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Innovative Model -or- Just another Paradigm Shift

By Staff Reporters

According to Reed Abelson, and David Kadlubowski of the electronic New York Times [NYT].com edition, on February 6, 2009, a new medical practice business plan and health care insurance reimbursement model could allow family physicians to practice medicine the way they used to practice. How so?

Exit UHG

The giant insurer UnitedHealth Group is testing a new model of health care that some policy experts say holds great promise, but has yet to prove itself. An earlier trial of the model by UnitedHealth, in Florida, never got off the ground because doctors refused to participate.

Enter IBM

This time however, the insurer is teaming up with seven doctors’ groups to make another attempt, in Arizona, at the prodding of one of the state’s big employers, and IBM. UnitedHealth will try giving doctors more authority and money than usual in return for closely monitoring their patients’ progress, even when patients go to specialists or require hospitalization.

Link: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/07/business/07medhome.html?_r=3&ref=health

Moving toward Value-Added Models and Episodes of Care

The insurer will also move away from paying doctors solely on the basis of how many services they provide via CPT® codes and will start rewarding them more for overall quality of patient care [value added and/or episodes of care model].

Link: https://healthcarefinancials.wordpress.com/2009/01/28/a-medical-payment-paradigm-shift

Assessment

One comment heard through the grapevine was “caveat and vendor emptor”; while another sarcastic observer wondered if this was the same “Useless Healthcare Group that we all despise?” And, who is to define the term “medical quality -or- value added care”?

Conclusion

And so, your thoughts and comments on this Medical Executive-Post are appreciated. Early-adopter insight and reports from Arizona participating practitioners is appreciated.

Speaker: If you need a moderator or speaker for an upcoming event, Dr. David E. Marcinko; MBA – Publisher-in-Chief of the Executive-Post – is available for seminar or speaking engagements. Contact: MarcinkoAdvisors@msn.com  or Bio: www.stpub.com/pubs/authors/MARCINKO.htm

Our Other Print Books and Related Information Sources:

Practice Management: http://www.springerpub.com/prod.aspx?prod_id=23759

Physician Financial Planning: http://www.jbpub.com/catalog/0763745790

Medical Risk Management: http://www.jbpub.com/catalog/9780763733421

Healthcare Organizations: www.HealthcareFinancials.com

Health Administration Terms: www.HealthDictionarySeries.com

Physician Advisors: www.CertifiedMedicalPlanner.com

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Filed under: Career Development, Health Insurance, Practice Management, Quality Initiatives | Tagged: Big Blue, CPT codes, episodes of care, IBM, UHC, United Health Care, value added healthcare |