If not, now is the time to prepare.
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is working to move the U.S. healthcare system to value-based care.
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So what’s the big deal?
This is the first time in the history of the Medicare program that HHS has set specific goals for alternative payment models and value-based payments.
Traditionally, the system has been a fee-for-service model. Currently, 20% of Medicare payments for traditional beneficiaries are made through alternative payment models.
Goals and Timelines…
HHS said that it wants to tie fee-for-service Medicare payments to quality or value through alternative payment models, such as accountable care organizations or bundled payments.
HHS wants to meet these goals of tying payments to quality or value in set time frames:
- 30% of payments tied to these models by the end of 2016; and
- 50% of payments by 2018.
HHS also has set goals of tying traditional Medicare hospital payments to quality or value, as follows:
- 85% of payments by 2016; and
- 90% of payments by 2018.
The effort to meet these goals will be aided by the Hospital Value Based Purchasing and the Hospital Readmissions Reduction Programs.
HHS believes this will be successful because the health care data necessary to track these efforts is now available, thanks to widespread use of health information technology. We help our clients stay ahead of the latest technology trends to ensure smooth transitions in the face of changing regulations.
HHS believes these payment goals and timelines will drive transformative change and lead to measurable improvements.
In our next blog post, we will keep you informed of related issues. To get this important information delivered directly to your mail box, Click here to Subscribe
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