MHQP leads the way!

Karen Davis, President of the Commonwealth Fund, has released a report on Models for Achieving the Best Health System in the World. She highlights seven key strategies for improving the US scorecard on high performance health, and gives concrete examples of each.

This is generally a great read, but there's one item in particular that I want to call out. Here's number 5:

5. Increase Transparency and Reward Quality and Efficiency

Increase Transparency Case in Point: Massachusetts Health Quality Partners Increase Transparency

Public reporting of information on the performance of health plans and providers can spur improvements in quality and efficiency, by helping consumers make more informed decisions and by stimulating providers and plans to be more accountable for their results. It can also form the basis for new payment systems that reward providers for excellence and efficiency. Commonwealth Fund surveys indicate that most patients do not have access to the cost and quality information that would enable them to make informed choices, but they very much want access to such information.

Yet, a number of notable initiatives provide purchasers, consumers, and providers themselves with information about quality. With Commonwealth Fund and Robert Wood Johnson Foundation support, Massachusetts Health Quality Partners (MHQP) has publicly released clinical quality data as well as patients' ratings of their experiences with doctors' offices throughout the state. In addition, data on the clinical performance of primary care physicians in Massachusetts are now publicly available at the medical group level.

MHQP is a member of the MAeHC Board of Directors and key partners in our work going forward. Congratulations to Barbra Rabson and the entire MHQP team!