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| Editorial Archives
January/February 2008 • Volume 3, Number 1
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| Follow the Money: Payment Reform (PDF, 8 pages) |
| Estimates suggest that medical spending in the United States
is 20% to 30% above needed levels. By compensating physicians
for the quality of the services they perform, the medical
system can limit the incentives for overused care and increase
the incentives for prevention, bringing the system into alignment. |
| David M. Cutler, PhD • p. 19 |
| Reducing Medically Inappropriate Admissions (PDF, 5 pages) |
| The pervasiveness of improper payments across Medicare
services is the backdrop for CMS’ Hospital Patient Monitoring
Program. From July 2005 to June 2006, Medicare hospital
inpatient payments accounted for an estimated 41% of
the Medicare Trust Fund expenditures; 5% of these inpatient
payments were paid in error. Thus, Medicare overpaid approximately
$4.4 billion. |
| Ya-Ping Su, PhD • p.
27 |
| Behind the Numbers: Healthcare Cost Trends for 2008 (PDF, 6 pages) |
| Care coordination provided by systems such as Care Management
Plus can save lives and improve healthcare outcomes,
patients’ experience with care, and disease status.
Read a physician’s testimony to the Senate Special Committee
on Aging. |
| • p. 32 |
| Vaccination Access Today (PDF, 4 pages) |
The Surgical Care Improvement Project (SCIP) is a national
quality partnership of organizations focused on improving
surgical care by significantly reducing surgical complications.
This article by a New Jersey QIO reviews the quality improvement
initiatives. |
| Richard
G. Stefanacci, DO, MGH, MBA, AGSF, CMD • p.
38 |
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Requests for reprints of Medicare Patient Management articles or permissions to use article content may be sent to Jennifer
Kenny at jkenny@healthcommedia.com.
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