A large California health purchasing group is joining hands with some of the state's large health plans and Medicare to produce report cards [1] on individual physician performance. The effort, which is led by the Pacific Business Group on Health (PBGH), will draw data from Medicare, Blue Cross Blue Shield of California and PacifiCare/UnitedHealth to create the report cards. The effort is part of a six-site pilot tracking physician performance across the U.S. The report cards will be presented to doctors by mid-year, to give them a chance to get up to speed. Eventually, the PBGH plans to release the report card data to the public. Once released, the report cards could have a meaningful impact on health decisions in the state, given that the PBGH represents employers who spend $10 billion per year on healthcare.
To learn more about the planned report card:
- read this Sacramento Business Journal article [2]
Related Articles:
Study: Healthcare quality movement stalled. Report [3]
ACP publishes quality measurement tools. Report [4]
Bill establishes physician quality reporting system. Report [5]
Links:
[1] http://www.fiercehealthcare.com/story/a-failing-grade-for-report-cards/2006-02-16
[2] http://www.bizjournals.com/sacramento/stories/2007/03/12/daily10.html?b=1173672000^1430813
[3] http://www.fiercehealthcare.com/story/study-healthcare-quality-movement-stalled/2007-02-21
[4] http://www.fiercehealthcare.com/story/acp-publishes-quality-measurement-tools/2006-07-27
[5] http://www.fiercehealthcare.com/story/bill-establishes-physician-quality-reporting-system/2006-12-11