In Montana, healthcare costs for state workers reached a breaking point in 2014 – and that’s when a system of reference pricing took over, which has led to savings of $15.6 million in this year alone.

Originally, pricing was determined based on hospitals’ list pricing. Now, the state tells its hospital partners how much it is willing to pay for certain services as a starting point for negotiations.

Learn more about how Montana is shaking-up the way state health plans are paid for from Kaiser Health News’ Julie Appleby here.