More than 200 healthcare organizations, including America’s Physician Groups (APG) and the National Association of ACOs (NAACOS), have urged the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to make adjustments to the Global and Professional Direct Contracting Model instead of canceling the program. In a letter to HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra, the groups stressed that shutting down the Direct…
A large group of 222 healthcare organizations, both national healthcare associations and provider organizations, including accountable care organizations (ACOs), sent a letter on Monday, February 14, to Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra, urging him not to cancel the Global and Professional Direct Contracting (GPDC) model, but instead make adjustments to it. Among the…
Medicare Part C (Medicare Advantage) enrollment has grown more rapidly than fee-for-service Medicare Enrollment in the last decade, raising questions about changes in the characteristics of different enrollee populations for Medicare Part A only, Medicare Part A & B and Medicare Part C. Microsoft’s Precision Population Health Group partnered with CareJourney to advance understanding of…
The Pharmacy Quality Alliance (PQA) has a new pharmacy performance measure that evaluates adherence to medications for diabetes, hypertension (renin angiotensin system antagonists) and high cholesterol (statins), through a single composite measure.1 You may be thinking, “I thought PQA already had member-endorsed adherence measures for these medications.” The answer is a bit nuanced. There are…
As 2022 unfolds, it is becoming increasingly clear that health care is at a crossroads. Do we keep reacting to crisis after crisis, potentially undermining our ability to provide consistent patient care over time? Or do we start rethinking traditional care delivery models, so they become nimbler and more attuned to our patients’ needs—the clinical…
After nearly a year of health equity work, Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) Secretary Xavier Becerra said the department will continue to make justice in the medical space a top priority. “Dr. King famously called injustice in health the most inhumane and shocking form of inequality,” Becerra began in a keynote address during…
Leading Community Based Changes in the Culture of Health in the US – Experiences in Developing the Team and Impacting the Community is available through IntechOpen, the world’s largest publisher of Open Access books. Co-edited by Claudia S.P. Fernandez, DrPH, and Giselle Corbie-Smith, MD, healthcare experts from nurses to social workers present a way forward…
Blue Shield of California has launched a community health-focused program aimed at addressing disparities in maternal and infant health, the insurer announced Wednesday. The Maternal Child Health Equity Initiative will make services available to expectant mothers in Fresno, Los Angeles and Sacramento through physician referral, Blue Shield said. Through the program, the insurer will collaborate with…
Despite incredible work by health care workers during the pandemic, consumer and patient trust and belief in the health care system is dangerously low. Why is this a big problem now? Because as pressure to implement Value-Based Care initiatives is intensifying and creating more financial pressure on your already-slim margins, your health system or ACO…
In order to ensure accountable care organization (ACO) and patient experience success, providers must collaborate across the continuum of care, suggested a recent study out of the Ohio State University Fisher College of Business. “We found that if an ACO wants to be successful, it needs representation across all parts of a patient’s continuum of care,”…