Medicare Compliance & Reimbursement

Paying for quality health care pays off, CMS demonstration reveals. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services is putting its money where its mouth is. CMS revealed results of three demonstration projects that offered providers financial incentives for quality care. Results showed that the incentives not only increased quality -- they also reduced the growth in Medicare expenditures. "We continue to be encouraged by the progress of our ongoing programs that test value-based purchasing across a variety of health care services," said Charlene Frizzera, acting administrator of CMS. These demonstrations include one for large physician practices, one for small and solo physician practices, and one for hospitals. The Hospital Quality Incentive Demonstration shows continued quality improvement among participating hospitals, CMS reported in a press release. Meanwhile, participating physicians in the Physician Group Practice Demonstration continue to improve quality for patients with chronic illnesses or requiring preventive care. On top of [...]