Health care reform in Massachusetts, which was enacted under then-Gov. Mitt Romney (R) and was the model for Obamacare, corresponded with a drop in the state’s mortality rate, a study released Monday found.
The Los Angeles Times reported that study, published in the Annals of Internal Medicine, found the state’s mortality rate fell by nearly 3 percent, compared to a control group, after it expanded insurance coverage.
According to the authors, that is the equivalent of one death prevented for every 830 adults who gained insurance.
“While this analysis cannot demonstrate causality, the results offer suggestive evidence that the Affordable Care Act … may impact not only coverage and access but also mortality,” the authors concluded. They did warn, however, that other factors might have contributed to the drop and cautioned against expecting the same results in other states.
The study goes hand-in-hand with another one that concluded as many as 17,000 Americans will die as a direct result of decisions by their states not to expand Medicaid under Obamacare.
