Accountable Care Delivery Congress

Since they foot the bill for a lot of Americans’ healthcare costs, employers have a lot vested in the health of their populations and have been involved with pushing for healthcare transformation, said Suzanne Delbanco, PhD, MPH, executive director of Catalyst for Payment Reform.

After identifying patients with social needs, the best way to intervene and get them into needed resources is going to vary a lot, said Rachel Gold, PhD, MPH, investigator at the Kaiser Permanente Northwest Center for Health Research and lead research scientist at OCHIN.

While healthcare providers shouldn’t be expected to provide additional services outside of healthcare, they should be able to make referrals to things like child care or food banks, said Rachel Gold, PhD, MPH, investigator at the Kaiser Permanente Northwest Center for Health Research and lead research scientist at OCHIN.

The pace of change to value-based payments has been happening quickly, but the real test is whether or not these payments produce higher quality and more affordable care, said Suzanne Delbanco, PhD, MPH, executive director of Catalyst for Payment Reform.

Suzanne Delbanco, PhD, MPH, executive director of Catalyst for Payment Reform, explains how her organization is helping employers better understand accountable care organizations (ACOs) and judge how the ACO model might work with their population.

In some ways, healthcare is ready to take on addressing social determinants of health, but there still needs to be a cultural shift in mindset in a lot of ways, said Rachel Gold, PhD, MPH, investigator at the Kaiser Permanente Northwest Center for Health Research and lead research scientist at OCHIN.

Tim Gronniger, MPP, MHSA, senior vice president of development and strategy at Caravan Health, discusses the struggles that organizations face when attempting to make a switch to new payment models, and how that switch can be improved in the future.

I would say that we’re making progress in terms of engaging consumers in quality of care, explained Dennis P. Scanlon, PhD, professor, Health Policy and Administration, and director, Center for Health Care and Policy Research, Pennsylvania State University.

Technology is starting to help identify patients with social determinants of health issues, but there remain gaps in connecting that data in the electronic health record (EHR) to resources, said Rachel Gold, PhD, MPH, investigator at the Kaiser Permanente Northwest Center for Health Research and lead research scientist at OCHIN.

Hospital leaders are concerned about how to get ready to take on more risk, said Tim Gronniger, MPP, MHSA, senior vice president of development and strategy at Caravan Health.

In markets with a lot of provider consolidation, employers are looking at innovative ways to deliver care to their employees for less money, such as on-site clinics or telehealth, explained Suzanne Delbanco, PhD, MPH, executive director of Catalyst for Payment Reform. VIDE

With little evidence, it is still difficult to know how to screen patients for social determinants of health issues, explained Rachel Gold, PhD, MPH, investigator at the Kaiser Permanente Northwest Center for Health Research and lead research scientist at OCHIN.

I think the biggest surprise in the move toward value-based care is that there’s a lot of organizations sitting on the fence in limbo because the payment mechanism is still built off a fee-for-service chassis, said Dennis P. Scanlon, PhD, professor, Health Policy and Administration, and director, Center for Health Care and Policy Research, Pennsylvania State University.

Dennis P. Scanlon, PhD, professor, Health Policy and Administration, and director, Center for Health Care and Policy Research, Pennsylvania State University, discusses how well the United States health system scales successful pilots in delivering value-based care across the country.

Without data, research on efforts, and an understanding of the local resources, addressing social determinants of health in a meaningful way won’t be possible.

While technology continues to improve, healthcare has not always been quick to keep up with changes. Panelists at The American Journal of Managed Care®’s Accountable Care Delivery Congress highlight the ways their organizations are using technology to improve care.

So far, the move to accountable care has been promising, but more needs to be done to encourage providers into risk, said panelists at The American Journal of Managed Care®’s Accountable Care Delivery Congress.

Employers may be intimidated by the idea of purchasing healthcare, but they are getting more involved in it and they are in a position to transform the market and promote value-based care, said Suzanne Delbanco, PhD, MPH, executive director of Catalyst for Payment Reform, during her keynote at The American Journal of Managed Care®’s Accountable Care Delivery Congress.