Press
Release
GE,
FORD, UPS, P&G, VERIZON, OTHERS BACK NEW PAY-FOR-QUALITY
INITIATIVE FOR PHYSICIANS
Bonuses
may equal 10 percent raise for top doctors; effort aimed
to improve diabetes, cardiac care and care management systems;
CMS lauds effort
WASHINGTON;
BOSTON; CINCINNATI; LOUISVILLE, KY. - A
powerful coalition of physicians, health plans, large employers
(see attached) and others today launched the "Bridges
to Excellence" program, an effort to tie physician
incentive payments to performance. The effort will initially
seek to encourage improvements in three areas: diabetes
care, cardiovascular care and patient care management systems.
The effort—unique in terms of the size of the available
incentive payments and the involvement of physicians in
its design—will also feature incentives for patients
to become more involved in their own health care. Partners
Community Healthcare, Inc., the Lahey Clinic and the Cincinnati
Children's Hospital Medical Center, all among the nation's
most highly regarded medical institutions, helped shape
the initiative.
"We
need to address some fundamental issues in health care—not
least of which is to work toward a common goal of better
quality care," said Francois de Brantes, Program Leader,
Health Care Initiatives, General Electric, and coordinator
of the Bridges to Excellence program. "It's our belief
that this approach to physician compensation will improve
the quality of care that patients receive and will, ultimately,
lower overall costs of care."
Public
sector support for the pay-for quality approach and the
Bridges to Excellence initiative in particular came from
the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS),
which also participated in developing the program. "Rewarding
physicians for improving the quality of health care they
give just makes sense," said Tom Scully, CMS Administrator.
"We applaud the efforts of all of the parties, public
and private, who are responsible for launching this initiative."
Under
the new program, top-performing doctors could see income
gains of up to 10 percent in the form of bonuses paid by
participating employers. These physicians will also be highlighted
in provider directories, helping employees and their families
identify doctors with proven outcomes in treating particular
illnesses, or whose patient care and support systems are
exemplary.
Physicians
played an important role in developing the effort and shaping
an incentive structure that would appeal to their fellow
doctors and spur investments in quality. A lot of physicians
would like to invest in information systems to help deliver
better care, but insurance payments haven't covered those
costs," said Thomas Lee, M.D., Chief Medical Officer,
Partners Community Healthcare, Inc. "Bridges to Excellence
changes the financial picture it makes investing in systems
to improve care easier."
Bridges
to Excellence is being introduced in three metro areas that
are heavily populated by employees of the companies supporting
the program. The first initiative, Diabetes Care Link, will
be launched in Cincinnati, Ohio, Louisville, Ky. and Boston,
Mass. The second, Physician Office Link, will be piloted
in Boston. Cardiac Care Link will be introduced late in
2003.
Diabetes
Care Link (a program modeled on an existing American Diabetes
Association/National Committee for Quality Assurance effort)
will provide annual bonus payments to physicians who demonstrate
good control of their patients with diabetes. An optional
patient reward program is available to encourage employees
and family members to take an active role in managing their
condition.
The
Physician Office Link program will reward physicians for
investing in information systems and care management tools
to help them provide more customized and integrated care
over time, rather than simply responding to a patient's
symptoms during office visits.
The
Robert Wood Johnson Foundation is supporting the effort
with a $330,000 grant.
For
more information on the Bridges to Excellence initiative,
visit the program's Web site at www.bridgestoexcellence.org.
Coalitions or groups interested in launching the Bridges
to Excellence program in other markets, or joining in the
current markets, should contact MEDSTAT.
The
Bridges to Excellence coalition is a not-for-profit organization
created to encourage significant leaps in the quality of
care by recognizing and rewarding health care providers
who demonstrate that they deliver safe, timely, effective,
efficient, equitable and patient-centered care. Bridges
to Excellence participants include large employers, health
plans, the National Committee for Quality Assurance and
MEDSTAT, among others. The organizations are united in their
shared goal of improving health care quality through measurement,
reporting, rewards and education.
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