The Role of Performance Measures for Improving Quality in Managed Care Organizations.
Objectives. To understand how managed care plans use performance measures for quality improvement and to identify the strengths and weaknesses of currently used standardized performance measures such as the Health Plan Employer Data and Information Set (HEDIS[R]) and the Consumer Assessment of Health Plans (CAHPS [R]) survey. ...

Aperture Renews Contracts with Leading Managed Care Organizations.
UnitedHealthcare, Humana Inc., Oxford Health Plans and Health Insurance Plan Of New York ('HIP') Sign on for Multiple Year Contracts -- Some Through 2004 LOUISVILLE, Ky., May 15 /PRNewswire/ -- Aperture Credentialing, Inc. ("Aperture"), one of the nation's leading provider data management organizations, announced today...

Healthcare First Offers Internet Policy for Managed Care Organizations.
Policy Underwritten by RLI Insurance Company URAC Accreditation Required to Qualify for Coverage WASHINGTON, June 11 /PRNewswire/ -- Healthcare First, a Division of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co., announced today the development of the first professional liability insurance policy in the United States...

Everything4MDs.com Reflects Growing Demand for Automated Supply Chain Services at Group Medical Practices and Managed Care Organizations.
MARINA DEL REY, Calif., July 18 /PRNewswire/ -- Automating the supply chain processes among multiple trading partners is a trend that is expected to hit more than $80 billion in 2005 (IDC research, 6/01), forecasting accelerated growth for Everything4MDs (http://www.E4MDs.com), the largest privately-held B2B e-procurement company for...

Multimethod evaluation of health policy change: an application to Medicaid managed care in a rural state.
In health services research, the problem of how to evaluate the results of policy change has remained challenging (Evaluation Gap Working Group 2006). While the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services mandates that state governments evaluate changes in their Medicaid programs, these evaluations have proven limited, typically confirming budget...

AMSSM and SelfCareNet Team to Develop a Self-Care, Symptom-Based Healthcare Information Content.
HEALTH AND BEAUTY CLOSE-UP-8 September 2008-AMSSM and SelfCareNet Team to Develop a Self-Care, Symptom-Based Healthcare Information Content(C)2008 - CloseUpMedia - newsdesk@closeupmedia.com SelfCareNet (SCN) is a provider of pre-visit, symptom-based, self-care health information. Christopher Madden, M.D., board-certified in family and sports medicine, authored the content. "I...

Publication of Quality Report Cards and Trends in Reported Quality Measures in Nursing Homes.
Quality report cards have become a major component of initiatives to enhance the quality of the American health care system. In addition to numerous private and state report cards, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) now provides web-based reports on the quality of health maintenance organizations (HMOs),...

Water Street Healthcare Partners Acquires HealthPlan Holdings.
HEALTH AND BEAUTY CLOSE-UP-3 October 2008-Water Street Healthcare Partners Acquires HealthPlan Holdings(C)2008 - CloseUpMedia - newsdesk@closeupmedia.com Water Street Healthcare Partners, a private equity firm focused exclusively on the health care industry, announced that it has acquired HealthPlan Holdings, Inc. Headquartered in Tampa, Florida, HealthPlan is...

Centric Health Resources to Host Conference Focusing on Ultra-Orphan Disorders.
HEALTH AND BEAUTY CLOSE-UP-17 August 2008-Centric Health Resources to Host Conference Focusing on Ultra-Orphan Disorders(C)2008 - CloseUpMedia - newsdesk@closeupmedia.com Centric Health Resources will host a special conference for industry consultants and professionals, including presentations by key thought leaders, workshops, and discussions exploring ways to meet the social,...

Check Gardasil adverse-event data.
Since July 22nd, you have no doubt received phone calls from anxious parents who heard the news report about adverse events associated with the human papillomavirus vaccine, Gardasil. As usual, the media did a good job of creating anxiety both among parents and prescribing physicians. I've heard how much...