Developing Innovative Payment Approaches: Finding the Path to High Performance

Discusses issues in facilitating, under the 2010 health reform law, initiatives to identify, develop, implement, and monitor payment and delivery system reforms to improve quality and control costs while supporting the fiscal integrity of public programs

Achieving Accountable Care: Are We on the Right Path?

Based on the Commonwealth Fund Commission on a High Performance Health System's ten recommendations, highlights considerations for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services in finalizing rules for the Shared Savings Program, slated to begin in 2012

Enhancing Value in Medicare: Demonstrations and Other Initiatives to Improve the Program

Examines Medicare's efforts to be more proactive in the purchase of appropriate, high-quality, and efficient health care for its beneficiaries, and provides an overview of Medicare pilot programs and initiatives in chronic care and provider performance

Health Care Opinion Leaders' Views on Congressional Priorities

Presents survey results on healthcare experts' support for implementing the 2010 health reform, including the individual mandate, health insurance exchanges, and Medicaid expansion; incentivizing care coordination; and expanding cost-containment pilots

The Continuing Cost of Privatization: Extra Payments to Medicare Advantage Plans Jump to $11.4 Billion in 2009

Outlines the impact of the 2003 increase in payments to private Medicare Advantage plans, efforts to phase out extra payments in order to finance improvements for low-income beneficiaries, and alternative approaches to providing equitable coverage

Health Care Opinion Leaders' Views on Transparency and Pricing

Presents survey results on healthcare experts' views on the importance of public access to clinical quality and price information, its role in improving health system performance, and various payment reforms and mechanisms to foster efficiency and value

Identifying, Monitoring, and Assessing Promising Innovations: Using Evaluation to Support Rapid-Cycle Change

Examines the new Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation's mission, critical issues, and challenges in finding effective ways to raise healthcare quality and lower costs, documenting innovation, and providing evidence to support broad policy change

Health Care Opinion Leaders' Views on Payment System Reform

Presents results of a survey of healthcare experts on the adequacy of the current fee-for-service payment system, reform options, strategies to improve efficiency and effectiveness, and changes to Medicare. Analyzes opinion leaders' responses by sector

Health Care Opinion Leaders' Views on Slowing the Growth of Health Care Costs

Presents results of a survey of experts on the need to slow U.S. healthcare spending growth and on support for cost-reduction strategies, including payment reform and creating a center for comparative effectiveness, as proposed by the Obama administratio

How Health Reform Legislation Will Affect Medicare Beneficiaries

Analyzes how provisions in the House and Senate healthcare reform bills and President Barack Obama's proposal would improve Medicare benefits, strengthen the fiscal solvency of the Medicare Hospital Insurance Trust Fund, and reduce spending growth