Healthcare Benchmark Initiative

Connecticut doctor

Improving health, reducing costs

The Healthcare Benchmark Initiative plays a key role in improving the health of CT residents. It helps:
  • All residents access affordable, high-quality healthcare
  • Enhance spending on primary care, allowing for creative solutions to address healthcare needs
  • The state lower healthcare spending growth

About the initiative

The Healthcare Benchmark Initiative involves people from across the healthcare landscape to create a healthcare cost growth benchmark. The initiative provides data to legislators and policymakers to improve healthcare quality and spending in Connecticut.

These efforts focus on:
  • Setting annual healthcare cost growth targets for 2021-2025
  • Increasing primary care spending as a percentage of total healthcare expenditure, with a goal of of 10% by 2025
  • Providing healthcare quality benchmarks for all public and private payers
  • Reporting healthcare spending growth
  • Monitoring care organizations and different payment models

Program resources

Data Transparency 

Discover the data behind the policy solutions to the state's healthcare challenges.

HCBI Quality Benchmarks 

Explore clinical quality, patient safety, consumer experience, and over-and under-utilization measures.

Guidance for Payers and Providers 

Review technical and operational procedures that payers and providers must follow for data reporting and collection.

Reports and updates 

Read Healthcare Benchmark Initiative reports and findings.

Submit comments 

Email your thoughts about any scheduled or recent hearing topic. They can become part of the public record.
icon

Legislation

Governor Lamont signed Executive Order #5 in January, 2020, charging the Office of Health Strategy (OHS) to benchmark total healthcare expenditures growth in the state. During the 2022 legislative session, Public Act 22-118 §217-223 codified most of Executive Order No. 5’s provisions into law (Conn. Gen. Statute §19a-754f et seq). OHS carries out the initiative with the support of Technical Teams and stakeholder advisory boards.

Healthcare Benchmark Initiative Leadership

Steering Committee 

The Healthcare Benchmark Initiative Steering Committee includes senior stakeholders, subject matter experts, state agency executives, and consumer advocates who advise on healthcare cost growth, quality and primary care spending.

Quality Council 

The Quality Council includes local and regional stakeholders who provide guidance on a core set of clinical quality, patient safety, consumer experience and over- and under-utilization benchmarks and measures.

Technical Team 

The Technical Team is comprised of a team of experts in healthcare economics, health policy and related fields who work collaboratively to set healthcare cost growth and primary care spending benchmarks for the next five years, 2026-2030.

 

Data Analytics Workgroup 

The Data Analytics Workgroup advises on data driven strategies to reduce healthcare cost growth in the state. 

Cost growth benchmark values

The technical team recommended that the cost growth benchmark use a 20/80 weighting of the growth in CT potential gross state product and the growth of CT median income. The resulting value of the benchmark was 2.9%. The 2024 target was adjusted to 4.0% due to the impact of inflation. The 2025 target will remain at 2.9%. Each year the Commissioner evaluates the impact of inflation to determine if a change to the benchmark target is warranted.

2021 (Base Value + 0.5%): 3.4%

2022 (Base Value + 0.3%): 3.2%

2023 (Base Value): 2.9%

2024 (Base Value + Inflation Adjustment): 4.0%

2025 (Base Value): 2.9%

CGB Values 2026-2030

Values of benchmark 2026-2030

2026 2.8%

2027 2.8%

2028 2.8%

2029 2.8%

2030 2.8%

Primary care spending target

Connecticut targets increasing primary care spending as a percentage of total health care expenditure to 10% by 2025.

Calendar year 2021: 5.0%

Calendar year 2022: 5.3%

Calendar year 2023: 6.9%

Calendar year 2024: 8.5%

Calendar year 2025: 10.0%

Primary Care Spending Target 2026-2030

Primary care spend target values 2026-2030

2026: 10%

2027: 10%

2028: 10%

2030: 10%

Commercial Quality Benchmark Measure 2026-2030

Colorectal Cancer Screening

2026 Value: 77.7

2027 Value: 77.7

2028 Value: 77.7

2029 Value: 77.7

2030 Value: 77.7

 

Controlling High Blood Pressure

2026 Value: 72.0

2027 Value: 72.9

2028 Value: 73.9

2029 Value: 74.8

2030 Value: 75.8

 

Glycemic Status > 9.0%

2026 Value: 21.3

2027 Value: 20.5

2028 Value: 19.8

2029 Value: 19.2

2030 Value: 18.5

 

Immunizations for Adolescents

2026 Value: 28.0

2027 Value: 30.3

2028 Value: 32.8

2029 Value: 35.5

2030 Value: 38.4

 

Prenatal and Postpartum Care: Timeliness of Prenatal Care

2026 Value: 87.7

2027 Value: 89.2

2028 Value: 90.7

2029 Value: 92.3

2030 Value: 93.9

 

Prenatal and Postpartum Care: Postpartum Care

2026 Value: 90.4

2027 Value: 91.2

2028 Value: 92.1

2029 Value: 93.0

2030 Value: 93.9

 

REL Data Completeness

2026 Value: TBD

2027 Value: TBD

2028 Value: TBD

2029 Value: TBD

2030 Value: TBD

 

 
Medicaid Quality Benchmark Measure 2026-2030

 

Colorectal Cancer Screening

2026 Value: 31.6

2027 Value: 33.1

2028 Value: 34.7

2029 Value: 36.4

2030 Value: 38.1

 

Controlling High Blood Pressure

2026 Value: 71.4

2027 Value: 72.4

2028 Value: 73.4

2029 Value: 74.4

2030 Value: 75.4

 

Glycemic Status > 9.0%

2026 Value: 27.8

2027 Value: 26.3

2028 Value: 24.9

2029 Value: 23.6

2030 Value: 22.4

 

Immunizations for Adolescents

2026 Value: 39.8

2027 Value: 41.9

2028 Value: 44.1

2029 Value: 46.3

2030 Value: 48.7

 

Prenatal and Postpartum Care: Timeliness of Prenatal Care

2026 Value: 93.7

2027 Value: 93.7

2028 Value: 93.7

2029 Value: 93.7

2030 Value: 93.7

 

Prenatal and Postpartum Care: Postpartum Care

2026 Value: 89.0

2027 Value: 89.2

2028 Value: 89.5

2029 Value: 89.7

2030 Value: 90.0

 

REL Data Completeness

2026 Value: TBD

2027 Value: TBD

2028 Value: TBD

2029 Value: TBD

2030 Value: TBD

 

Medicare Advantage Benchmark Measure 2026-2030

Colorectal Cancer Screening

2026 Value: 75.2

2027 Value: 76.4

2028 Value: 77.6

2029 Value: 78.8

2030 Value: 80.0

Controlling High Blood Pressure

2026 Value: 76.8

2027 Value: 77.6

2028 Value: 78.4

2029 Value: 79.2

2030 Value: 80.0

Glycemic Status > 9.0%

2026 Value: 15.6

2027 Value: 14.3

2028 Value: 13.1

2029 Value: 12.0

2030 Value: 11.0

REL Data Completeness

2026 Value: TBD

2027 Value: TBD

2028 Value: TBD

2029 Value: TBD

2030 Value: TBD