Briefing Analyzes Quality of Health Care in New York State

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--A briefing in Manhattan on Thursday, March 28, hosted by the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) and the New York State Health Foundation will discuss health care quality in New York State.

The briefing analyzes the quality of New York health plans using the latest data from health care’s most widely used performance improvement tool, HEDIS^® (Healthcare Effectiveness Data and Information Set). Key findings include:

Outstanding Transparency & Leadership on Quality: Transparency in New York is strong, with fully 50 percent of residents being enrolled in plans that report HEDIS results. That HEDIS-reporting is a quarter higher than the national norm of 40 percent speaks well of regulators’ and insurers’ commitment to a culture of transparency in New York.
New York is also a leader in fostering quality improvement: State and New York City support for developing patient-centered medical homes is a key example. The implementation of the New York Health Benefit Exchange in Fall 2013 is an opportunity to combine and leverage the state’s diverse innovations to improve quality even more.
Excellent Medicaid Performance: Medicaid plans’ performance is close to that of commercial plans on several important measures. Examples include measures related to childhood immunizations, controlling blood sugar in patients with diabetes, and helping smokers quit smoking. On a measure related to controlling high blood pressure, Medicaid HMOs were best in the state, outperforming commercial HMOs and PPOs, as well as Medicare HMOs and PPOs.
New York Better than Most, But Not the Best: New York is exemplary in many ways but does not have the highest quality in the country, or even in the Northeast. Massachusetts health plans outperform New York plans on key measures. NCQA recommends that the Empire State look to the Bay State as a benchmark to work towards.

WHEN: Thursday, March 28, 2013, 10 a.m. – 12 p.m. EDT

WHO: This briefing is open to journalists and others interested in the quality of health care that New York residents receive.

NCQA President Margaret E. O’Kane will present the HEDIS findings.

New York State Health Foundation CEO James R. Knickman, PhD, will moderate panel discussions featuring:

Nirav R. Shah, MD, MPH, Commissioner, New York State Department of Health
Thomas Farley, MD, MPH, Commissioner, New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene
Susan Beane, MD, Vice President and Medical Director, Healthfirst
Carol Raphael, Former President and CEO, Visiting Nurse Service of New York
Kathy Sakraida, Director, Quality Initiatives, Northeast Business Group on Health
Ross Wilson, MD, Senior Vice President and Chief Medical Officer, New York City Health and Hospitals Corporation

WHERE: New York State Health Foundation office for in-person attendees and WebEx virtual meeting for remote attendees:

In-Person
New York State Health Foundation
1385 Broadway (Corner of 38th Street), 23rd Floor
New York, NY 10018

WebEx

1. Connect to http://goo.gl/RTL6a

2. Click "Join Now"

3. Enter your information to register and click JOIN.

4. Establish your phone connection by calling 866-469-3239.

5. Enter the conference code: 664 858 108.

6. If you have trouble connecting, call 866-229-3239, Option 1.

To RSVP for the event, please contact Maureen Cozine at cozine@NYSHealth.org or at 212-292-7752, or Apoorva Stull at stull@ncqa.org or 202-955-3567.

ABOUT NCQA

NCQA is a private, non-profit organization dedicated to improving health care quality. NCQA accredits and certifies a wide range of health care organizations. It also recognizes clinicians and practices in key areas of performance. NCQA is committed to providing health care quality information for consumers, purchasers, health care providers and researchers.

ABOUT NYSHealth

The New York State Health Foundation (NYSHealth) is a private, statewide foundation dedicated to improving the health of all New Yorkers, especially the most vulnerable. Today, NYSHealth concentrates its work in three strategic priority areas: expanding health care coverage; improving diabetes prevention; and advancing primary care. The Foundation is committed to making grants, informing health care policy and practice, spreading effective programs to improve the health system, serving as a neutral convener of health leaders across the State, and providing technical assistance to its grantees and partners.