Republican gubernatorial candidate Mike Minogue wants Massachusetts to move more routine health care out of costly Boston hospitals and into local clinics and outpatient centers.
Minogue discussed the idea in a recent Instagram video about his Patients First health care plan.
“This week I rolled out my Patients First Healthcare plan to give you access to affordable, quality care,” Minogue said. “It addresses some of the problems like it’s hard to get in to see your doctor. The emergency rooms are busier now than ever before.”
Minogue said patients outside Greater Boston have a harder time getting some types of care. He named high-risk maternity, heart, cancer, and stroke care as examples.
He also said Massachusetts relies too heavily on large hospitals for tests and procedures that could happen at smaller sites.
“While we have some great hospitals, we’re one of the lowest in the nation in outpatient centers and surgery centers,” Minogue said.
State data supports that part of his argument.
Massachusetts had 58 licensed ambulatory surgical centers in 2023, according to the Massachusetts Health Policy Commission. The state had eight centers per 1 million people. The national average was 18.
That gave Massachusetts the fourth-fewest ambulatory surgical centers per person in the country.
The commission also found that insurers generally pay much less for the same procedure at a freestanding surgical center than at a hospital outpatient department. It said research shows that the quality and safety at the centers are usually similar to hospital outpatient departments when doctors send the right patients there.
Minogue used an MRI as an example of how much prices can vary.
“If you go to a hospital in Boston, to the emergency room, and you get an MRI, it’s going to be around $1,500,” Minogue said. “If you’re out for a scheduled MRI and you’re at a clinic where it’s easy to drive to, it’s nearby, and you can park, it’s going to be around $350.”
“These are examples where we need to take some of this care, move it out to the community,” he added. “This is a common-sense fix.”
Minogue’s plan calls for more primary care, specialty care, mental health care, and crisis services in local communities. It would also expand telehealth and make it easier for qualified doctors and nurses from other states to get Massachusetts licenses.
His campaign also wants the state to offer more nursing education and loan forgiveness programs for people who work in areas with shortages.
On costs, Minogue wants more state oversight of pharmacy benefit managers. Those companies serve as middlemen between drug companies, pharmacies, and health insurers. He also wants fewer prior-authorization delays and more insurance choices for families and small businesses.
The plan calls for a website called “Price Compare MA” that would let patients compare health care prices. Massachusetts already runs a price tool called CompareCare. Minogue’s campaign has not said whether his proposed tool would replace or expand the current one.
Health care spending in Massachusetts rose 5.7% in 2024, according to the Center for Health Information and Analysis. It was the fourth year in a row that spending grew faster than the state’s 3.6% goal.
Minogue, the former chief executive officer of the Danvers-based heart pump company Abiomed, is running against Brian Shortsleeve in the September 1 Republican primary. The winner will face Democratic Governor Maura Healey in November.
