Local state Rep. Jeffrey Sánchez recently traveled to Washington D.C. to speak during the National Conference of State Legislatures about Massachusetts healthcare program in light of the ongoing implementation of the Affordable Healthcare Act.
“Massachusetts is at the forefront of healthcare reform,” Sánchez said in a recent Gazette interview.
The representative said he focused on talking about how Massachusetts deals people who have serious developmental disabilities and need long-term care. He said these people have no mobility and have difficulty feeding themselves. Sánchez said Massachusetts has found a way to pay for their care by mixing funding from Medicaid and Medicare.
“In the long term, this will reduce costs,” he said, noting that is because people will be receiving the care they need.
Sánchez said some legislators at the conference are “completely against the Affordable Healthcare Act,” but everyone was respectful. He said it was a “great event,” especially because he had his own viewpoint challenged.