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Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Healthcare quality

Characteristics and Costs of Potentially Preventable Inpatient Stays, 2017
Presents national estimates of potentially preventable inpatient stays among children and adults in 36 states and the costs associated with those stays. Includes data on potentially preventable hospitalization rates by the urban-rural status of patients' residences.
Additional links: Data Visualization
Date: 06/2020
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
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MedPAC Report to the Congress: Medicare and the Health Care Delivery System, June 2020
Evaluates Medicare payment issues and offers recommendations to the U.S. Congress. Includes chapters on value-based payment in Medicare, Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs), the Medicare Advantage quality bonus program, the impact of changes in the 21st Century Cures Act to risk adjustment for Medicare Advantage enrollees, Medicare Part D, separately payable drugs in the hospital outpatient prospective payment system, and the Medicare end-stage renal disease prospective payment system. Examines the current payment policy for low-volume and rural dialysis facilities and proposes changes.
Additional links: Executive Summary
Date: 06/2020
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
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MBQIP Talking Points
Lists summary statements Flex Program staff can use to help address concerns and encourage Critical Access Hospital (CAH) participation in quality reporting and improvement programs. Includes statements that can be adapted to help frame responses and discussions related to CAH quality improvement participation.
Date: 05/2020
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Stratis Health
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Maternal and Obstetric Care Challenges in Rural America
Provides an overview of the clinical factors and social determinants of health that may increase the risk of maternal morbidity and mortality in rural communities. Discusses the impact of insurance coverage status, hospital and obstetric unit closures, and workforce shortages on rural maternal health. Describes the role of the Department of Health and Human Services in addressing maternal health outcomes. Offers policy recommendations to reduce rural maternal health disparities.
Date: 05/2020
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: National Advisory Committee on Rural Health and Human Services
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Infection Control Deficiencies Were Widespread and Persistent in Nursing Homes Prior to COVID-19 Pandemic
Explores the prevalence of infection prevention and control deficiencies in nursing homes prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. Examines the percentage of nursing homes that had deficiencies cited in multiple years. Provides charts noting the number of nursing homes with an infection prevention and control deficiency by state. Includes a chart that presents the data by urban and rural status.
Additional links: Full Report
Date: 05/2020
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Government Accountability Office
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Partnering for Impact: Early Insights from the Accountable Health Communities Model
Provides an overview of the November 11-12, 2019, CMS Accountable Health Communities (AHC) meeting. Summarizes sessions on engaging with Medicaid and Medicare beneficiaries with unique needs, AHC models, addressing service gaps in quality improvement plans, and more. Includes rural references throughout.
Date: 05/2020
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services
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As It Grows, Medicare Advantage is Enrolling More Low-Income and Medically Complex Beneficiaries
Examines how the demographics, socioeconomic status, and clinical characteristics of Medicare Advantage enrollees changed between 2012 and 2015. Explores how these changes related to changes in healthcare utilization and performance during this time.
Author(s): Christie Teigland, Zulkarnain Pulungan, Tanya Shah, Eric Schneider, Shawn Bishop
Date: 05/2020
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Commonwealth Fund
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Quality Time: Sharing PIE - Becoming a QI Leader
First episode of a quarterly podcast focusing on Critical Access Hospital (CAH) performance improvement experiences. Profiles two CAH quality leaders who share strategies, tips, and lessons learned from their experiences becoming quality improvement professionals.
Date: 05/2020
Type: Audio
Sponsoring organization: Stratis Health
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April 2020 MedPAC Meeting Transcript
Transcript from the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission's (MedPAC) April 2020 meeting. Covers value-based payment in Medicare, challenges in maintaining and increasing savings from accountable care organizations, incentives in Medicare Part D, the Medicare Advantage quality bonus program, and Medicare's end-stage renal disease (ESRD) prospective payment system. Includes a discussion of ESRD payment adjustments for rural and low-volume providers.
Date: 04/2020
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
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COVID-19 Exposes Threat to America's Broken Rural Health Care System
Recording of an April 21, 2020, webinar featuring members of the Bipartisan Policy Center's Rural Health Task Force. Discusses the Task Force's policy recommendations to stabilize the rural healthcare infrastructure and ensure local access to care as outlined in the report Confronting Rural America's Health Care Crisis. Describes how these recommendations will address the closures of obstetrics units, promote value-based care, provide incentives for clinicians to stay in rural areas, and remove barriers to telehealth. Transcript available by clicking the dots above the video description, then selecting Show Transcript.
Date: 04/2020
Type: Video/Multimedia
Sponsoring organization: Bipartisan Policy Center Rural Health Task Force
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