Connecticut's Blueprint for Optimal Health Care Delivery
Transformative Insights for Optimal Planning
Imagine a state where every health care facility operates in harmony—where resources are planned efficiently, ensuring each community has access to the care they need without unnecessary duplication. A well-crafted health care facilities and services plan can achieve this by mapping out the needs of the population and strategically aligning the health care delivery system to cover all areas. This prevents the waste of valuable resources and ensures that no region is left underserved.
To ensure efficient health care delivery across the state, Connecticut mandates a biennial update of its Statewide Health Care Facilities and Services Plan. This plan serves as a blueprint for health care policymakers, providing critical information, policies, and projections to guide the planning and development of health care facilities and services across the state. The primary goals of the plan are to prevent excess capacity, avoid duplication of services, identify gaps in health care provision, provide clear guidelines for adding services, foster fair competition within the health care market, and improve access to services.
Our Applied Research and Analytical Approach
Connecticut's Office of Health Strategy selected Altarum to update and modernize the plan, building on the foundation established in the 2012 report. With our extensive experience in health economics, analytics, and state policy analysis, our team of applied research and analytics experts ensured that Connecticut's Office of Health Strategy achieved its goals.
To develop the comprehensive insights offered in the 2024 plan, we conducted extensive evidence reviews, landscape analysis, and geospatial analysis. Well-attended stakeholder sessions, each aligned with the different topic areas of the plan, provided valuable feedback from experts and practitioners.
"This project tapped into our many areas of expertise. Our team included health economics experts, state health care affordability specialists from the Healthcare Value Hub, GIS experts to analyze data on access, and 508 compliance experts to ensure the report is accessible to all,” says Erin Butto, Senior Director of Applied Research and Analytics at Altarum. “This well-rounded approach allowed us to deliver a thorough and impactful plan for Connecticut."
Altarum's deep experience in health economics, policy analysis and the use of All-Payer Claims Databases (APCD) made us uniquely suited for this project. We were able to offer detailed insights and comprehensive analysis. "For different populations, especially those experiencing health disparities, our work combined detailed analysis of health insurance claims to understand individual experiences within the health care system,” Butto explains. “Also, we examined Connecticut's policies on a global level, comparing them to other states. This approach provided critical information for effective health services planning."
The collaboration between our team members and the state of Connecticut ensured that the plan was not only updated but also aligned with the state's health priorities and policy recommendations.
Examples of Our Work
Applied Research and AnalyticsOur Impact
The updated plan has already enhanced health care delivery in Connecticut. It has provided clear guidelines for adding services, improved access to health care through transparency and data on geographic distribution, and identified gaps in services and unmet needs. The plan has also helped prevent excess capacity and duplication of services, ensuring that health care resources are utilized efficiently.
The Plan Forward
The Altarum team continues to collaborate with Connecticut to further enhance health care delivery. We are currently working on an addendum to the FSP that highlights how health conditions and social determinants impact health care needs and utilization, which will serve as a foundation to the next State Health Assessment and State Health Improvement Plan. Both the Office of Health Strategy and the Department of Public Health contribute to this comprehensive approach, ensuring a focus on public health and health services. The goal is to offer the necessary data and insights to develop effective health policies and improved health outcomes for Connecticut residents.