Nearly every chronic health condition has an increased prevalence with declining income; in fact, the life expectancy of the wealthiest American is ten to fifteen years longer than that of the poorest. Health disparities negatively affect people who experience larger obstacles to achieving optimal health due to lack of access to care. Healthcare systems face…
Dr Ahmed El Saeed, Focal Area Lead at the United Nations Global Pulse Finland, Executive Office of the UN Secretary-General, said: “International development is everybody’s business. You can do business and do good, and this is a message to the private sector, there is a very important role for the private sector to play in…
Roughly $4 trillion is spent on healthcare annually in the U.S. Despite this massive expenditure, roughly 80% of health outcomes are attributed to social, behavioral and environmental factors, known as social determinants of health (SDOH). What has been far less clear is how providers and payers can fully harness SDOH data to proactively manage the…
As patient portal use and access become more commonplace in healthcare, it would be prudent for health IT leaders and clinicians alike to understand the health disparities that can also emerge with patient portal use. The latest data shows that patient portal offerings are near universal. 2019 data from the Office of the National Coordinator…
A softer form of health care consolidation, where independent primary care practices align in certain Medicare accountable care organizations (ACOs) to negotiate with payers, may lead to higher prices, but not to an overwhelming extent, according to a new study published Monday in Health Affairs. Researchers focused their work on independent practices joining ACOs led by…
For managed-care plans focused on improving population health and reducing overall costs, the goal has to be on prevention, not just treatment. One increasingly popular strategy is targeting members based on social determinants of health (SDOH), which accounted for around $2.5 billion in spending between 2017 and 2019, according to a 2020 study. But how…
Providing timely, high quality, patient care is no easy feat. In fact, as the healthcare industry continues the shift toward value based care, this job becomes more complex, with growing requirements to monitor the outcomes of both individual patients and the greater patient population into which they fall. The movement away from fee-for-service, however, doesn’t have to…
The COVID-19 pandemic exposed many health equity gaps that have long existed. The long-term impact of the pandemic on low-income communities has yet to be fully realized. As a result, the demand for social services will continue to rise. Currently, federal and state government, payers, and providers are responsible for funding the community organizations that deal…
A group of bipartisan lawmakers wants the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation (CMMI) to be more transparent in its handling of value-based care models as the center continues a major overhaul of its demonstrations. The 24 lawmakers sent a letter to CMMI Director Liz Fowler on Wednesday seeking for more insight into the center’s…
The Biden administration is exploring making more payment models mandatory in the future as it implements a more patient-centric vision for value-based care. Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation (CMMI) Director Liz Fowler detailed parts of this vision on Thursday during an interview with Health Affairs Editor-in-Chief Alan Weil. Fowler said voluntary models come with major…