In This Week’s Issue:
1. PIPC Submits Comments to CMS on Proposed Cancellation of Episode Payment Models, click here to read the letter.
2. FDA’s Patient Engagement Committee Launches, click here.
3. The New York Times: Why I Almost Fired My Doctor, click here to read the article.
4. Pasadena Now: The U.S. Health Insurance Crisis: ‘Blame the System, Not the People,’ click here to read the article.
5. Full List of Selected Recipients for “Spreading OpenNotes in New York State,” click here to view.
6. The PCORI Blog: Results That Make A Difference, click here to read the blog.
7. CMS Releases RFI on New Direction for CMMI - Comments Due November 20! Click here to view the RFI.
8. CMS Measure Development Education and Outreach Series, see details below
9. Epilepsy Foundation: 2017-2018 AAHD Frederick J. Krause Scholarship on Health and Disability, click here to apply.
10. Upcoming Events and Webinars, see details below
11. Medical Journal Articles, see details below.
12. AHRQ Effective Program Updates, see details below.
1. PIPC Submits Comments to CMS on Proposed Cancellation of Episode Payment Models, click here to read the letter.
2. FDA’s Patient Engagement Committee Launches, click here.
3. The New York Times: Why I Almost Fired My Doctor, click here to read the article.
4. Pasadena Now: The U.S. Health Insurance Crisis: ‘Blame the System, Not the People,’ click here to read the article.
5. Full List of Selected Recipients for “Spreading OpenNotes in New York State,” click here to view.
6. The PCORI Blog: Results That Make A Difference, click here to read the blog.
7. CMS Releases RFI on New Direction for CMMI - Comments Due November 20! Click here to view the RFI.
8. CMS Measure Development Education and Outreach Series, see details below
9. Epilepsy Foundation: 2017-2018 AAHD Frederick J. Krause Scholarship on Health and Disability, click here to apply.
10. Upcoming Events and Webinars, see details below
11. Medical Journal Articles, see details below.
12. AHRQ Effective Program Updates, see details below.
1. PIPC Submits Comments to CMS on Proposed Cancellation of Episode Payment Models
In a letter to Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Administrator Seema Verma, Partnership to Improve Patient Care (PIPC) Chairman Tony Coelho submitted comments on the proposed cancellation of the episode payment models. In the letter, Chairman Coelho applauded CMS for prioritizing provider participation in voluntary models. "I was pleased to learn that the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services proposed to cancel the Episode Payment Models (EPMs) and Cardiac Rehabilitation (CR) incentive payment model and to rescind the regulations governing these models," wrote Chairman Coelho. "It is not because I do not think the agency should test new payment models. It is simply because, based on input from patients and providers, these models required more work to get it right, and certainly were not seen as sufficiently evaluated to be mandatory." Click here to read the letter
2. FDA’s Patient Engagement Committee Launches
Medpage Today reported on the first meeting of the FDA’s Patient Engagement Advisory Committee, stating, "At precisely 1 p.m., committee chair Paul Conway, president of the American Association of Kidney Patients, convened the very first meeting of the PEAC, whose goal is to advise the FDA on medical device regulation and use from a patient perspective, and offer guidance on issues such as getting patients more involved in planning clinical trials of medical devices. 'We understand the journey of the patient and the desire for people to improve their lives, [and] especially [the lives of] those who come after them,' he said. 'That's what the basis of our thinking is.’” Click here to view the article.
3. The New York Times: Why I Almost Fired My Doctor
Bob Brody explains the importance of a strong patient-doctor relationship in The New York Times. “A 2001 study in the Journal of Family Practice showed that one-fifth of patients left their primary care doctors voluntarily over a three-year period. Patient satisfaction with the relationship often predicted loyalty, the research revealed. Indeed, patients with the poorest physician relationship were three times more likely to leave than those with high-quality relationships. Today, those figures might be even higher: With the upheavals in insurance coverage and physicians increasingly available at a pharmacy, urgent care center or via telemedicine, some people no longer even visit their own primary care doctors.” Click here to read the article.
4. Pasadena Now: The U.S. Health Insurance Crisis: ‘Blame the System, Not the People’
RAND sociologist Peter Mendel provides an "aerial view" of the current U.S. medical care and insurance landscape inPasadena Now. “In ‘naturally performing’ markets, one can judge when one needs the service, one can judge the quality of service, and knows how much the service costs” noted Mendel. For competition to work, incentives and rules that level the playing field and encourage healthy competition are needed, such as public measurement and reporting of quality; financial penalties for low-quality care, medical errors, and unnecessary readmissions, along with the demonstration, testing, and implementation of innovations, such as what it being done at the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Innovation-CMMI, and the patient-centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI).” Click here to read the article.
5. Full List of Selected Recipients for “Spreading OpenNotes in New York State”
NYSHealth has released its list of participating hospitals that will be fostering he spread of “OneNotes,” a national movement to give patients access to their own clinical notes written by their doctors. Established in 2010 at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, OpenNotes spurs real patient engagement by giving patients and their caregivers access to the clinical notes written by health care providers. When patients have access to their own health information, they become equal partners with providers in managing their own care and are better able to develop stronger relationships with their health care team—all of which results in improved patient care and experience.” Click here to view.
6. The PCORI Blog: Results That Make A Difference
Joe Selby previews some of the research that will be presented at the PCORI Annual Meeting for The PCORI Blog. “Here at PCORI, we are eagerly looking forward to our Annual Meeting which is now just a few weeks away. The meeting's theme is ‘Delivering Results, Informing Choices,’ so what better time to update you on the most recently published findings from PCORI-funded research? Like the studies we'll be showcasing during the Annual Meeting breakout sessions, these latest articles highlight questions that came from patients and clinicians, and results that could improve healthcare practice and patient outcomes across many high-burden conditions.” Click here to read the blog.
7. CMS Releases RFI on New Direction for CMMI - Comments Due November 20!
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a Request for Information (RFI) seeking insights on a new direction to promote patient-centered care and test market-driven reforms that empower beneficiaries as consumers, provide price transparency, increase choices and competition to drive quality, reduce costs, and improve outcomes. In response, the Chairman Tony Coelho of the Partnership to Improve Patient Care (PIPC) applauded CMS and Administrator Verma for making strong statements in support of patients and patient-centered care, and releasing an RFI to set a new direction for the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation that supports patients, caregivers and people with disabilities. PIPC has long advocated for CMMI to engage patients and people with disabilities early in the development of patient-centered demonstrations that have the potential to improve patient outcomes while lowering costs. As part of the effort to move CMMI in a new direction, Chairman Coelho urges CMMI to establish meaningful mechanisms for patients and people with disabilities to engage in the development of these models. He also urges CMS to develop meaningful patient-centeredness criteria that would enable CMMI and the public to determine whether APMs are truly putting patients first. PIPC is reviewing the RFI in more detail and looks forward to working with CMMI on a new direction that puts patients at the center. Additional information on PIPC’s recommendations for patient engagement and patient-centeredness at CMMI can be found here. Click here to view the RFI. Comments are due November 20, 2017.
8. CMS Measure Development Education and Outreach Series
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid announced that they are seeking participants for the Measure Development Education and Outreach series, specifically for stakeholders invested in the Quality Payment Program (QPP) quality measurement development. “In partnership with our Measure Management System (MMS) contractor, Battelle, CMS will be hosting a monthly series of educational presentations on the measure development process and related topics that will include the opportunity for open discussion on measure development with CMS and your peer organizations. In addition to these education and outreach sessions, we are also offering groups currently developing QPP quality measures an opportunity to share your proposed measures and measure concepts with CMS through a spotlight series.” Contact MMSsupport@battelle.org if you are interested in participating.
9. Epilepsy Foundation: 2017-2018 AAHD Frederick J. Krause Scholarship on Health and Disability
The American Association on Health and Disability’s Frederick J. Krause Scholarship on Health and Disability is currently accepting applications. The scholarship honors Frederick J. Krause, a lifelong advocate for those with disabilities who passed away in 2014. Beginning with his role as a special education teacher, Mr. Krause’s distinguished career in advocacy included service in the federal government and the cofounding of the American Association on Health and Disability. The scholarship pays tribute to Mr. Krause by awarding scholarships to students with disabilities that are pursuing an education on disability-related topics. Click here to apply. Deadline: November 15, 2017.
10. Upcoming Events and Webinars
ASHRM 2017 Conference and Exhibition
October 15-18
Click here for details.
NPC @ AMCP Nexus 2017 and AMCP Foundation Research Symposium
October 16, 2017
Click here for details.
Measuring Value in Healthcare
October 17, 2017
Click here for details.
Navigating Research Partnerships that Include Patients with Serious Acute or Medically Complex Conditions
October 17, 2017
Click here for details.
Accelerate Real World Evidence: Leveraging Data for Faster Time to Insight
October 18, 2017
Click here for details.
PCORI Online Cycle 3 2017 LOI Submission Webinar
October 18, 2017
Click here for details.
PCORnet Best Practice Sharing Session – PCORnet Commons Tools for Electronic Consent Workgroup Webinar Series: Part 1. PCORnet Case Studies
October 23, 2017
Click here for details.
Choosing Wisely: Opportunities and Challenges in Curbing Medical Overuse: A Health Affairs Forum
October 24, 2017
Click here for details.
Improving Methods PFA LOI Town Hall - Cycle 3 2017
October 24, 2017
Click here for details.
2017 PCORI Annual Meeting
October 31-November 2
Click here for details.
NPC @ 13th Annual Personalized Medicine Conference
November 14-16, 2017
Click here for details.
11. Medical Journal Articles
Patient-Reported Outcomes in Cancer Care — Hearing the Patient Voice at Greater Volume, click here to view.
Comparing Levels of Evidence Between Choosing Wisely and Essential Evidence Plus, click here to view.
Low-Cost, High-Volume Health Services Contribute The Most To Unnecessary Health Spending, click here to view.
Scale Linking to Enable Patient-Reported Outcome Performance Measures Assessed with Different Patient-Reported Outcome Measures, click here to view.
Should Clinically Meaningful Outcomes in Cancer Be Based on Individual Survival Rather than Median Overall Survival? Click here to view.
Extending the Reach of Evidence-Based Medicine: A Proposed Categorization of Lower-Level Evidence, click here to view.
Evidence-Based Medicine in Otolaryngology, Part 6: Patient-Reported Outcomes in Clinical Practice, click here to view.
Evolution of Patient-Reported Outcomes and Their Role in Multiple Sclerosis Clinical Trials, click here to view.
Multivariate and Network Meta-Analysis of Multiple Outcomes and Multiple Treatments: Rationale, Concepts, and Examples, click here to view.
Towards Evidence-Based Computational Statistics: Lessons from Clinical Research on the Role and Design of Real-Data Benchmark Studies, click hereto view.
Cost-Effectiveness of Evolocumab Therapy for Reducing Cardiovascular Events in Patients With Atherosclerotic Cardiovascular Disease, click here to view.
Using Patient-Reported Outcome Measurement to Improve Patient Care, click here to view.
Different Weights of the Evidence-Based Medicine Triad in Regulatory, Health Technology Assessment, and Clinical Decision Making, click here to view.
Addressing the Social Needs of Hypertensive Patients: The Role of Patient–Provider Communication as a Predictor of Medication Adherence, click hereto view.
12. AHRQ Effective Program Updates
Management of Insomnia Disorder - Consumer and Clinician Summaries, click here to view
Harms of First-Line Depression Treatment in Older Adults, click here to view.
Management of Renal Masses and Localized Renal Cell Carcinoma: Current State of the Evidence - Clinician Summary, click here to view.
Stroke Prevention in Atrial Fibrillation Patients: A Systematic Review Update, click here to view.
Venous Thromboembolism Prophylaxis in Major Orthopedic Surgery: Systematic Review Update, click here to view.
Nonsurgical Treatments for Urinary Incontinence in Adult Women: A Systematic Review Update -- Research Protocol, click here to view.
Drug Therapy for Early Rheumatoid Arthritis in Adults – An Update -- Research Protocol, click here to view.
Psychological and Pharmacological Treatments for Adults with Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD): A Systematic Review Update -- Research Protocol, click here to view
Tympanostomy Tubes in Children with Otitis Media -- Final Report, click here to view
Treatment of Osteoarthritis of the Knee: An Update Review -- Final Report, click here to view.
Assessment Tools for Palliative Care -- Final Report, click here to view.
Noninvasive, Nonpharmacological Treatment for Chronic Pain, click here to view.
The Role of Immunotherapy in the Treatment of Asthma, click here to view
In a letter to Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Administrator Seema Verma, Partnership to Improve Patient Care (PIPC) Chairman Tony Coelho submitted comments on the proposed cancellation of the episode payment models. In the letter, Chairman Coelho applauded CMS for prioritizing provider participation in voluntary models. "I was pleased to learn that the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services proposed to cancel the Episode Payment Models (EPMs) and Cardiac Rehabilitation (CR) incentive payment model and to rescind the regulations governing these models," wrote Chairman Coelho. "It is not because I do not think the agency should test new payment models. It is simply because, based on input from patients and providers, these models required more work to get it right, and certainly were not seen as sufficiently evaluated to be mandatory." Click here to read the letter
2. FDA’s Patient Engagement Committee Launches
Medpage Today reported on the first meeting of the FDA’s Patient Engagement Advisory Committee, stating, "At precisely 1 p.m., committee chair Paul Conway, president of the American Association of Kidney Patients, convened the very first meeting of the PEAC, whose goal is to advise the FDA on medical device regulation and use from a patient perspective, and offer guidance on issues such as getting patients more involved in planning clinical trials of medical devices. 'We understand the journey of the patient and the desire for people to improve their lives, [and] especially [the lives of] those who come after them,' he said. 'That's what the basis of our thinking is.’” Click here to view the article.
3. The New York Times: Why I Almost Fired My Doctor
Bob Brody explains the importance of a strong patient-doctor relationship in The New York Times. “A 2001 study in the Journal of Family Practice showed that one-fifth of patients left their primary care doctors voluntarily over a three-year period. Patient satisfaction with the relationship often predicted loyalty, the research revealed. Indeed, patients with the poorest physician relationship were three times more likely to leave than those with high-quality relationships. Today, those figures might be even higher: With the upheavals in insurance coverage and physicians increasingly available at a pharmacy, urgent care center or via telemedicine, some people no longer even visit their own primary care doctors.” Click here to read the article.
4. Pasadena Now: The U.S. Health Insurance Crisis: ‘Blame the System, Not the People’
RAND sociologist Peter Mendel provides an "aerial view" of the current U.S. medical care and insurance landscape inPasadena Now. “In ‘naturally performing’ markets, one can judge when one needs the service, one can judge the quality of service, and knows how much the service costs” noted Mendel. For competition to work, incentives and rules that level the playing field and encourage healthy competition are needed, such as public measurement and reporting of quality; financial penalties for low-quality care, medical errors, and unnecessary readmissions, along with the demonstration, testing, and implementation of innovations, such as what it being done at the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Innovation-CMMI, and the patient-centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI).” Click here to read the article.
5. Full List of Selected Recipients for “Spreading OpenNotes in New York State”
NYSHealth has released its list of participating hospitals that will be fostering he spread of “OneNotes,” a national movement to give patients access to their own clinical notes written by their doctors. Established in 2010 at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, OpenNotes spurs real patient engagement by giving patients and their caregivers access to the clinical notes written by health care providers. When patients have access to their own health information, they become equal partners with providers in managing their own care and are better able to develop stronger relationships with their health care team—all of which results in improved patient care and experience.” Click here to view.
6. The PCORI Blog: Results That Make A Difference
Joe Selby previews some of the research that will be presented at the PCORI Annual Meeting for The PCORI Blog. “Here at PCORI, we are eagerly looking forward to our Annual Meeting which is now just a few weeks away. The meeting's theme is ‘Delivering Results, Informing Choices,’ so what better time to update you on the most recently published findings from PCORI-funded research? Like the studies we'll be showcasing during the Annual Meeting breakout sessions, these latest articles highlight questions that came from patients and clinicians, and results that could improve healthcare practice and patient outcomes across many high-burden conditions.” Click here to read the blog.
7. CMS Releases RFI on New Direction for CMMI - Comments Due November 20!
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a Request for Information (RFI) seeking insights on a new direction to promote patient-centered care and test market-driven reforms that empower beneficiaries as consumers, provide price transparency, increase choices and competition to drive quality, reduce costs, and improve outcomes. In response, the Chairman Tony Coelho of the Partnership to Improve Patient Care (PIPC) applauded CMS and Administrator Verma for making strong statements in support of patients and patient-centered care, and releasing an RFI to set a new direction for the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation that supports patients, caregivers and people with disabilities. PIPC has long advocated for CMMI to engage patients and people with disabilities early in the development of patient-centered demonstrations that have the potential to improve patient outcomes while lowering costs. As part of the effort to move CMMI in a new direction, Chairman Coelho urges CMMI to establish meaningful mechanisms for patients and people with disabilities to engage in the development of these models. He also urges CMS to develop meaningful patient-centeredness criteria that would enable CMMI and the public to determine whether APMs are truly putting patients first. PIPC is reviewing the RFI in more detail and looks forward to working with CMMI on a new direction that puts patients at the center. Additional information on PIPC’s recommendations for patient engagement and patient-centeredness at CMMI can be found here. Click here to view the RFI. Comments are due November 20, 2017.
8. CMS Measure Development Education and Outreach Series
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid announced that they are seeking participants for the Measure Development Education and Outreach series, specifically for stakeholders invested in the Quality Payment Program (QPP) quality measurement development. “In partnership with our Measure Management System (MMS) contractor, Battelle, CMS will be hosting a monthly series of educational presentations on the measure development process and related topics that will include the opportunity for open discussion on measure development with CMS and your peer organizations. In addition to these education and outreach sessions, we are also offering groups currently developing QPP quality measures an opportunity to share your proposed measures and measure concepts with CMS through a spotlight series.” Contact MMSsupport@battelle.org if you are interested in participating.
9. Epilepsy Foundation: 2017-2018 AAHD Frederick J. Krause Scholarship on Health and Disability
The American Association on Health and Disability’s Frederick J. Krause Scholarship on Health and Disability is currently accepting applications. The scholarship honors Frederick J. Krause, a lifelong advocate for those with disabilities who passed away in 2014. Beginning with his role as a special education teacher, Mr. Krause’s distinguished career in advocacy included service in the federal government and the cofounding of the American Association on Health and Disability. The scholarship pays tribute to Mr. Krause by awarding scholarships to students with disabilities that are pursuing an education on disability-related topics. Click here to apply. Deadline: November 15, 2017.
10. Upcoming Events and Webinars
ASHRM 2017 Conference and Exhibition
October 15-18
Click here for details.
NPC @ AMCP Nexus 2017 and AMCP Foundation Research Symposium
October 16, 2017
Click here for details.
Measuring Value in Healthcare
October 17, 2017
Click here for details.
Navigating Research Partnerships that Include Patients with Serious Acute or Medically Complex Conditions
October 17, 2017
Click here for details.
Accelerate Real World Evidence: Leveraging Data for Faster Time to Insight
October 18, 2017
Click here for details.
PCORI Online Cycle 3 2017 LOI Submission Webinar
October 18, 2017
Click here for details.
PCORnet Best Practice Sharing Session – PCORnet Commons Tools for Electronic Consent Workgroup Webinar Series: Part 1. PCORnet Case Studies
October 23, 2017
Click here for details.
Choosing Wisely: Opportunities and Challenges in Curbing Medical Overuse: A Health Affairs Forum
October 24, 2017
Click here for details.
Improving Methods PFA LOI Town Hall - Cycle 3 2017
October 24, 2017
Click here for details.
2017 PCORI Annual Meeting
October 31-November 2
Click here for details.
NPC @ 13th Annual Personalized Medicine Conference
November 14-16, 2017
Click here for details.
11. Medical Journal Articles
Patient-Reported Outcomes in Cancer Care — Hearing the Patient Voice at Greater Volume, click here to view.
Comparing Levels of Evidence Between Choosing Wisely and Essential Evidence Plus, click here to view.
Low-Cost, High-Volume Health Services Contribute The Most To Unnecessary Health Spending, click here to view.
Scale Linking to Enable Patient-Reported Outcome Performance Measures Assessed with Different Patient-Reported Outcome Measures, click here to view.
Should Clinically Meaningful Outcomes in Cancer Be Based on Individual Survival Rather than Median Overall Survival? Click here to view.
Extending the Reach of Evidence-Based Medicine: A Proposed Categorization of Lower-Level Evidence, click here to view.
Evidence-Based Medicine in Otolaryngology, Part 6: Patient-Reported Outcomes in Clinical Practice, click here to view.
Evolution of Patient-Reported Outcomes and Their Role in Multiple Sclerosis Clinical Trials, click here to view.
Multivariate and Network Meta-Analysis of Multiple Outcomes and Multiple Treatments: Rationale, Concepts, and Examples, click here to view.
Towards Evidence-Based Computational Statistics: Lessons from Clinical Research on the Role and Design of Real-Data Benchmark Studies, click hereto view.
Cost-Effectiveness of Evolocumab Therapy for Reducing Cardiovascular Events in Patients With Atherosclerotic Cardiovascular Disease, click here to view.
Using Patient-Reported Outcome Measurement to Improve Patient Care, click here to view.
Different Weights of the Evidence-Based Medicine Triad in Regulatory, Health Technology Assessment, and Clinical Decision Making, click here to view.
Addressing the Social Needs of Hypertensive Patients: The Role of Patient–Provider Communication as a Predictor of Medication Adherence, click hereto view.
12. AHRQ Effective Program Updates
Management of Insomnia Disorder - Consumer and Clinician Summaries, click here to view
Harms of First-Line Depression Treatment in Older Adults, click here to view.
Management of Renal Masses and Localized Renal Cell Carcinoma: Current State of the Evidence - Clinician Summary, click here to view.
Stroke Prevention in Atrial Fibrillation Patients: A Systematic Review Update, click here to view.
Venous Thromboembolism Prophylaxis in Major Orthopedic Surgery: Systematic Review Update, click here to view.
Nonsurgical Treatments for Urinary Incontinence in Adult Women: A Systematic Review Update -- Research Protocol, click here to view.
Drug Therapy for Early Rheumatoid Arthritis in Adults – An Update -- Research Protocol, click here to view.
Psychological and Pharmacological Treatments for Adults with Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD): A Systematic Review Update -- Research Protocol, click here to view
Tympanostomy Tubes in Children with Otitis Media -- Final Report, click here to view
Treatment of Osteoarthritis of the Knee: An Update Review -- Final Report, click here to view.
Assessment Tools for Palliative Care -- Final Report, click here to view.
Noninvasive, Nonpharmacological Treatment for Chronic Pain, click here to view.
The Role of Immunotherapy in the Treatment of Asthma, click here to view