now for a Healthy Oregon is a campaign of the Service Employees International Union, the largest healthcare union in the country. SEIU has long been working to improve access to quality, affordable healthcare for our members and working families across our county. Act Now for a Healthy Oregon has been one of the biggest defenders of Medicaid and Medicare funding and have had strong partnerships with groups like the AARP to improve access, quality and costs for Oregonians.
Learn more at: www.acthealthyoregon.org.
SB 440 is an important step forward toward achieving Triple Aim goals of better care, better population health and lower costs.
April 17, 2015
