It is also pushing to evict the most profoundly impaired, developmentally disabled people in this state from their long-time homes. Apart from the ugly fact that CorporateCare answers to hardly anyone (very little independent oversight, gang – go look at the DPPC, and the SAO line items) our “progressive” corporate Governor, via his “community first” policies, is taking decent paying jobs away from an educated, trained, union workforce in favor of giving the contracts to CorporateCare vendors, who keep the big salaries for the big wigs and a pittance for their direct care staff. Of course CorporateCare was “in the cards” – when said “progressive” Governor hired VENDORS to run his departments. Both Elin Howe, the DDS head, and Dr. McClain, the DSS head, came from provider land. No bias there, right?
But what many are not aware of – is that there are multimillion dollar service providers for the state giving their CEOs lavish salaries while paying their workers a pittance. The salaries….are phenomenal….. while direct care staff make poverty-level wages. I found a website called “Quality Care Watch”
http://qualitycarewatch.org/in…
Organization CEO/Officer Salary & Perks
Seven Hills David Jordan $325,000. 2005)
May Institute W. Christian $316,282 (2005)
Vinfen Gary Lamson $325,050 (2006)
If that’s not enough to make you sick, then look at the healthcare “subsidy”;
http://qualitycarewatch.org/in…
How can the Vendor Dept. Heads claim that privatization will save money…when we’re paying for Vendor employee healthcare? The Commonwealth is subsidizing the health insurance of multi-million dollar service providers for the state, and in this economy – it’s more than unconscionable. This subsidy should be ADDED on to the true cost of these contracts, instead of the fabrication that the legislature has been fed. Elin Howe’s cost/benefit analysis is coming out soon and I can’t wait to see it.
Shouldn’t we be demanding a Pay Czar or something?
Under the guise of “helping” people with disabilities, CorporateCare vendors are engaging in the systematic screwing of workers and taxpayers in this state, aided and abetted by our corporate governor. They deflate wages, suck up health insurance resources, and enrich their top tier executives, while their employees suffer, and the waiting list for services grows. I put forth to you that this is not progressive, ladies and gentlemen. This is a Dickensian nightmare, if our government doesn’t get a handle on it soon.
know we can have more accessible and more affordable health care for ourselves and our families. But it will take transparency among clinicians and health insurers, a system of care that makes more use of community settings, simplified administrative systems, and government stewardship for the good of the whole. Let’s reach for that. Governor Deval Patrick, January 4, 2007
I can argue that Fernald, Wrentham , et al, are in fact, communities and families of choice. But what we’re really missing here is the transparency and stewardship, and that’s what we voted for.
Google seach keywords
Dossia
PHR
Am I against technology, well not really but it is a double edged sword always. The instant digitized medical record of the future can speed information on it’s way to both doctors and insurance providers at the speed of light. It can also go everywhere and to anybody. It is digital, you currently have no idea what it contains or who has accessed it.
Will they hold that genetic test against you? How would you even know? Can I look at my own medical record? How?
HIPPA assures me it’s “private”.
Think again.
http://www.patientprivacyright…
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p>Remeber, Obama needed a six thousand dollar Blackberry custom built by General Dynamics because it wasn’t “secure”. What does that say for the ones you and I have to use.
Two-edged sword is a good comparison. So many sick people with disabilties get poor treatment because their caretakers, if not family guardians, do not know all their history and complexity.
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p>At the same time, the potential for abuse, even with HIPAA, is vast, and insurance companies are often exempt from HIPAA firewalls.
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p>You do have a right to see your own medical records (or those of your minor child or ward) under HIPAA, including nurse’s logs — not just discharge summaries. But you do have to apply in writing and can’t just look in the active files, which may have information on other people with privacy rights.
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p>Your concern is not what everyone else is discussing under corporate care, but it is increasingly an issue as caregivers become corporatized into interchangeable parts and must rely on the digital records for institutional memory that used to be supplied by individual medical people and family members.
There is a lot about private provider land and various advocacy groups that is surprising.
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p>Update on Vinfens Gary Lamson $395,857 in 2007. During 2007 Vinfens gross revenue was $96,930,377, of that $91,500,000 was from the taxpayers (both federal and state).
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p>Update on Seven Hills David Jordan $484,472 in 2007. During 2007 Sevens Hills gross revenue was $127,236,090 of that $111,484,951 was from the taxpayers (both federal and state).
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p>Take a look as the Mass website, Attorney General’s section, Division of Public Charities. Every nonprofit that gets a certain amount of money is required to file Tax Returns, Audited Financial Statements, and Annual Reports. Time consuming but well worth it if you want to see how the private providers are organized. They have numerous affiliates that obtain low-cost or no-cost no payback loans, subsidize rental income, and provide every service a disabled person could require. Free buildings from the government, guaranteed occupancy of those homes from the government, guaranteed subsidized rental revenue stream from the government, and a revenue stream from the government via their affiliates that provide various services. They “corner the market”.
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p>Lets not forget the legislators hand in this. Not generally known is that state Reps and Senators are on the board of directors of these private providers and advocacy agencies. For example, Senator Richard Moore and Rep Karyn Polito are members of the Seven Hill Board of Directors. Speaker DeLeo, Senator Steven Tolman and Rep Kevin Honan are on the Board of Directors of the Greater Boston ARC. (Info from Atty Generals Website) These individuals have influence over funding. Makes you wonder.
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p>Like you I can’t wait to see the feasibility study. This was nothing more than “window dressing” on the part of the legislature. As you pointed out, there are numerous additions to the costs in the community that are overlooked or ignored. The funding in the community comes from numerous sources and is overlapping (DMR, DMH, Medicare, Medicaid, SSA, Mass Rehab, Hud, Food Stamps, etc.) I doubt the information could be gathered from the various agencies in the given timeframe much less be analysed. Since DMR is accomplishing the study, I think we know what the conclusions will be.
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p>To see our “progressive” governor’s policy is action, take a look at a post from Dave from Harvard on deterioriating conditions at Fernald.
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