Physical Wellness

ObamaCare Tinkers With Payment Plan, Benefits: CPC+ Added To Affordable Care Act

By Brian McNeill | Update Date: Apr 18, 2016 05:56 AM EDT

Better quality healthcare services delivered to patients is something that could be on the horizon following the announcement of the new Comprehensive Primary Care Plus from the Center of Medicare and Medicaid Services.

For those who are unaware, the Comprehensive Primary Care Plus is a regionally-based, multipayer care delivery and alternative payment model (APM) that rewards value and quality through an innovative payment structure to support comprehensive primary care.

The new CPC+ program intends to move past the previous fee-for-service system by implementing a new scheme which would end up rewarding doctors and insurance companies for their services in ensuring the people are kept fit and healthy.

The program is one of the latest moves that the Obama administration has applied, something that can hopefully cover a bigger scope while also upholding the quality of healthcare rendered by doctors and physicians.

The latest developments come at about the right time, especially with the likely growth in patients following the Affordable Care Act. With insurance now within better reach for people, it remains to be seen if all these can deliver the appropriate healthcare at manageable costs.

Apparently the critical stage here is the primary healthcare stage which is anchored on doctors and specialists. With a better medium of communication, the doctor-patient relationship can result in better diagnosis and monitoring which would eventually prevent illnesses from ballooning and getting out of hand.

With the proper delivering of patient care, such also becomes an ideal way to avoid the diagnostic and treatment methods.

"Strengthening primary care is critical to an effective health care system," Dr. Patrick Conway, deputy administrator and chief medical officer at CMS, said in press statement.

Aside from that, the CMS has already set in place a improved ways to carry out a more efficient healthcare model.

That includes a better link among doctors and providers, a new reimbursement model that covered knee and hip surgeries and changes to Medicare part B.

The new reimbursement system for knee and hip surgeries is something expected to provide appropriate and better care to individual patients.

The amendments to the Medicare part B on the other hand intend to encourage doctors to look into cheaper drugs that can also deliver the same effectiveness with the expensive ones that they usually suggest to patients.

CPC+ will be a five-year evaluation that begins on January, 2017. It is essentially the Medicaid primary care case management (PCCM) program versus a partial capitation program plus payments for care management services.

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