Article
Correcting The Blind Spot In Accountability: The Role Of Pharmacy Care
CMS stated that they seek recommendations about how the ACO program might evolve to "encourage greater care integration and financial accountability."
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) recently issued a Request for Information (RFI) to solicit suggestions about how to improve the Accountable Care Organization (ACO) programs. CMS stated that they seek recommendations about how the ACO program might evolve to “encourage greater care integration and financial accountability.”
The RFI explicitly stated that they seek information about how to better integrate Part D expenditures into ACO cost calculations to make pharmaceuticals part of the approach to care delivery and health care transformation.
The deadline for comments about encouraging Part D integration in ACOs has now passed. But the issue extends beyond ACOs. In addition, bundled payments and patient-centered medical home programs target hospitals and primary care providers to promote higher quality and lower cost care. All these programs have largely excluded prescription drug costs in their calculus, and offer no direct incentives for Part D plans to participate in and improve care.
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Source: Health Affairs
