quality
March CT Health Policy Webquiz: CT health care quality
Test your knowledge about the quality of health care in CT. Take the March CT Health Policy Webquiz.
Read MoreCSG/ERC annual meeting highlights
This year’s CSG/ERC annual meeting in Puerto Rico this month included several health panels and meetings. The first was an initial report on Value over Volume 2.0, an update on our first report from 2009 on payment reform for state/provincial/territorial policymakers with tools to both improve quality and control costs. An ACA Roundtable generated a…
Read MoreCEPAC meeting on dense breast tissue screening
This month’s CEPACmeeting focused on that status of comparative effectiveness research on supplemental cancer screening for women with dense breast tissue. 40% of women have dense tissue, both raising the risk of cancer and the chances that a lump will be masked on a routine mammogram. CT is the only state that both requires notification…
Read MoreCT hospital ER waits longer than US average
Average waits at CT hospital emergency departments vary from 82 minutes at Hartford Hospital to 14 minutes at Windom Hospital, according to a new analysis by the CT Health I-Team. CT’s average wait time is 30 minutes; the national average is 28 minutes. While CT hospitals are implementing quality improvements, experts expect wait times to…
Read MoreSIM proposal draft – no commitment to deny payment to providers who deny care
During yesterday’s meeting, SIM leaders posted their first draft online of the administration’s plan to reform health care in CT. SIM is designed to radically transform how health care is delivered and paid for in our state across all payers – Medicare, Medicaid, private insurance, self-insured employers, individuals and small businesses. Despite earlier encouraging conversations,…
Read MoreNew action guide on Community Health Workers
ICER has published an action guide, Community Health Workers: Applying the Evidence to Policy and Practice, to effectively incorporating Community Health Workers into the health system for the CHW workforce, insurers, and providers and organizations that employ CHWs. The guide, based on CPAC’s CHW effectiveness report, gives evidence-based action steps tailored to the needs of…
Read MoreCT moves up to 13th worst in hospital Medicare readmission penalties
Twenty four CT hospitals will face Medicare penalties because of readmission rates averaging 0.43% of Medicare revenues. In an important move to link payment to quality of care, Medicare began last year providing individual hospitals with penalties and rewards based on the number of discharged patients who are readmitted within a month. While CT…
Read MoreCEPAC meeting focused on effectiveness of Community Health Workers
Friday’s CEPACmeeting centered on the clinical and cost-effectiveness of community health workers. The meeting was very well-attended with dozens of stakeholders represented both in the audience, the policymaker panel and in public comment. Community health workers (CHWs) are trusted members of a community who assist patients in accessing appropriate care and in keeping themselves…
Read MoreChoosing Wisely grand rounds
Tuesday’s John Boden Symposium at Middlesex Hospital featured Michael LeFevre, MD, from UMissori-Columbia and Vice-Chair of the US Preventive Services Task Force, speaking on Choosing Wisely: How Doing Less Results in Better Care. The symposium was over-subscribed with 100 clinical staff eager to hear how they can provide better quality care by avoiding unnecessary treatments…
Read MoreCT hospitals among worst in Medicare performance payments
CT’s hospitals are the lowest among all 50 states in earning Medicare quality payments starting this month – only hospitals in DC performed worse. Medicare’s value-based purchasing program will tie a portion of hospitals’ payments to the quality of care they deliver. Only 4 of CT’s 29 acute care hospitals will receive a quality bonus;…
Read More