QMed, Inc. Receives 2-Year Extension Of Medicare Coordinated Care Demonstration Project By CMS

Main Category: Medicare / Medicaid / SCHIP
Article Date: 08 Apr 2008 - 0:00 PDT

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QMed, Inc., (Nasdaq: QMED) announced it has been granted a two year operating extension from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) for its Medicare Coordinated Care Demonstration (MCCD) project in Northern California.

In 2002, The CMS selected 15 sites for a pilot project to test whether providing coordinated care services to Medicare fee-for-service beneficiaries with complex chronic conditions can yield better patient outcomes without increasing program costs.

In 2006, the pilot project was extended by CMS for an additional 2 years to QMed and 10 other sites to allow time for further data analyses (4 sites were discontinued).

In December 2007, CMS completed the review of the 4-year evaluation data. As only 3 of the 11 operating sites showed a potential for budget neutrality, CMS offered an extension to QMed (and the 2 other potentially budget neutral sites) for 2 more years to allow further study of the respective programs. The remaining 8 sites will be terminated as scheduled in 2008.

Jane Murray, QMed's president and CEO, said, "Given the political and fiscal sensitivity associated with rising health care costs in the Medicare population, rigorous analysis of randomized trials for coordination of care in the chronically ill is a National mandate to be certain that such approaches are cost-effective and produce quality outcomes. The MCCD pilot, the longest studied randomized Medicare trial of its type, has demonstrated that certain approaches are not cost effective, while others, such as QMed's, may very well be cost effective. Given our proprietary clinical rules engine and unique community-based, provider-facing approach to care coordination, we are very pleased with our outcomes to date and are honored to be one of the three remaining sites selected by CMS. As care coordination of today's Medicare population is so vital to the future of our industry, we look forward to working with CMS in the MCCD and possible future demonstration projects in the years to come."

About the Medicare Coordinated Care Demonstration

MCCD is one of the first studies of chronic care coordination under fee- for-service Medicare. It was designed to test whether care coordination services can lower costs, increase patient satisfaction and improve quality of care for Medicare Beneficiaries with chronic illnesses.

The coordinated care demonstration was authorized by Section 4016 of the Balanced Budget Act of 1997 (BBA). The BBA requires that the projects target chronically ill Medicare fee-for-service beneficiaries that are eligible for both Medicare Parts A and B.

About QMed, Inc.

QMed has developed evidence-based clinical information management systems for use by health plan customers. The QMed systems incorporate Disease Management services to patients and decision support to physicians. The Company's subsidiaries have specialized in serving high-risk populations of Medicare beneficiaries.

Except for historical information contained herein, matters discussed in this news release are forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. They include but are not limited to those relating to the timely implementation of programs, the impact of business and operational conditions, competitive product introductions, acceptance and pricing, and those risks detailed in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Actual results may differ materially from any forward- looking statements due to these risks and uncertainties.

QMed, Inc.
http://www.qmedinc.com