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Health Reform Announcements
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- Based on public comments, the Minnesota Department of Health and the Minnesota Department of Human Services modified the proposed health care homes rule. The Commissioner of Health adopted the rule by order on November 12, 2009.
The official rule draft, certified by the Revisor's Office, has now been submitted to the Office of Administrative Hearings. The reviewing administrative law judge will approve or disapprove the rule in the next two weeks. The rule will be effective when it is published in the State Register.
Please see Health Care Homes - Modified Rule for more information.
In addition, a draft of the certification assessment tool is now available for download. Potential applicants are encouraged to use this as an internal clinic tool to determine which clinicians are ready to apply for certification as a health care home. When clinicians are implementing all the standards listed in this tool, they are ready to apply for certification.
Please see Health Care Homes - Certification to download the tool. (11/20/09)
- The Minnesota Department of Health announced today that all 87 Minnesota counties are now covered under the Statewide Health Improvement Program, or SHIP. Cass County Community Health Board applied for SHIP funds in April, and the application was approved for funding. Although the Cass County Board of Commissioners was unable to accept the SHIP funds at that time, the Board approved the funds in early November.
Cass County will receive funds to implement policy, systems and environmental changes across the community to reduce tobacco use and obesity.
SHIP, an integral part of Minnesota’s nation-leading 2008 health reform law, strives to help Minnesotans lead longer, healthier lives by reducing the chronic diseases caused by tobacco use and exposure, poor nutrition and physical inactivity. (11/18/09)
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The Health Care Homes Outcomes Measurement Work Group will meet Thursday, November 19, from 1-4 p.m. The work group is charged with developing outcomes measurement implementation strategies and making recommendations on how health care homes outcomes measurement can work within the broader statewide reporting structure.
Please see Health Care Homes - Outcomes Measurement for more information. (11/17/09)
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The Minnesota Department of Health is offering mini-grants of $2,000 or less to help clinics improve their ability to be patient-centered health care homes. The purpose of these mini-grants is to assist clinics in implementing patient and family involvement in clinic redesign and to assist clinics in implementing health care home standards.
Here are some possible ideas for grant funding:
- Development and promotion of a patient advisory committee
- Creation of a quality improvement team with patient representatives
- Compensation for patient/parent partners
- Education for staff and patients
- Web design
- Meeting with community groups
- Creation of patient- and family-oriented materials
- Staff time for policy and procedure development
- Engagement of an outside facilitator
The application deadline is December 15. The expectation is that the projects will be implemented between December 2009 and May 2010.
The Minnesota Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics is administering the grants on behalf of MDH. For a copy of the application, please go to the Health Care Homes page. (11/17/09)
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The MDH Health Care Home team will be hosting two certification informational conference calls on November 18, 2009 and December 16, 2009. Applicants and potential applicants with questions regarding the health care home certification process can call in with questions during the calls.
Please see Health Care Homes - Conference Calls for more information. (11/17/09)
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Two new reports from the Health Economics Program at the Minnesota Department of Health present the latest trends in private health insurance premiums and drivers of cost (for 2008) and total health care spending for all Minnesota residents (for 2007). Both reports show a moderating of trends compared to the recent past. At the same time, these reports underscore that over the long term, spending and premium growth remain unsustainable. A third report presents 2007 estimates of the distribution of insurance coverage in Minnesota; it presents a largely unchanged picture.
Key findings about total health care spending (private and public) for Minnesota residents in 2007 include the following:
- In 2007 Minnesota residents spent an estimated $32.5 billion on health care. This is about $6,266 per person, up from $5,966 in 2007.
- Compared to the nation overall, Minnesota spends a smaller but increasing share of its economy on health care (12.9 percent versus 15.3 percent), but the share is increasing in both Minnesota and the nation as a whole.
- In both Minnesota and the U.S. overall, public spending in 2007 grew at a faster rate than private spending, and overall growth was slower than in 2006.
As required by the 2008 health reform law, MDH published its first set of official health care spending projections in June 2009. In June 2010, MDH will publish a comparison of actual and projected spending for 2008, along with updated projections.
Links to these three new reports can be found on the Health Economics Program Web site.
For questions, please contact Stefan Gildemeister at (651) 201-3554, or by e-mail at stefan.gildemeister@state.mn.us. (11/10/09)
- The Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) requests proposals from highly qualified respondents to implement a peer grouping system based on a combined measure of risk-adjusted cost and quality, in total and for up to six identified specific health conditions.
Specifically, MDH seeks proposals to perform an analysis of health care providers on dimensions of cost and quality, using multi-payer claims data and quality data reported from physician clinics and hospitals. The contractor will also distribute results of the peer grouping analysis to physicians and hospitals and provide technical assistance to providers to help them understand their peer grouping results.
Work is proposed to start after February 1, 2010.
Responses to this solicitation are due no later than 4 p.m., Central Time, December 23, 2009.
Further information regarding this request for proposals, as well as information on how to receive the full RFP, is available at Health Reform Requests for Proposals. (11/10/09)
- The Minnesota Department of Human Services and the Minnesota Department of Health invite you to attend a public presentation of the draft health care home payment methodology. The public meeting will take place on Monday, November 16, from 2-4 p.m. at the Wilder Foundation.
Over the last six months, three work groups and a steering committee composed of a broad range of health care stakeholders have developed policies, principles and mechanisms for how certified health care homes could be reimbursed. At the November 16 meeting, the leaders of these work groups will present their recommendations. These advisory recommendations to the Commissioners of both agencies will directly inform the payment methodology for the Minnesota Public Health Care Programs, as well as others addressed by the legislation creating this multi-payer effort.
The public meeting and presentation will serve as the launch of a written comment period to run from November 16 through November 30. More information on the comment period will be coming soon.
For additional details, please see Health Care Homes - Payment Methodology. (11/10/09)
- Minnesota Community Measurement’s Reporting Advisory Committee will meet November 11 on work related to the development of the statewide quality reporting and measurement system.
Please see Reporting Advisory Committee Meeting for more information. (11/4/09)
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The Minnesota Department of Human Services (DHS), through its Health Services and Medical Management Division (State), is seeking proposals from qualified Responders for Care Coordination Pilot Projects. DHS will award grants to support pilot projects for children and adults with complex health care needs who are enrolled in fee-for-service Medical Assistance (MA) program.
The funding available for these projects is approximately $750,000.00. The state views the purpose of these funds as primarily capacity building to foster the delivery of health care in the manner described in Minnesota’s health care home certification standards.
In the development of the clinic requirements for certification and the associated care coordination payment methodology, stakeholders have consistently articulated the challenges associated with transforming from current processes and cultures to the health care home/medical home model. This funding is intended to help bridge these gaps and assist in this transformation in targeted ways. The state is seeking projects that improve the quality of care, generate knowledge on how to better sustain primary care, transform the current system of healthcare, create a more cost-effective healthcare system, and/or facilitate take-up of the medical home intervention and identify factors associated with fulfillment of the health care home standards, as well as cost, utilization, quality and satisfaction parameters.
More information is available on the DHS Web site:
DHS Request for Proposals (PDF). (10/28/09)
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Minnesota Statutes 62U.04 requires the Commissioner of Health to develop a system comparing health care providers on a composite measure of risk-adjusted cost and quality for a provider’s patient population as a whole, and separately for specific health conditions. The Minnesota Department of Health convened the Provider Peer Grouping Advisory Group to provide advice and recommendations to the Commissioner on how to devise a peer grouping methodology.
Composed of stakeholders representing health care providers, health plans, consumers, employers and state government, the advisory group met nine times between June and September 2009 and was assisted by a technical panel.
The advisory group submitted its final recommendations on the peer grouping methodology in mid-October. The advisory group’s final report is available for public review and comment on the Provider Peer Grouping Advisory Group page.
MDH invites stakeholders to submit comments and concerns on the recommendations to health.reform@state.mn.us through December 1, 2009. MDH also anticipates publishing a Request for Proposals to implement the peer grouping methodology by mid-November. (10/27/09)
- The Minnesota Department of Health is developing a statewide learning collaborative to provide an opportunity for health care homes to share information and support each other. Health care homes are required to participate in the learning collaborative in order to be certified, and providers can also volunteer to participate in preparation for certification.
The first step in the development process is an evaluation of collaborative learning methods and models that incorporate quality improvement approaches that could be implemented statewide for initial and ongoing clinician certification as a health care home provider.
Wilder Research and national experts Jane Taylor, Ed.D, and Susanne Salem-Schatz, Sc.D, were awarded a contract to perform this research and evaluation and have completed a final report on the project.
Please go to Health Care Homes - Learning Collaborative to view the report and summary. (10/26/09)
- On behalf of the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH), the Institute for Clinical Systems Improvement (ICSI) will be hosting two educational opportunities related to the baskets of care project of interest to providers, health care delivery organizations and other stakeholders.
The Baskets of Care Update Webinar will be held on Tuesday, October 27, noon–1 p.m. This webinar will provide an overview of the baskets of care project, development and current status.
The Baskets of Care Early Adopters Summit will be held on Monday, November 9, 8 a.m.–4 p.m. This summit will give stakeholders that are considering becoming early adopters of one or more of the baskets of care an opportunity to learn about the proposed baskets of care, discuss implementation challenges and proposed solutions, and network with other early adopters.
Registration for both events is free. To see the fliers for both events and get registration information, please go to Baskets of Care - Events. (10/22/09)
- The Baskets of Care Steering Committee will meet on October 15, 2009, from noon to 5 p.m. The meeting will be held in a new location:
Minnesota Department of Health
Snelling Office Park Building, Mississippi Room
1645 Energy Park Drive
Saint Paul, MN 55108
Google map
Please see Baskets of Care Steering Committee for more information. (10/13/09)
- Minnesota Commissioner of Health Dr. Sanne Magnan's latest "Commissioner's Perspective" on health reform is now available, along with the monthly Health Reform Implementation Update. (9/29/09)
- The Baskets of Care Operational and Administrative Challenges Phase 2 Work Group draft report is available for public review and comment. This work group is charged with identifying operational and administrative challenges associated with implementing baskets of care and proposing practical solutions to the identified challenges. The deadline for comments on the draft report is October 8, 2009.
Please see Baskets of Care - Operational and Administrative Challenges Phase 2 Work Group for more information. (9/28/09)
- Clinics and clinicians across Minnesota may begin step one of the five-step application process for certification as a health care home. The first step is the submission of a letter of intent.
For more information, to become familiar with the certification process and to access the online application system, please see Health Care Homes - Certification.
A new section with background information and resource links for those interested in becoming certified as a health care home is also available at Health Care Homes - Education and Resources.
(9/28/09)
- Minnesota Community Measurement’s Reporting Advisory Committee will meet October 14 on work related to the development of the statewide quality reporting and measurement system Please see Reporting Advisory Committee Meeting for more information. (9/25/09)
- The Health Care Homes Outcomes Measurement Work Group will meet Tuesday, September 29, from 9-noon. The work group is charged with developing outcomes measurement implementation strategies and making recommendations on how health care homes outcomes measurement can work within the broader statewide reporting structure.
Please see Health Care Homes - Outcomes Measurement for more information. (9/25/09)
- Registration for the "Building Health Care Homes Across Minnesota" training event on October 29-30 is now open. Please see Health Care Homes - Events for more information and to register. (9/25/09)
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An Essential Benefit Set Work Group has been convened to make recommendations on the design of a health benefit set that provides coverage for a broad range of services and technologies, is based on scientific evidence that the services and technologies are clinically effective and cost-effective, and provides lower enrollee cost sharing for services and technologies that have been determined to be cost-effective. The work group and its charge were established in Minnesota’s 2008 health reform law.
The work group is inviting input related to 1) specific services that should be included in the essential benefit set or excluded from it, and 2) specific proposals for varying enrollee cost sharing to encourage greater use of effective services and less use of ineffective or low-value services.
If you are interested in providing input to the work group, please send an e-mail with the subject line “Essential Benefit Set” to health.reform@state.mn.us by September 30. Please be as specific as possible, and include references to supporting scientific evidence.
For more information on the work group and its activities, please see Essential Benefit Set.
- The Health Care Reform Review Council will meet on September 23, 2009, from 10 a.m. to noon. The meeting will be held in a new location:
State Office Building, 500 South (Hearing Room)
100 Dr. Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
St. Paul, MN 55155
Map
Please see Health Care Reform Review Council for more information. (9/21/09)
- Minnesota’s 2008 Health Reform Law requires the Commissioner of Health to establish a standardized set of quality measures for health care providers across the state and to produce an annual report on health care quality. The Minnesota Department of Health published a proposed administrative rule on September 8, 2009, to carry out Minnesota Statutes 62U.02. Under the proposed rule, physician clinics and hospitals would be required to submit data on those measures to be publicly reported beginning January 1, 2010.
Please see Health Care Quality Measures - Proposed Rule for the narrative portion of the rule, its appendices and for information about how to submit comments. MDH welcomes your feedback and encourages you to submit comments. The 30-day comment period ends at 4:30 pm, Wednesday, October 7, 2009. (9/8/09)
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The Baskets of Care Operational and Administrative Challenges Phase 2 Work Group will meet on September 10, September 17 and October 21.
Please see Baskets of Care - Operational and Administrative Challenges Phase 2 Work Group for more information. (9/2/09)
- The deadline has been extended for scholarship applications for teams to attend the nationally recognized Institute for Family-Centered Care's Intensive Training Seminar in Minneapolis October 26-29, 2009. The deadline for scholarship applications is now September 8, 2009.
Please see Health Care Homes for more information. (9/2/09)
- The Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) has awarded contracts to five nationally recognized health care industry experts and organizations to provide advice, counsel and analysis related to the 2008 health reform initiatives and related projects. The purpose of this expert advice is to complement work occurring at an individual project level and to help MDH connect important operational and policy “dots” across these initiatives.
Examples of specific project areas that will benefit from this industry expertise include:
- The formation and public reporting of “provider peer groupings” – a way of comparing health care providers on a composite measure of cost and quality.
- The creation and implementation of a statewide health care provider quality measurement and incentive payment system.
- The establishment of risk adjustment methodologies for quality measurement, payment and other purposes.
- The investigation of ways to reduce claims-adjudication costs of health care providers and health plans through the use of more uniform payment methods or uniform prices.
Please see Health Care Reform Expert Panel for more information. (9/2/09)
- Minnesota Community Measurement’s Reporting Advisory Committee will meet September 9 on work related to the development of the statewide quality reporting and measurement system.
Please see Reporting Advisory Committee Meeting for more information.
(8/31/09)
- The Baskets of Care subcommittees have recommended measures for each of the baskets of care. This information is now available for public review and comment. The deadline for comments on the recommended measures is September 7, 2009.
To review the measurement recommendations and provide comments, please go to Baskets of Care and click on the link for each individual basket of care. (8/27/09)
See Announcements Archive
For more information about health reform, please contact: health.reform@state.mn.us.
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