Testing healthcare changes ahead of time, smart move
To understand the value of Medicare demonstration projects you should take a look at a recent article from American Medical News. As some experts point out, not all demonstration projects are created equal, but many provide the healthcare industry with sound ideas and advice that help us work smarter and more efficiently.
The article offers several examples, but one worth noting is what the Premier healthcare alliance was able to do with a great deal of success:
The Premier hospital quality incentive demonstration, which ended in 2006, was a pay-for-performance project that successfully proved that bonuses could prompt health professionals to report quality measures. The effort led to the physician quality reporting system, which has netted physicians hundreds of millions of dollars in bonuses. Quality reporting through the PQRS will be mandatory starting in 2013.
Demonstration projects allow a handful of hospitals and healthcare centers to test needed changes and to make sure they truly offer the results needed. CMS hopes the innovation center will provide even more opportunities for doctors to realize the promise of Medicare demonstration projects. What is needed now is to find a better way to pay physicians, and those tests are now underway.
Hospitals across the country need to get involved in these demonstration projects. We need to actively test new models that will improve cost and quality. We all need to be proactive, willing to participate and willing to do our part for a more efficient system for our patients.
Kester Freeman blogs regularly at Action for Better Healthcare.
