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HEALTH CARE QUARTERLY March 4-17, 2014 “would disproportionally affect beneficiaries with low incomes, including the 41 percent of MA enrollees with annual incomes below $20,000 for whom the potential increase in out-of-pocket costs would constitute a significant burden.” CMS will announce final MA payment rates on April 7. If the current proposal is finalized, plan holders would begin seeing the impact of the cuts during the October open enrollment period. UCLA Research Staff To Evaluate Incentives For Reforming Care Delivery System – California’s new health care delivery system incentive program is being evaluated by staff at UCLA’s Center for Health Policy Research to ensure the fundamental changes brought by this program positively impact patient outcomes. The incentive program will base government compensation to hospitals not only on the number of patients cared for, but also on the quality of that care – more specifically, whether the health of a patient improves over time. Considered a “pay-for-performance” model, the program is being evaluated nationwide. California is among the first states to implement the federally funded program as part of a five-year, $3.4 billion demonstration project across its 21 hospitals. “This is one of the most ambitious efforts ever pioneered in California to fundamentally change hearts and minds about how care is provided,” Nadereh Pourat, director of research for UCLA’s Center for Health Policy Research, said in a statement. She has been tasked with leading the evaluation team. “All
Long Beach Business Journal 9-B eyes will be on California to see whether our hospitals can foster the kind of innovative and cost-effective care that is essential to the success of health care reform.” The evaluation team will document lessons learned with the support of the California Department of Health Care Services and grant funding from the Blue Shield of California Foundation. Physicians At Long Beach Memorial, Miller Children’s Hospital Long Beach Recognized As ‘Super Doctors’ – The 2014 Southern California Super Doctors report, issued last month, recognized 77 physicians from Long Beach Memorial and Miller Children’s Hospital of Long Beach as being among the best in their fields. These physicians are among the top 5 percent of doctors practicing in Los Angeles and Orange counties, and are selected based on 10 indicators of professional achievement and peer recognition. “Our physicians are not motivated by public recognition but acknowledge the honor in being recognized by their peers,” Dr. Susan Melvin, chief medical officer for Long Beach Memorial Medical Center, said in a statement. “The physicians listed as ‘Super Doctors’ are driven by their dedication to our patients, their families and the community they serve. Their passion to find advancements in clinical care has proven to greatly improve the lives of the many adults and children who have walked through our doors. I commend the doctors recognized and am proud to call them my colleagues.” ■