MACRA-Ready: 9 percent said they would participate in an Advanced Alternative Payment (APM) model in 2017.
Value-based reimbursement also topped the list of lucrative business development areas for 18 percent of respondents, HIN’s industry survey found, followed by chronic care management (14 percent), integration of behavioral healthcare and primary care (11 percent), and telehealth (11 percent).
Sixty-nine percent of respondents consider themselves well positioned to succeed under value-based reimbursement models in the year to come. Additionally, 60 percent report that 2016 was a better year business-wise than 2015.
However, preoccupation with new models of care delivery and payment did not eliminate worry over the post-election fate of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), which President-elect Trump has vowed to repeal or replace. At least 10 percent referenced either the election, ACA uncertainty or the incoming presidential administration when identifying the greatest business challenges they expect to face in 2017.
The annual Healthcare Trends & Forecasts survey, administered in November 2016, captured year-end feedback from more than 100 hospitals, health plans, physician organizations, long-term care providers and others, pinning down the trends impacting the industry in the year to come.
A Look Back: Best and Worst Business Decisions of 2016
Community partnerships, training for integrated care and value-based payments, and participation in CMS Bundled Payment for Care Improvement (BPCI) were among the most successful business decisions of 2016, respondents reported. However, many cited lack of preparation for bundled payments and care delivery transformation, lack of communication, and lack of focus on quality as regrettable 2016 business decisions.
This 2017 roadmap for healthcare also identified the following metrics:
- Respondents’ pace of MACRA participation for 2017:
- Eight percent will test MACRA’s Quality Payment Program by submitting partial data in 2017 without fear of negative payment adjustments;
- Six percent will participate for part of the calendar year;
- Nine percent said they would participate for the full calendar year; and
- Nine percent said they would participate in an Advanced Alternative Payment (APM) model in 2017.
- Growth, hiring and recruitment, and sales and services were the three business areas most impacted by the 2016 economic climate.
- Healthcare wearables, palliative care and health insurance exchanges had the least impact on respondents’ 2016 business operations.
