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In This Issue
No Magic Bullet for Health Care Reform
Colorado Medicaid Bill Enables Payment Reform
What's the Difference Between Palliative Care and Hospice Care?
Shedding Some Much Needed Light on the Health Care Market
Comprehensive Primary Care Initiative Updates
CIVHC Connect Meetings July 10th/18th
Pagosa Springs Receives $1.7M in CMS Innovation Challenge Funding
   
CIVHC In the News

Colorado Trust, Colorado Health Foundation Award $4.5 Million for Healthcare Database

CIVHC Board Chair Jay Want Discusses Healthcare Innovation at State of the State

Shop and Compare for Healthcare - Colorado Public Radio interview with Phil Kalin

 

Attention Shoppers - Colorado's New Price List for Procedures

Greetings!
What an exciting time it is to be in health care! Multiple projects CIVHC has been involved in are coming to fruition. This month the CMS Innovation Center awarded funding to the Pagosa Springs Medical Center to implement health care reform and released initial eligibility information and finalized the markets for the Colorado Comprehensive Primary Care Initiative. A significant Medicaid bill was also signed into law this month paving the way for important value-based purchasing opportunities. Excitement is building over the All Payer Claims Database, and I had the pleasure of being interviewed about the roll out on Colorado Public Radio. National claims data from the top three commercial payers in the U.S. was released last month; a necessary step for our nation, but insufficient data to support health care reform in Colorado. All of this, plus the pending Supreme Court rule on the Affordable Care Act, means we are all staying very busy here at CIVHC to support the efforts of our important partners across the state to drive real change in the system. 

 

Sincerely,
Phil Kalin, CIVHC President & CEO
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magicbulletNo Magic Bullet for Health Care Reform
By Phil Kalin, CIVHC President & CEO
Phil Kalin
Rarely does a day go by that I don't run into another article arguing the efficacy of health care reform tactics such as medical homes, Medicare payment reform, and Electronic Health Records (EHR). A recent example is "Do Electronic Medical Records Save Money?" by the New York Times. The piece reveals the results of a 2008 federal survey showing that physicians using electronic records actually ordered more high cost tests than their peers who were still using paper medical records. This is contrary to the belief that EHR systems have the potential to save costs...

 

medicaidbillColorado Medicaid Bill Enables Important Value-Based Payment Reform

By Edie Sonn, CIVHC Vice President of Strategic Initiatives

Edie SonnLast month, Governor Hickenlooper signed House Bill 1281, setting up 2-year payment reform pilots within Colorado's Medicaid program. Brief pilot programs might seem like baby steps - but for a program as large and challenging as Medicaid, they are essential "proofs of concept." And these pilots will likely have a big impact on how Medicaid takes shape in the coming years. This legislation is important both for the path it lays out for Medicaid's future, and for the broad bipartisan and multi-stakeholder consensus it reflects..

 

Read more...

palliativecareWhat's the Difference Between Palliative Care and Hospice Care? Part I in a Series of FAQs
By Jenny Nate, CIVHC Director of Policy and Planning
Jenny
Despite some interesting "discussions" at the federal level on end-of-life care over the last few years, CIVHC continues our commitment as a convener and leader to improve access to high-quality palliative care across Colorado. Along the way, we've received many questions from stakeholders about palliative care and our decision to focus on this topic, especially in the light of highly charged political rhetoric associated with end-of-life care over the last couple years. 

sheddingsomelightShedding Some Much Needed Light on the Health Care Market 

By Jonathan Mathieu, CIVHC Director of Data and Research

Jonathan Mathieu
As an economist, I understand all too well that there can be no meaningful and well-functioning market without accessible and actionable information to inform consumer choices. Health care is no exception, yet we currently have very few places to turn for data that helps us make educated purchasing decisions that drive value into the system. Fortunately this situation is beginning to be addressed nationally through Health Care Cost Institute's (HCCI) national claims database and CIVHC's more robust Colorado All Payer Claims Database (APCD).

 

Read more...

CPCIEligibility and Selection Criteria Now Available for the Comprehensive Primary Care Initiative
PCMH image

CIVHC is helping to coordinate the Comprehensive Primary Care Initiative (CPCI) implementation in Colorado, including working closely with CMS to get primary care practices the info they need to ready their applications. CMS has announced the final markets and released preliminary guidelines and a required practice application eligibility tool for practices interested in participating in the initiative. 

 

View our Provider Info & FAQ document for the latest CMS correspondence to date or click here for more information and resources.

CIVHCConnectCIVHC Connect Meetings July 10th/18th: Care Transitions and Palliative Care 
CIVHC Connect meeting

CIVHC holds quarterly "CIVHC Connect" meetings to inform and engage stakeholders and interested parties about the status of our statewide initiatives. The next CIVHC Connect is dedicated to Care Transitions and Palliative Care efforts and will feature organizations actively engaged in this work across Colorado. The meeting will be offered twice - July 10th 2-4pm (COPIC Founders Board Room) and again on July 18th 2-4pm (The Colorado Trust Sabin Room).

 

Register today (in-person space is limited):

July 10th- Webinar Registration or In-person RSVP

July 18th- Webinar Registration or In-person RSVP

 

Click here to view past CIVHC Connect presentations. 

pagosaspringsPagosa Springs, CO Receives $1.7 Million from CMS for Health Care Innovation Challenge
Pagosa Springs photo
Photo courtesy of Pagosa Springs Medical Center website 
The Upper San Juan Health Service District (USJHSD) in Pagosa Springs, Colorado was the recipient of one of the first batch of Health Care Innovation Challenge awards announced by the Center for Medicaid & Medicare (CMS) Innovation Center in May. The Health Care Innovation Challenge was designed by CMS to rapidly enhance programs focused on addressing the Triple Aim goals of improving health, improving health care quality, and reducing costs for Medicare, Medicaid and Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) enrollees.
Read more... 


Learn more about CIVHC's role with applicants and the Innovation Challenge timeline.
The Center for Improving Value in Health Care is a non-profit, collaborative organization supporting the Triple Aim for health care: improving health, increasing quality and containing costs. We would like to thank The Colorado Trust, Colorado Health Foundation, Rose Community Foundation and Caring for Colorado for providing funding to support our organization and initiatives.