Category: PIPC In The News

Inside Health Policy: Patient Advocates Upset By Value-Based Assessments In Part B Drug Pay Demo

6/23/2016

An article posted today in Inside Health Policy outlines the concerns of patient advocacy groups with the proposed use of value-based assessments in the second phase of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Part B drug pay demo. The second phase specifically involves value-based pay arrangements including the use of discounts or elimination of patient cost-sharing; prescribing patterns; and indications-based pricing.

Representatives from various patient groups offered their concerns. Donna Cryer of the Global Liver Institute criticized the use of the Institute for Clinical and Economic Review (ICER) to help determine a value-based payment framework as the Institute has little engagement with patient groups. Patient advocates have also raised concerns with the Institute's methodology.

Healthcare Dive: More than 40 patient groups criticize CMS' proposed Part B model

5/12/2016

An article in Healthcare Dive highlights the Partnership to Improve Patient Care (PIPC)'s recent letter to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS), which voices their opposition to the agency's Medicare Part B demo. The group expressed concerns over CMS' proposed use of comparative effectiveness research and cost effectiveness as national Medicare standards in phase two of the proposal and urged the agency not to move forward with the proposed rule unless it accommodates people with disabilities.

Libertarian Republic: Proposed Medicare Rule Would Use Metric Banned During Obamacare Death-Panel Debate

5/12/2016

An article posted today in The Libertarian Republic highlights the fact that the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services' (CMS) recent Medicare Part B demonstration proposal would use a quality-adjusted life years (QALYs) metric for rationing health care, which was banned following the Affordable Care Act (ACA) death-panel debate.

The article also features the concerns of patient advocacy groups, including the Partnership to Improve Patient Care (PIPC), over the demonstration's potential to limit drug access for the elderly and physically disabled. They expressed concern that the QALYs metric fails to take real-life consequences into account - like doctors being pushed toward cheaper yet possible less effective treatment options.

Politico Pulse: PIPC Leads Patient Groups in Complaints on Phase 2 of Part B Demo

5/9/2016

This morning's edition of Politico Pulse highlighted the Partnership to Improve Patient Care's (PIPC) leadership among patient groups in voicing concerns over Phase 2 of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) planned Part B demonstration project. PIPC, along with over 40 other groups, are sending a letter to CMS acting administrator Andy Slavitt highlighting issues with the proposed change to lower the add-on payment for drugs in phase 2 of the proposed demo.

WSJ: Lawmakers Criticize Medicare Plan for Costly Drugs; Concerns on Alternative Payments for Drugs

5/5/2016

An article posted today in The Wall Street Journal outlined lawmakers' concerns with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services' (CMS) recent proposal to reduce Medicare's profit incentives to doctors who administer drugs. WSJ notes bipartisan concerns with the program, including the demands of dozens of House Republicans for the proposal to be withdrawn.

Huffington Post: Policymakers Should Choose Patient Empowerment Over Paternalism

4/26/2016

Over the last few years, I’ve been very outspoken on the need to engage patients and people with disabilities in efforts to define the value of health care. Engagement has become my ministry because, frankly, what we often find is “token” engagement - a pat on the head, with no real impact on policy development and implementation. I thought we were making real progress on engagement in this administration. It seems I was wrong.

Huffington Post: Holding Health Systems Accountable for Patient Value

2/4/2016

What's the most important question facing any patient with a life-threatening illness?

"Which treatment option is best for me?"

By most accounts, this is a good problem to have; giving patients a range of treatment options, and the ability to make an informed choice about the regimen that most directly aligns with their personal health priorities is fundamental to high-quality, individualized health care. But along with these new methods for treatment come difficult questions. Do I want the more aggressive or conservative therapy? Is my quality of life during treatment more important than returning to work quickly? Which course of action has more tolerable side effects? Can I afford the care I need?

Morning Consult Op-Ed: For Value in Healthcare, Just Ask the Patient

11/19/2015

PIPC Chairman Tony Coelho recently wrote an op-ed for Morning Consult discussing the Partnership's recent oncology roundtable and arguing that value-based healthcare discussions need to include patient-centeredness. As Chairman Coelho concludes, "Our healthcare system will never know how to measure and reward quaity if we don't ask patients what they value. Patients are ready to move towards better value, but to get there, you need to put us in the driver's seat."

Roll Call Op-Ed: Patient-Centeredness, Comparative Effectiveness, and Value

10/16/2015

In a new op-ed published in Roll Call, PIPC Chairman Tony Coelho weighs in on the debate of using comparative effectiveness research (CER) to control medical spending. Chairman Coehlo emphasizes that "proposals for Medicare and private payers to use CER are understandable, but concerning. Understandable because the challenge of rising costs is real, and policy-makers naturally reach for familiar policy tools. Concerning because it would pull CER away from individualized patient decisions and back towards centralized payer decisions. The end result would be limited choice of treatments based on one-size-fits-all determinations of 'value' for the average patient."

Morning Consult: Op-ed Promotes PIPC Roundtable Conclusions on Patient Engagement, APMs

8/24/2015

In a recent column posted in Morning Consult, PIPC Chairman Tony Coelho writes about the conclusions drawn from the PIPC Roundtable Discussion held in June and what they mean for the future of patient engagement in alternative payment models (APMs). Chairman Coelho noted that the Roundtable Discussion highlighted a "remarkable consensus on commonsense, workable approaches that can ensure that the widespread adoption of alternative payment models will serve to empower patients and draw them towards the center of care delivery." The full column "Strategies to Engage and Empower the Patient in Care Delivery: Just Ask the Patient" can be found on the Morning Consult website.

Inside Health Policy: 'Patient Groups Seek Key Role In Health Care Payment Learning And Action Network'

5/6/2015

As highlighted in an article in Inside Health Policy, "more than 60 patient groups and members of [PIPC] are asking HHS to make the Health Care Payment Learning and Action Network patient-centered by including patient groups in the network and using best practices from the FDA and Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute to solicit patient engagement with the initiative." While most patient stakeholders agree that paying for “value” rather than “volume” will result in better outcomes for patients, the shift to value-based payment holds significant implications for the patient-centeredness movement and the related issues of patient access and the physician-patient relationship. That’s why PIPC led this letter - to ensure that that patients have a seat at the table in determining how these new payment models are implemented.

“I look forward to collaborating with HHS to effectively bring the patient voice to their ambitious new framework to move our health care system away from rewarding health providers for the quantity of care they provide and toward rewarding quality. Empowering patients to play an active role in their healthcare should be a strategic and achievable goal of this important work,” Partnership chair Tony Coelho told Inside Health Policy.

MedPAC Explores Fixes To Part B Drug Payment Policy, Calls Current System 'Perverse Incentive'

11/12/2014

Today, PIPC Chairman Tony Coelho was quoted in a piece by Inside Health Policy regarding Medicare Part B's drug payment policy. The Congressional commission, Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPC), recently discussed support, from a small number of commissioners, for allowing CMS to return to the controversial “least costly alternative” model it used from 2005 to 2010 that MedPAC discussed at its September meeting. “As the Commission moves forward in their deliberations to improve outcomes and reduce costs in the Medicare program, PIPC hopes that MedPAC will pursue policies that activate patients and lead to long-term health improvements, rather than focusing on those that could threaten to jeopardize the nature of the doctor-patient relationship,” said Chairman Coelho.

Health Affairs: A Patient Advocate’s Perspective On Paying For Value

10/9/2014

Today, Health Affairs published an opinion piece written by Chairman Coelho to announce the release of PIPC's new White Paper on patient-centeredness in alternative payment models (APMs). Chairman Coelho wrote the op-ed to highlight the importance of building APMs on a foundation of patient-centeredness throughout the healthcare system. This White Paper and Health Affairs opinion represent an important step in PIPC’s discussion of the application of comparative effectiveness research, and should serve as an important tool for policymakers in considering the future of value-based payment models.

HeraldNet: Chairman Coelho Quoted In News On Disabilities

5/14/2014

In a recent article published in the HeraldNet, PIPC Chairman Tony Coelho was quoted regarding changes to regulations made by the Department of Labor. New rules implementing a section of the federal Rehabilitation Act now prohibits discrimination on the basis of disabilities. "Because of the new regulations, up to 465,000 people living with a disability may have a chance at gaining employment within the next year, according to Tony Coelho, the primary sponsor of the Americans with Disabilities Act and former California congressman. The act, which prohibits discrimination based on disability, was enacted by Congress in 1990.'In my view, it’s a real game-changer,' Coelho said. 'For those of us with disabilities, a job is what’s critical.'"

Roll Call: Op-Ed Highlights PIPC Poll, Patient Engagement

9/11/2013

In an opinion article published in Roll Call, PIPC Chairman Tony Coelho discusses how patients will compare treatment options utilizing the results of comparative effectiveness research. Chairman Coelho writes, "central to this mission is doing research on the questions that matter to patients, engaging patients and physicians in their decision-making and communicating research findings in a way that helps doctors and patients make good health care decisions." He goes on to note that patients and clinical experts should be partners with PCORI as they develop protocols for communicating research findings in a manner that people find useful in their decision-making.

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