Introduction Of The Quality FIRST Act, Response By Premier Healthcare Alliance, USA

Main Category: Medicare / Medicaid / SCHIP
Article Date: 29 Sep 2008 - 3:00 PDT

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Statement by Blair Childs, senior vice president of public affairs, Premier healthcare alliance

The Premier healthcare alliance commends Representative Jason Altmire (D-PA) for introducing the Quality FIRST Act, a bill that would implement hospital value-based purchasing on a national scale in Medicare. Representative Altmire's expertise in hospitals and healthcare has clearly come into play in crafting this bill, which provides a sensible roadmap for implementing a program to reward hospitals that provide high-quality care. The bill is consistent with principles developed by national hospital organizations.

The Premier healthcare alliance supports reforms to the Medicare program that align incentives to achieve better outcomes for patients. We have learned first hand through the CMS, Premier Hospital Quality Incentive Demonstration pay-for-performance project, which has touched millions of patients, that a well-designed pay for performance program can help accomplish that goal. We hope the Quality FIRST Act helps frame the discussion on hospital value-based purchasing as Congress resumes the healthcare reform debate next year. We look forward to working with Representative Altmire and his colleagues in concert with other hospital organizations to advance legislation to improve patient care.

Premier Healthcare Alliance