Health Economics Program
Annual Work
- Chartbooks
- Health Access Survey
- Minnesota All Payer Claims Database (MN APCD)
- Health Care Quality Measures
- Rx Price Transparency
Special Projects
- Market Oversight
- Study of Telehealth Expansion
- Hospital Bed Moratorium
- Universal Health Care Finance System
- Implementation Updates
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Select Implementation Updates
Health Economics Program
The 2023 Minnesota legislative session brought an increase in new duties and initiatives for the Health Economics Program. View a summary of this new work in the 2023 HEP Legislative Fact Sheet (PDF).
New initiatives related to prescription drug affordability from the 2023 legislative session are summarized in the 2023 New Minnesota Initiatives for Rx Affordability (PDF).
Analysis of a Universal Health Care Finance System
MDH is to contract with a vendor for an analysis of the benefits and costs of a universal health care financing system. To prepare for this work, MDH is working with the State Health Access Data Assistance Center (SHADAC) on an in-depth analysis of national and state-models.
For more information, please visit the Analysis of a Universal Health Care Finance System webpage.
Center for Health Care Affordability
One of the new initiatives for the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) is to establish a Center for Health Care Affordability (the Center); Laws of Minnesota 2023, chapter 70, article 16.
The focus of the Center's work is threefold:
- Collect data and conduct research (including on drivers of health care spending growth) to increase transparency.
- Educate stakeholders and the public on issues related to the affordability of health care.
- Publicly engage payers and providers on the need to increase affordability of health care of all Minnesotans.
For background on the importance of creating the Center, please visit the Addressing Our Growing Health Care Costs Infographic (PDF). There will be more information on this program and opportunities for public engagement in the months to come.
Health Care Market Oversight
HEP is responsible for receiving notice and specific information prior to the close of certain health care entity transactions. As part of this work, HEP supports the review functions of the Attorney General's Office. For more information on this initiative, visit the Market Oversight website. For questions—including questions on transaction reviews—please contact the Health Care Market Oversight team at health.hctransactions@state.mn.us.
Medical and Dental Standard Charges
The Minnesota Legislature passed legislation in 2023 requiring hospitals and certain medical and dental practices to post standard charges on their websites (Minnesota Statutes, section 62J.826). The commissioner of health is to specify the way these health care entities make the information available to the public on their websites.
Review the guidance in the Pricing Transparency: Medical and Dental Standard Charges fact sheet (PDF).
Mental Health Bed Monitoring
Legislation passed in 2022 (MN Statutes, section 144,551, subd 1a) allows hospitals to add mental health beds or construct a new mental health hospital without a public interest review or statutory expectation to the hospital moratorium under certain conditions. MDH is tasked with monitoring new beds or hospitals and collecting data.
Visit the Mental Health Bed Monitoring webpage for more information.
Minnesota All Payer Claims Database (MN APCD)
View a summary of new work specific to the Minnesota All Payer Claims Database (MN APCD) in the 2023 MN APCD New Initiatives Fact Sheet (PDF).
The 2023 legislative session in Minnesota concluded with the adoption of numerous new initiatives that impact the Minnesota All Payer Claims Database (MN APCD), including expanded data sharing and new data collection.
The new legislation requires that race and ethnicity data be submitted for claims incurred on or after January 1, 2023. MDH has transitioned to Version 5.0 of the MN APCD Data Submission Guide. MDH hosted a webinar on October 5, 2023, to train all MN APCD data submitters on the new fields being collected in their data submissions. MN APCD data submitters have until January 19, 2024, to resubmit their 2023 Eligibility files. Changes to the Medical Claims and Pharmacy Claims files will be implemented on a "go forward" basis beginning with the January 2024 file submissions.
MDH is also gathering more information about non-claims-based payments directly from health plans to inform a legislative report due February 2024. MDH has completed an environmental scan and identification of non-claims-based payment (NCBP) reporting strategies and categories for data submission. MDH has conducted structured interviews with payers and summarized the finding. On September 26, 2023, MDH hosted a webinar to train data submitters on the data collection template for the NCBP legislative report. Data submissions were due November 22, 2023, in support of the February 2024 legislative report. MDH may pursue rulemaking in 2024 to amend the established rules (Minnesota Rules, chapter 4653). Rulemaking for collecting dental claims will also begin in 2024.
Request for Information: HMOs status conversion
The Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) published a Request for Information (RFI) and held a public comment period in October 2023 on a legislatively mandated study of the potential conversion of nonprofit Health Maintenace Organizations (HMOs) to for-profit status. For more information about the study, please visit the HMO Conversion Study webpage.
As more information becomes available on these new duties in the coming weeks and months, this page will be updated and direct to related webpages. Check back for more!
Last Updated: 03/25/2024