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News Clips
Health Affairs: (November 2020) – Using 2018 national family medicine data, this study found that 95 percent of family medicine-affiliated practices used electronic health records in 2018. There was, however, a wide variance in whether those EHRs met meaningful use criteria. The study found that achieving patient-centered medical home transformation across all practices requires a coordinated approach that aligns strong financial incentives with tailored technical assistance.
AJMC: (11/3) - Although there is uncertainty among providers participating in APMs stemming from the general election and upcoming Supreme Court case on the ACA, providers are still planning to continue participation in these models.
Revcycle Intelligence: (11/2) - CMS has promoted a goal of transitioning as close to 100 percent of reimbursements tied to value-based contracts by 2025, although less than 20 percent of Medicare spending is currently value-based. To be successful in these models, providers must develop a deeper understanding of value-based programs, opportunities for revenue growth, and their risk of loss.
Medscape: (11/2) – The number of primary care providers is increasing per capita in the United States, but primary care providers are still disproportionately concentrated in urban centers. Researchers also found that there were more primary care physicians per capita in counties with higher household incomes and counties with a higher proportion of college graduates.
Fierce Healthcare: (11/2) - Health IT company Cerner announced value-based care has gained significant traction during the pandemic, as it has been one of the biggest shifts observed as the company helped provider clients navigate COVID-19. Cerner officials stated that several clients are increasingly moving toward capitation or value-based agreements.
Fierce Healthcare: (10/30) - Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina is partnering with Caravan Health to bring its Blue Premier program to community and rural providers in the state and establish a joint ACO that will allow VBC initiatives to reach community and rural hospitals.
Revcycle Intelligence: (10/30) - Despite challenges faced by the pandemic, some provider organizations have continued to engage in major health care merger and acquisition deals. This article outlines 10 major deals announced in 2020.
Medscape: (10/30) - A survey by the Physicians Foundation revealed that two-thirds (67 percent) of physicians support a two-tiered health care reform plan that combines private insurance with a single-payer option. Additionally, 49 percent of physicians supported maintaining or improving the current ACA-influenced system as their second favored option.
Modern Healthcare: (10/30) – HHS issued guidance allowing health care providers that received COVID-19 Provider Relief Fund grants to use funds to pay for supplies needed for COVID vaccine distribution. The guidance also expanded the number of providers that could receive grants and clarified what expenses and lost revenues could legally count toward the grant.
HealthLeaders: (10/30) – In an interview with HealthLeaders, CMS Administrator Seema Verma spoke on the final price transparency rule, the administration’s plans to advance value-based care, and how CMS plans to assist health systems in dealing with the pandemic.
Revcycle Intelligence: (10/29) – Health systems are facing a loss of $227K per employed physician across specialties as a result of COVID-19, while hospitals continue to underperform due to the virus. This amounts to a 14.1 percent loss from January to August 2020 compared to the same period the previous year.
mHealth Intelligence: (10/29) – During an episode of the Healthcare Strategies podcast, experts commented on how telehealth and in-person care should be considered complementary rather than competitive services. Sutter Health is creating strategies that integrate virtual and in-person care to focus on value and treat the whole patient.
The Hill: (10/29) - Independent family physicians have been hit hard financially during COVID-19, and without help the majority of practices may be forced to shut down. The disappearance of independent family physicians would result in lack of access to critical care in underserved communities that rely on primary care services.
Healthcare Dive: (10/28) – A JAMA Network Open study found that the number of primary care physicians increased significantly from 2009 to 2017, but growth was more pronounced in urban areas compared to rural areas. Rural clinician shortages are likely associated with the gap in population health outcomes between rural and urban residents that could be fixed by policy interventions.
American Medical Association: (10/28) – A new AMA survey of 3,500 physicians revealed the financial pressures physician practices have faced during the ongoing pandemic. Physicians on average experienced a 32 percent drop in revenue since February, with one in five physicians experiencing a 50 percent or more drop in revenue. The number of in-person visits also fell from 97 per week to 57.
Nextgen Healthcare: (10/27) – CMS Administrator Seema Verma has spoken at multiple events about how some VBC models have failed to deliver on lowering costs and increasing higher quality care. As a result, providers may have to brace for more downside risk, mandatory models, and permanent changes as CMS pivots its strategy.
HIMSS: (10/27) – HIMSS held a webinar called “Interoperability Breakthroughs to Advance Value-Based Care and Improve Clinical and Financial Outcomes,” where panelists discussed how interoperability is fueling innovation and disruption in health care.
Revcycle Intelligence: (10/27) - Several major provider groups signed a letter asking Congress to extend a congressionally-enacted moratorium on the application of the Medicare sequester cuts into 2021, given the continuation of the public health emergency and continuing financial challenges faced by physicians.
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