Accountable Care

Simplified regulations around MACRA meaningful use could address the loss of efficiency and usefulness of electronic health records software to enable more flexibility for the doctors using them, said Shawn Griffin, MD, of Memorial Hermann Physician Network.

The new organization will operate under parent company Ascension and sweeping leadership and structural changes will accompany the consolidation. 

Making the healthcare system more patient-centered is the disruption the industry needs, said David Feinberg, MD.

Under the new Accountable Care Organization, Cigna will reward doctors for healthier populations and reduced expenses. 

At Healthcare IT News' inaugural Pop Health Forum 2016 in Boston May 19 and 20, clinicians, technology professionals and healthcare experts from across the country are gathered to explore the key enablers of effective population health management strategies: data and analytics, care coordination, patient engagement and more. Check back here for continuous updates.

The platform will enable payments to be processed faster, reduce risk for hospitals transitioning to value-based care and ultimately decrease the cost of bundled procedures, the companies said. 

Veterans are still waiting to see a doctor.

Early returns from the Health Care Innovation Awards, a CMS initiative that tests new payment and service delivery models, already "show a wide range of experiences that have resulted in tangible benefits for patients" and have helped the agency develop better policies, said CMS Chief Medical Officer Patrick Conway, MD.

After years of dwelling in the shadows of healthcare, the long-term and post-acute care industry may finally be ready to join its hospital colleagues in the IT spotlight.  

McKesson and Blue Cross Blue Shield of Arizona are partnering to create a new service that helps physician practices that may not be part of a value-based network take on risk as traditional accountable care organizations do.