Comments on: Blog Post: A NEW AND DIFFERENT WAY TO PAY FOR CARE (in MA) http://www.tedeytan.com/2008/02/14/650 e-Health. Patient empowerment. Washington, DC. Thu, 08 Jan 2009 12:21:35 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.7 hourly 1 By: Ted Eytan http://www.tedeytan.com/2008/02/14/650/comment-page-1#comment-786 Ted Eytan Mon, 18 Feb 2008 13:50:35 +0000 http://www.tedeytan.com/2008/02/14/650#comment-786 Joe, Thanks for adding the health care provider perspective. It is good to hear that there is a trend toward greater alignment of incentives to support the right care at the right time and place. Thanks again, Ted Joe,

Thanks for adding the health care provider perspective. It is good to hear that there is a trend toward greater alignment of incentives to support the right care at the right time and place.

Thanks again,

Ted

]]> By: Joe Kimura http://www.tedeytan.com/2008/02/14/650/comment-page-1#comment-785 Joe Kimura Fri, 15 Feb 2008 19:13:03 +0000 http://www.tedeytan.com/2008/02/14/650#comment-785 BCBSMA's desire to develop new way of paying for care is welcome news to our organization. At the risk of oversimplification, what is currently proposed is essentially capitation with quality incentives. For large, multispeciality groups like Harvard Vanguard, this type of payment has always tended to work well and is completely consistent with the type of care we've always delivered. Genericly speaking, capitation arrangements do allow greater freedom for healthcare delivery organizations to innovate. However, there is yet to be any direct incentivation of innovative technologies to promote greater patient activation and participation in their health. Moreover, the incentives are still unidirectionally focused on physicians and not creatively paired with aligned incentives for insurer DM programs, employer health promtion programs, and even direct patient incentives. Since we all know that true improvement in chronic conditions requires tremendous patient involvement for sustainable success, broader involvement of financial incentivization would do more to stimulate innovation in ways to better engage patients in their care. Joe BCBSMA’s desire to develop new way of paying for care is welcome news to our organization. At the risk of oversimplification, what is currently proposed is essentially capitation with quality incentives. For large, multispeciality groups like Harvard Vanguard, this type of payment has always tended to work well and is completely consistent with the type of care we’ve always delivered.

Genericly speaking, capitation arrangements do allow greater freedom for healthcare delivery organizations to innovate. However, there is yet to be any direct incentivation of innovative technologies to promote greater patient activation and participation in their health. Moreover, the incentives are still unidirectionally focused on physicians and not creatively paired with aligned incentives for insurer DM programs, employer health promtion programs, and even direct patient incentives.

Since we all know that true improvement in chronic conditions requires tremendous patient involvement for sustainable success, broader involvement of financial incentivization would do more to stimulate innovation in ways to better engage patients in their care.

Joe

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