We hope you enjoy this month's newsletter. For additional information on the stories included below, please feel free to contact us at (734) 615-9635 or vbidcenter@umich.edu. |
October newsletter highlights:
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CMS RFI seeks input on V-BID plan design innovations
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services ( CMS) released a request for information to innovate Medicare Prescription Drug Plans (PDP), Medicare Advantage (MA) and Medicare Advantage Prescription Drug Plans (MA-PD), Medicaid managed care plans (Medicaid plans), Medigap plans, and Retiree Supplemental health plans. Specifically, CMS requests information on innovations in:
● plan design, including but not limited to value-based insurance design;
● care delivery;
● beneficiary and provider incentives and engagement;
● network design.
This request coincides with the recent introduction of bipartisan, bicameral legislation to authorize a V-BID demonstration project in Medicare Advantage.
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Fendrick elected to Institute of Medicine; featured on PBS special
This October, the Institute of Medicine (IOM) announced that V-BID Center Director, A. Mark Fendrick, MD, has been elected to join its membership. Election to the IOM is considered one of the highest honors in the fields of health and medicine and recognizes individuals who have demonstrated outstanding professional achievement and commitment to service. For additional details, read the official University of Michigan Health System press release.
Dr. Fendrick was also recently featured on the PBS special, "Understanding Healthcare."
Hosted by Paula Zahn, the program explores the ins and outs of healthcare in America.
Both the preview and full-length episode are available online. |
JMCP: How cost-sharing changes affect demand and utilization
A new report co-authored by V-BID founders Michael Chernew, PhD, and A. Mark Fendrick, MD, uses Marketscan data to study the impact that out-of-pocket prices have on medication use, to explore how demand for medications may be affected when patients are faced with changes in the price to acquire treatment, and how price responsiveness differs across the eight reviewed medication classes. |
KFF: Preventive service coverage and use under the ACA
An updated fact sheet from the Kaiser Family Foundation summarizes the latest information on health plan coverage of preventive services under the Affordable Care Act. The fact sheet details the rules that govern when plans are required to cover preventive services for adults and children without cost-sharing, and which services are covered.
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Forbes: V-BID as a potent tool to address specialty drug costs
At a meeting earlier this month connecting healthcare and innovation, the Academy of Managed Care Pharmacy (AMCP) Foundation featured V-BID as a potential strategy to maintain consumer access to specialty medications. Both V-BID Director, A. Mark Fendrick, and NPC Chief Scientific Officer, Robert Dubois, offered remarks advocating for clinically nuanced solutions. |
Charlotte Observer: HSA-HDHP 'fine print' can lead to higher costs
The prevalence of HSA-eligible high-deductible health plan options by employers and on the public exchange continues to increase. However, even those familiar with the plans must pay close attention to the fine print plan details that often result in higher costs. Continuing to drive innovation across benefit design, V-BID expands the discussion on HSA-HDHPs to focus on high-value care as momentum grows among stakeholders to review the safe harbor act. |
AHCJ: High costs cause delayed care among privately insured
Out-of-pocket health care costs force nearly thirteen percent of privately insured Americans to skip necessary medical treatment, according to the survey Privately Insured in America: Opinions on Health Care Costs and Coverage. Among the 1,007 privately insured adult interviewees, 267 reported having high-deductible health plans. |
Families USA: KY Medicaid expansion increases preventive care
Recently released data from the Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services show an uptick in screenings and services compared to 2013, including a 30 percent increase in breast cancer screenings, 3 percent increase in cervical cancer screenings, 16 percent increase in colorectal cancer screenings, and 37 percent increase in adult dental visits. |
NEJM - Swimming against the current: Reducing low-value care
In a recent NEJM Perspective article, V-BID is included as one of multiple strategies, including ABIM's Choosing Wisely campaign, to reduce the use of low-value services. The combination of labeling low-value care and aligning incentives with value may present the most promising near-term opportunity to accelerate the reduction in use of low-value care. |
Crain's Benefits Outlook: V-BID's comprehensive evolution
While early V-BID programs implemented by employers focused on incentives-based measures to motivate employees to better manage their chronic conditions, V-BID has evolved across payer, provider, and consumer measures focused on outcomes-based, high-value care that aligns provider and payer efforts to attain the best health for the money spent. |
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 The University of Michigan Center for Value-Based Insurance Design (V-BID) leads in research, development and advocacy for innovative health benefit designs.For more information about V-BID, please visit our website and sign up to receive our newsletter.
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