Expert Meeting on Disease Management Outcomes Measurement

Summary:

The Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (HHS/ASPE) is hosting an Expert Panel to discuss Disease Management Outcomes Measurement. The meeting will feature experts from government, academia, and private industry discussing measurement of the impact of disease management on health outcomes and costs of care, with a focus on potential for public sector programs.

The meeting will be Wednesday, January 16, 2008,
from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. (Eastern Time) at
1200 South Hayes Street, Room 4204, Arlington, VA 22202.
Telephone: (703) 413-1100.

The meeting is open to the public, and pre-registration is encouraged. Seating capacity is limited, so registration will be accepted on a first-come, first-served basis. Registration can be completed by sending an e-mail message to Ms. Emily Taylor of the RAND Corporation at etaylor@rand.org (The RAND Corporation is the Contractor to HHS/ASPE to provide logistical support for the Expert Meeting.) To register by telephone, contact Ms. Taylor at (703) 413-1100 extension 5793. The following information must be provided when registering: Name, Company/Organization, and address. A RAND Corporation staff member will confirm registrations by mail, e-mail, or fax.

Supplemental Information:

In the face of increasing health care costs, evidence of the need for system-wide health care quality improvement, and an aging population, disease management seems an intuitively appealing way to improve the coordination and quality of care, and ultimately improve health outcomes. In broad terms, disease management refers to a system of coordinated health care interventions and communications to help patients address chronic health conditions. Commercial health plans and large employers are embracing this strategy, and public purchasers of health care services including the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) have implemented demonstration programs to evaluate disease management for certain conditions.

Questions about the effectiveness of disease management remain, in part, because the evaluation methods of vendors of large, population-based programs often lack scientific validity. Conversely, vendors often argue that scientifically credible approaches, like a randomized controlled experiment that the Medicare Health Support pilot uses, are not feasible for routine operation. Thus, the lack of universally accepted yet feasible evaluation methods are a major obstacle to adopting and improving disease management, because potential purchasers of such programs find it hard to identify the best program design and to monitor its success. A primary goal of this meeting is to consider the variety of disease management programs and identify strategies to improve the assessment of their impact on individuals with multiple chronic conditions.

The Expert Panel:

Discussion will be moderated by Soeren Mattke of the RAND Corporation and will feature:

• David Atkins, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
• Ahmed Calvo, Health Resources and Services Administration
• Linda Magno, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services
• Melanie Bella, Center for Health Care Strategies, Inc.
• Jeff Lemieux, America's Health Insurance Plans
• Ariel Linden, Linden Consulting Group
• Nancy McCall, RTI International
• Gordon Norman, Alere Medical, Inc.
• Paul Wallace, Kaiser Permanente

Agenda

For further information, contact:

Telephone: (202) 690-5924.