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Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Healthcare quality

Obstetric Volume and Severe Maternal Morbidity Among Low-Risk and Higher-Risk Patients Giving Birth at Rural and Urban US Hospitals
Compares births in rural and urban counties in California, Michigan, Pennsylvania, and South Carolina to identify associations between obstetric volume and morbidity in low and high risk patients. Discusses suggestions for improving morbidity rates.
Author(s): Katy Backes Kozhimannil, Stephanie Leonard, Sara C. Handley, et al.
Citation: JAMA Network Open, 4(6)
Date: 06/2023
Type: Document
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Differences in the Merit-Based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) Performance of Clinicians in Metropolitan and Nonmetropolitan Counties in 2018
Provides a brief overview of the Merit-Based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) and describes rural clinician performance in MIPS in 2018. Compares rural and urban MIPS performance scores, payment adjustments, and risk-adjusted standardized Medicare Spending per Beneficiary (MSPB). Also compares rural and urban MIPS performance by practice size and the proportion of racial/ethnic minorities served. Presents the most frequently reported MIPS measures by urban and rural practices.
Date: 06/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis
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2023 Scorecard on State Health System Performance
Evaluates state health systems on a state-by-state basis. Enables comparison between state health systems across 58 measures, such as access and affordability, prevention and treatment, reproductive care and women's health, and racial and ethnic equity, among others.
Author(s): David C. Radley, Jesse C. Baumgartner, Sara R. Collins, Laurie C. Zephyrin
Date: 06/2023
Type: Website
Sponsoring organization: Commonwealth Fund
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Using Population-Based Outcome Measures to Assess the Impact of Telehealth Expansion on Medicare Beneficiaries' Access to Care and Quality of Care
Explores the feasibility of using population-based measures to estimate the association between telehealth use, quality of care, and access to care when both telehealth and in-person visits are available to fee-for-service (FFS) Medicare beneficiaries. Compares data from the second half of 2019 to the second half of 2021 by the level of telehealth utilization in Hospital Service Areas (HSAs). Includes rural references throughout.
Author(s): Morteza Saharkhiz, Tanvi Rao, Sara Parker Lue, et al.
Date: 06/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organizations: American Institutes for Research, Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
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Health Panel Comment Letter - Hospital Inpatient Prospective Payment System for Acute Care Hospitals Proposed Rule
Comments offered in response to a May 1, 2023, proposed rule revising the Medicare Hospital Inpatient Prospective Payment System (IPPS) and Long-Term Care Hospital PPS for fiscal year 2024. Discusses methodologies used to calculate the Medicare Disproportionate Share Hospital (DSH) and uncompensated care payments; two potential geriatric care quality measures; and the identification of, and challenges facing, safety net hospitals.
Date: 06/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Rural Policy Research Institute Rural Health Panel
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The Benefits and Challenges of Converting to a Rural Emergency Hospital
Podcast episode with Anson General Hospital's Chief Executive Office and Chief Nursing Officer regarding the hospital's transition to a Rural Emergency Hospital. Discusses changes to services offered, financial and operational impacts of the conversion, and what the local patient population thinks about the transition.
Date: 06/2023
Type: Audio
Sponsoring organization: American Hospital Association
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QPP 2021: Participation Results At-a-Glance
Provides an overview of the results of the Quality Payment Program (QPP) for the 2021 performance year. Highlights mean and median final scores in the Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) for small and rural practices and compares results to those in 2020.
Date: 06/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services
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Consolidation and Corporate Ownership in Health Care: Trends and Impacts on Access, Quality, and Costs
Recording of a June 8, 2023, U.S. Senate Committee on Finance hearing on healthcare consolidation and its impacts on healthcare access and finances. Testimony from the American Academy of Family Physicians discusses the impact of consolidation on rural primary care providers.
Additional links: R. Shawn Martin, American Academy of Family Physicians - Testimony
Date: 06/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Senate Committee on Finance
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MedPAC Comment on CMS's Proposed Rule on the Hospital Inpatient PPS for FY 2024
Comments on a May 1, 2023, Federal Register proposed rule revising the hospital inpatient and long-term care hospital (LTCH) prospective payment systems (PPS). Offers comments on future hospital safety-net policies, including a potential safety-net adjustment for Medicare inpatient hospital payments; a potential health equity adjustment bonus to the hospital value-based purchasing program; recent case law on rural reclassification and estimated implications; and supplemental uncompensated care payments to Puerto Rico.
Date: 06/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
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Medicare Accountable Care Organizations: Presence in Rural America
Presentation slides from a June 6, 2023, webinar for the Rural Northern Border Healthcare Support Technical Assistance Center. Provides an overview of the Medicare Shared Savings Program, including the composition of program participants in 2023, the spread of Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs) in rural counties, and the federal and state policy landscape. Details changes to the Shared Savings Program for 2024.
Author(s): Keith J. Mueller
Date: 06/2023
Type: Presentation Slides
Sponsoring organization: Rural Policy Research Institute
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