Author Archive: Lynn Barr

Rural ACO Summit Set for February 2, 2015 in Washington, DC

Fifty-nine Critical Access Hospitals joined ACOs in order to participate in the Medicare Shared Savings Program in 2014. This number will more than double in 2015, representing more than 10% of all CAHs. CMS is providing $114 million in grant funds for up to 300 rural health systems to join the program in 2016. The National Rural ACO is hosting a free educational conference at the Capitol Hilton in Washington, DC on Monday, February 2nd, 2015; the day before the National Rural Health Association’s Policy Institute. Visit www.ruralaco.com to learn more about the conference.

The Rural ACO Summit, sponsored by the National Rural Health Association and the National Rural Accountable Care Organization, will bring together experienced 2012-2014 rural ACOs, new 2015 rural ACO participants and potential applicants for the 2016 Program. Participants will learn the basics of ACO participation — including positive and negative effects on budgets, staffing, billing, and utilization. They will learn about policy issues that must be addressed to fix unique rural issues and the benefits of the ACO program, including important waivers and full access to claims data for your patients.

Who Should Attend?

New or existing ACO participants will not want to miss this opportunity to hear the latest from CMS and the experts in Washington while meeting with other ACO members from across the country looking to share information.

Prospective ACO applicants should attend to gain valuable first-hand knowledge from early adopters and recognized experts in the program. It will be a fantastic opportunity to determine whether you can, or should, join an ACO.

Attendees will also learn how to qualify and apply for the exciting new ACO Investment Model Program, $114 million dollars already allocated by CMS which pre-pays qualifying applicants, providing the start-up capital to fund rural ACO participation.

CMS is at the table. Are you? We look forward to seeing you in Washington, DC!  Click here to register today. There is no cost to register.

Click here for more information about the Policy Institute.  We look forward to seeing you in Washington, DC on February 2, 2015.

November 18, 2014 Accountable Care Organization, , , 3 Read more >

Rural ACO Summit Set for February 2, 2015 in Washington, DC

Fifty-nine Critical Access Hospitals joined ACOs in order to participate in the Medicare Shared Savings Program in 2014. This number will more than double in 2015, representing more than 10% of all CAHs. CMS is providing $114 million in grant funds for up to 300 rural health systems to join the program in 2016. The National Rural ACO is hosting a free educational conference at the Capitol Hilton in Washington, DC on Monday, February 2nd, 2015; the day before the National Rural Health Association’s Policy Institute. Visit www.ruralaco.com to learn more about the conference.

The Rural ACO Summit, sponsored by the National Rural Health Association and the National Rural Accountable Care Organization, will bring together experienced 2012-2014 rural ACOs, new 2015 rural ACO participants and potential applicants for the 2016 Program. Participants will learn the basics of ACO participation — including positive and negative effects on budgets, staffing, billing, and utilization. They will learn about policy issues that must be addressed to fix unique rural issues and the benefits of the ACO program, including important waivers and full access to claims data for your patients.

Who Should Attend?

New or existing ACO participants will not want to miss this opportunity to hear the latest from CMS and the experts in Washington while meeting with other ACO members from across the country looking to share information.

Prospective ACO applicants should attend to gain valuable first-hand knowledge from early adopters and recognized experts in the program. It will be a fantastic opportunity to determine whether you can, or should, join an ACO.

Attendees will also learn how to qualify and apply for the exciting new ACO Investment Model Program, $114 million dollars already allocated by CMS which pre-pays qualifying applicants, providing the start-up capital to fund rural ACO participation.

CMS is at the table. Are you? We look forward to seeing you in Washington, DC!  Click here to register today. There is no cost to register.

Click here for more information about the Policy Institute.  We look forward to seeing you in Washington, DC on February 2, 2015.

November 18, 2014 Accountable Care Organization, , , 3 Read more >

Kicking Off the 2015 ACO’s

We’ve enjoyed a strong start launching Rural ACO steering committees last week. The member driven committees bring physicians, hospital administrators, community care coordinators as well as senior leadership from clinics, marketing, compliance, case management and emergency departments together to implement the programs that will drive improved patient care and lower costs.

In our daylong launch gatherings, it was interesting to hear comments from the gathered professionals. There was a genuine excitement. I overheard several conversations about “doing the right thing”, “getting the resources needed to improve patient care”, “coordinating with community resources”, “not letting patients slip through the cracks.” In one conversation I caught how “It’s been a long time coming. We went through managed care in the 90’s and abandoned it. This is different. We are breaking a vicious cycle, finally with the right alignment of incentives. This is why I went into healthcare in the first place.”

What were our steering committee members most concerned about? Patient access was top of mind and the ability to schedule enough appointments for the increased demand for services coming from chronic patients now managed by the new community care coordinators. A CFO expressed some questions about how a new program will affect the finances of his organization. We put him in charge of the program. The change from fee-for-service to a fee-for-value model is a transition. We can go as slow or as fast as the team decides to run, so we start every meeting with getting feedback from the CFO on whether the pace of change is too fast, too slow or just right and adjust the program accordingly.

We are off and running, and so are our member healthcare communities who have enthusiastically joined our effort to help rural communities collaborate in order to be able to afford and qualify for innovative payment models that support better care, lower costs and the sustainability of rural health systems.

November 6, 2014 Accountable Care Organization, , 6 Read more >

2015 Physician Fee Schedule Released – Join Us on Nov. 11 to Discuss

On Friday October 31, CMS released the 2015 Physician Fee Schedule rule, which includes important information about how to receive reimbursement for Care Coordination services – a key component of an Accountable Care Organization.

There are important changes regarding the PQRS and Value-Based Modifier programs, as well as updated quality reporting requirements for the Medicare Shared Savings Program. Our short summary is available to download.

We will have a Webinar on November 11th at 10am PT via www.readytalk.com / 303.248.0285 / 5004777 to discuss these changes and answer your questions on the new rules.

Last Day to Comment!
Reminder: CMS has asked for comments on innovation in the Medigap and Retiree Supplemental Design. Using this PDF comment form, please enter your contact information on page 2 and answer question 13 on page 5 (my comments are included, please use your own words) and save the document.

Submit the form to HealthPlanInnovationRFI@cms.hhs.gov today, (due November 3rd).

Comments matter! Your voice will be heard.

November 3, 2014 Payment Reform 0 Read more >