mommyjenlin

Now that PPACA is the law of the land, private and public ACOs will be springing up like weeds in a field. It may really be the last best chance to bend the cost and quality curve of the American healthcare system which is unsustainable. After all, its now about the right care; at the right time; for the right cost; in the right care setting. In the end though, the basic premise remains the same, to engage the patient, aka the healthcare consumer, in the care and treatment decision making process. The marketing challenge before you is to attract members to your ACO, engage and retain them with outcome and price transparency delivered with an exemplary customer/patient experience. In entering the brave new world of ACOs, here are some things that you need to consider for marketing: 1.) Transparency and Quality dashboards. This is about improving care, using best practices, learning and improving as a system to the individual level, by engaging the patient. If you do not plan t...

Now that the final rules for ACOs have been released by CMS , it seems that there is more positive interest in the ACO model first proposed under PPACA . The basic premise remains the same, to engage the patient, aka the healthcare consumer, in the care and treatment decision making process. Medicare ACOs remain open networks, meaning that members can go outside the ACO for service. The marketing challenge before you is to attract members to your ACO, engage and retain them. You must be prepared to deliver an individualized experience that meets the needs of that patient. A mass customization, of your patient experience process, down to the individual level. One size does not fit all. In entering the brave new world of ACOs, here are some things that you need to consider for marketing: 1.) Clear and easily stated Value Proposition . Not a mission statement, this is crucial for communications and focusing the message to members, employers, payers, government and community. Not flo...

On March 31, a new data release for consumers took place with CMS posting individual hospital performance on eight Hospital Acquired Conditions (HAC). Reaction has been highly critical to say the least by physician and hospital groups. There are legitimate question as to the methodology used in some of the data and that does need to be revised. So the question came to me after reading the various groups denial of the data, pointing out its flaws and generally trying to deep six any potential informational credibility for the public-   i t's out there, so what is the brand opportunity if any? How Does Your Marketing/PR Department Counter Negative Data Releases From 3rd Parties? Hospitals and others are quick to bend over backwards and break their arms running ads and creating press releases when the data is in their favor or an award has been bestowed. This is not a criticism it is fact. Sometimes the information presented is misleading as well. When negative quality data is p...

On March 31, 2011, the healthcare system in the U.S. began to change forever with these words: "An ACO will put the beneficiary and family at the center of all its activities. It will honor individual preferences, values, backgrounds, resources, and skills, and it will thoroughly engage people in shared decision-making about diagnostic and therapeutic options." With these words, CMS has taken the bold step of moving the healthcare system from a provider-directed healthcare enterprise to a consumer-directed healthcare system. And the implications are enormous. It is also apparent that this will require leadership skills and abilities at the integration of culture and care. No more spin of shifting here among reimbursement options, playing docs off of one another, or avoiding difficult decisions. Welcome to consumer-directed healthcare. Eagerly or not so eagerly awaited, these 429 pages of proposed regulations mark the beginning of a great national discussion that will fundamen...