Evaluating the Impact of Value-Based Purchasing
Table 2. Examples of Value-Based Purchasing Activities and Outcomes1
| Examples of VBP activities | Examples of relevant outcomes | |
|---|---|---|
| Potential intermediate outcomes | Potential final outcomes | |
| Requiring health plans to contract with hospitals that perform high volumes of coronary artery bypass graft surgeries | Fewer CABG surgeries performed at low-volume hospitals | More positive ratings from CABG patients regarding their experiences with care Fewer complications following bypass surgery Lower costs for CABG patients Improved health status for CABG patients |
| Providing employees with comparative health plan report cards based on HEDIS® and CAHPS® data | Increased awareness of variations in quality Increased enrollment in highly rated health plans | Increased satisfaction with health plan choices |
| Refusing to contract with health maintenance organizations that are not accredited by the National Committee for Quality Assurance | Increased number of local HMOs applying for and achieving NCQA accreditation Higher utilization of preventive care and screening services | Improved health status of HMO enrollees |
| Requiring hospitals to use computerized order entry systems as suggested by the Institute for Safe Medication Practices | Decrease in serious prescribing errors Decrease in adverse drug interactions | Fewer complications due to medication errors |
| Requiring hospitals to staff intensive care units with physicians certified in critical care medicine | Increase in the number of hospitals that have certified critical care physicians staffing their ICUs | Lower rate of complication for patients receiving care in the ICU Lower mortality rate for patients receiving care in the ICU Lower costs due to ICU care |
| Requiring health plans to develop comprehensive diabetes disease management programs that comply with guidelines established by the American Diabetes Association | Improved scores on the comprehensive diabetes care measures that are contained in the HEDIS® data set | Improved health status for diabetics Improved satisfaction with care for diabetics Lower costs due to care for diabetes |
1 Key: CABG = coronary artery bypass graft; CAHPS® = Consumer Assessment of Health Plans; HEDIS® = Healthplan Employer Data and Information Set; HMO = health maintenance organization; ICU = intensive care unit; NCQA = National Committee for Quality Assurance
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