Press Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CMS Physician Voluntary Reporting Program: Weighing the Benefits of Participation

Manasquan, N.J., USA, May 30, 2006 – Health plans, employers, consumers and the federal government are all putting pressure on the healthcare industry to promote quality, safety, satisfaction and efficiency through pay-for-performance (P4P) initiatives. The Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services (CMS) is now asking for physicians to voluntarily report adherence to certain evidence-based quality measures. In CMS Physician Voluntary Reporting Program: Weighing the Benefits of Participation, selected experts explore the pros and cons of participating and provide ways to use the program to best improve performance. For more information, please visit the HIN bookstore.

"Fifty percent of respondents to our written survey believe P4P will become an industry norm within the next 10 years," says Julie Baker, director of the healthcare advisory practice at PricewaterhouseCoopers, in the report. She goes on to impart success strategies for participants in the CMS program, including familiarization with claim codes and forecasting upcoming improvement initiatives by watching the field.

The 43-page report, produced by the Healthcare Intelligence Network (HIN), centers around briefings by two industry experts. Ms. Baker details the rising demand for performance improvement, including how it has been adopted, what can be gained and potential barriers. In a case study, Robert Fortini, clinical operations manager for quality improvement and risk management at Community Care Physicians, presents the participant perspective, describing how his physician-owned organization has enhanced quality through its participation in P4P initiatives. They provide inside analysis on the programs, including:

• How quality is defined and measures are standardized;
• The rise of P4P as a dominant industry force;
• Defining your own parameters within the program;
• How to deal with complicated data collection procedures; and
• How to overcome the obstacles to P4P participation.

"With everyone clamoring for quality improvement measures in the industry, there are now more than 100 P4P programs in the country," says Melanie Matthews, executive vice president and chief operating officer of HIN. "It’s hard to decide whether or not to participate in these programs, and practitioners need to be informed on how to take advantage of them in order to boost business along with patient satisfaction."

CMS Physician Voluntary Reporting Program: Weighing the Benefits of Participation also contains a question-and-answer section where the experts clarify how to keep up with reports, collect and submit data, and facilitate communication both between physicians and patients and between different practitioners, as well as seven pages of additional resources.

For more information, please visit the HIN bookstore.

About the Healthcare Intelligence Network – HIN is the premier advisory service for executives seeking high-quality strategic information on the business of healthcare. For more information, contact the Healthcare Intelligence Network, PO Box 1442, Wall Township, NJ 07719-1442, (888) 446-3530, fax (732) 292-3073, e-mail info@hin.com, or visit http://www.hin.com.

Contact: Patricia Donovan