Health Economics Commons^™

Challenges And Benefits In Using Productivity Data From Clinical Trials For Vbp Decisions, Thomas J. Bunz, Pharm.D., Laura T. Pizzi

Value-Based Purchasing Newsletter

Making value based purchasing decisions in healthcare requires balancing data from several sources. Information on effectiveness of interventions often comes from clinical trials, with less reliance on observational studies. Historically, the opposite has been true of information on the cost of interventions. More recently, providers of healthcare interventions such as drugs, devices, and disease management programs have begun to understand and appreciate the importance of costs in healthcare decision making. Because of this, the clinical trials used to demonstrate effectiveness have begun to gather data on costs. This article describes some benefits and detriments of collecting cost data as a …

The Emerging Role Of Electronic Medical Records - What Do They Mean To Quality And Value?, Richard Jacoby

Value-Based Purchasing Newsletter

President Bush identified electronic medical records (EMRs), also known as electronic health records (EHRs), as one of the 4 cornerstones in his value driven health care initiative. EMRs represent a “disruptive technology” insofar as they change the way we capture, store, retrieve, share, and use health information. Because they have the ability to transform and enhance virtually all communications, transactions, and analyses involving healthcare information, implementation of EMRs will have a profound effect on patients, providers, and payers. The transformation likely will parallel the one which occurred as information technology enhanced knowledge and productivity in the non-healthcare segments of the …

The Centers For Medicare And Medicaid Services’ Approach To Value-Based Purchasing, Bettina Berman

Value-Based Purchasing Newsletter

Although evidence suggests that both the quality and the affordability of health care can be improved¹, it is likely that such improvements will come at great cost. Healthcare expenditures in the United States (U.S.) are expected to rise precipitously - from $1.5 trillion in 2005 to over $4 trillion in 2016.² Medicare, the nation’s single largest health care purchaser, spent an estimated $425 billion on health services in 2007. With the projected growth in Medicare beneficiaries, the amount may surpass $800 billion by 2017, placing the government under significant pressure to control health care costs.³

This …