Having trouble defining “value-based care?” What about “population health?” You aren’t alone. As part of the Delphi process—a research model designed to create definitions—Humana convened 18 health care leaders from entities ranging from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation to Geisinger. The goal: Build a consensus on the definitions of various concepts. They came up with some, but couldn’t agree on “value-based care” and “population health.” (Fierce Healthcare)
The House of Representatives passed a $99.4 billion Health and Human Services appropriation bill that included a provision to lift the decades-long ban on developing a national patient identifier (NPI). For decades, Congress has prohibited HHS from funding the development or promotion of any national program where patients would receive permanent, unique identification numbers. Lawmakers had cited privacy and security concerns to justify the ban, but providers, payers and others in the medical community say the ban prevented them from matching patients with the correct medical information. (Modern Healthcare)
Artificial intelligence is expected to have a huge effect on health care organizations in the next few years. In anticipation, the American Medical Association adopted various AI policies and recommendations at its recent annual meeting. Many are intended to help shape the development of AI systems. In one example, the AMA recommends making developers of AI applications—and not physicians—liable for medical errors involving the technologies. (Healthcare Dive)
Inconsistency in the ways physicians document patient data in the EHR contributes to inefficiency and impairs safety, according to research published in Journal of General Internal Medicine. These variations result in physicians searching different places for information and/or documenting the same information multiple times. “Physician-to-physician variation in EHR documentation impedes effective and safe use of EHRs, but there are potential strategies to mitigate negative consequences.” Among those strategies: targeted user training and regular practice meetings to develop consensus around documentation. (Fierce Healthcare;JGIM)
In Massachusetts, a state that, according to the Boston Globe, is proud of its high-quality health care, 20% of residents have experienced a recent medical error, and most of them said they “still feel abandoned or betrayed by their doctor,” according to a report from the Betsy Lehman Center for Patient Safety. Researchers also calculated that errors in the state totaled 61,982 in one year and that it cost $617 million to provide the necessary follow-up care. (report; Boston Globe)
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Setback for fecal transplants:Two patients contracted severe infections, and one of them died, from fecal transplants that contained drug-resistant bacteria. The stool hadn’t been screened for drug-resistant bacteria, according to the FDA, which is putting trials on hold. Fecal transplants have been used successfully to treat severe intestinal disorders, especially those caused by Clostridium difficile. (The New York Times)
Maine legalizes medically assisted suicide: When Maine legalized medically assisted suicide earlier this month, it became the eighth state to allow terminally ill people to end their lives with prescribed medication. Doctors will be allowed to prescribe a fatal dose. The new law stipulates that obtaining or administering life-ending medication is deemed “not suicide” under state law. (Associated Press)
Sky-high costs: In all the talk about surprise billing,air ambulance costs appear to have been overlooked, according to NPR. Last year, Congress was going to set up a panel to study the issue, but it hasn’t gone anywhere. (NPR)
“I was actually a little surprised. I thought there would be more consensus. It was a very revealing process to all involved.”—Meredith Williams, MD, market president for Humana, on the inability to reach a consensus definition of value-based care, in Fierce Healthcare
