Key Collaborative Expert Reviewing the State's Chapter 257 Compliance
Robert Griffin, Esq.
Mr. Griffin serves as Counsel to the Collaborative, joined Krokidas & Bluestein in 1985. He concentrates his practice in the areas of health care, non-profit, administrative and corporate law. Griffin is highly regarded in the Commonwealth as a rate setting expert. He previously served as the last Chairman of the Massachusetts Rate Setting Commission. He is a 1975 graduate of Trinity College. He received a master's degree in public administration from the University of Massachusetts in 1978, and a juris doctor degree from Suffolk Law School in 1983.
Should The Collaborative conclude a legal action is required, Mr. Griffin will serve as lead litigator for the provider community. The Collaborative will be arranging an opportunity for members of the provider community to talk with Mr. Griffin and provide him with feedback on the state's performance in meeting the legal requirements of Chapter 257.
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The Collaborative looks at
Chapter 257 Progress and Next Action Steps to Assure Compliance
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Rate Law Implementation Under Review
 As the Administration of Governor Deval Patrick nears its final 14 months, members of The Collaborative, including ABH, ADDP and the Providers' Council, are working with members to review the state's compliance with the legislation endorsed and signed by Governor Deval Patrick in 2008. Additionally The Collaborative will be looking at next steps including legal, regulatory, legislative and advocacy options.
Passed unanimously by the House and Senate, the law which came to be known as Chapter 257 promised to put in place a prospective rate setting process for human service contracts administered by the Executive Office of Health and Human Services that would result in the Commonwealth paying fair and adequate rates for the delivery of human services delivered by private providers on behalf of the state. Additionally Chapter 257 was viewed as an opportunity to address provider infrastructure base costs, such as insurance, utilities, employee benefits, mileage and other base operating costs which, for contracts that have not received a rate increase since 1988, have gone with 0% increase. In the meantime, according to the Consumer Price Index the CPI has increased over 102% over this same period.
Legislators, advocates, and the Governor celebrated the passage of the law in 2008 acknowledging that the law would result in the opportunity for fair and adequate wages for long underpaid human service front line workers and stability for the fragile state of community programs.
The original legislation called upon the Commonwealth to have 100% of all rates re-set, implemented and paid over a four-year period. In 2009, however, the Commonwealth asked for an 15-month extension to help them fully implement the law. Chapter 257 also called upon EOHHS and the state's rate setting division, the Center on Health Care Information & Analysis (CHIA) to put in place two year reviews to assure that rates did not fall behind actual cost as had been the case with the 25-year absence of a rate setting process.
Members of The Collaborative are working with the three major trade associations, and our attorneys, led by rate expert Robert Griffin, Esq. (see left panel), to determine the degree to which the state is following it's own laws, rules and regulations. This review will then determine the best course of action for The Collaborative to undertake. Clearly after decades of waiting for a rate system and six years after the enactment of Chapter 257, providers are ready to take the strongest action necessary to ensure full compliance with the law.
 To date, The Collaborative has spoken to EOHHS Secretary John Polanowicz, and representatives of the Executive Office of Administration and Finance, about the state's selective adherence to the timetable for implementation and payment of fair and adequate rates as set out in the state law. Rates that are late in being set and paid include Adult Long Term Residential rates for DDS & MRC programs, and the DMH/DCF Caring Together program. Additionally the state has been late in putting into place the two-year review cycle for previously set rates. For example, rates determined in 2009 for Placement Services and Supports, were behind schedule for review and recently proposed again, but remain not effective. In addition, Family Transitional Support Services have rates proposed but were advised they won't be set or paid for an undetermined time. ALTR rates have been announced by Secretary John Polanowicz to be paid effective April 1, 2014, at the full rate set by CHIA, and fully funded in FY 15 for the full fiscal year. Though providers view the Polanowicz announcement as good news, the delivery of ALTR rates is nine months later than the date set by state law in Chapter 257.
The Collaborative will be monitoring all factors that will affect Chapter 257 including the composition of the Governor's FY 15 House Two Budget Recommendations, and all pending contracts signed by providers and the Commonwealth. |
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