Autumn 2015 Gainsharing Presentations Reflect Industry Interest

In autumn, the normally frenetic activity of hospitals and health systems accelerates into high gear. Autumn is also marked by major conferences as executive teams “harvest” for new ideas. That’s appropriate as autumn used to be known as “harvest” before the dawn of the Industrial Revolution when the population moved to cities!

Gainsharing was prominently featured on the conference circuit this year.  With 5 states in various stages of implementation of the AMS Performance Based Incentive System, there is much interest in the success of gainsharing.  We presented at regional, national, and international conferences, and university programs in healthcare management.  Needless to say. I’m very proud that our organization is changing healthcare by lowering costs while improving quality and outcomes.  It’s gratifying to see this interest.

In August, at Widener University’s CAHME-accredited healthcare MBA program, I presented a historical perspective on alternative payment systems.  The presentation brought me back to my roots as a rate setter in New Jersey. It also helped the students to understand how far we have come in getting healthcare costs in line.  Without the pioneering work of the state of New Jersey in DRGs back in the late 1970s and early 1980s, I shudder to think where healthcare costs would be now. Interestingly, professor’s Michael Rosko dissertation was on the work that led up to the DRG implementation in NJ, which included interviews with AMS Chairman Michael Kalison and me way back when!

AMS’ Jo Surpin discusses gainsharing at a panel discussion on the Maryland Association of Healthcare Executives on October 1, 2015. Seated to her left are Nicole Stallings, Vice President, Policy & Data Analytics of the Maryland Hospital Association, and Gene Ransom CEO of MedChi, The Maryland State Medical Society.

Regionally, on October 1, I was on a panel at the Maryland chapter of the American College of Healthcare Executives (ACHE). Maryland Hospital Association (MHA) Vice President Policy & Data Analytics Nicole Stallings led an animated discussion of how MHA expects to use gainsharing to reach the goals needed to maintain Maryland’s Medicare waiver status.  We had an auditorium full of attendees as part of the all-day program.  And a lot of great questions!

NJHFMA and the Metro Philadelphia Chapter of Healthcare Financial Management Association (HFMA) teamed up at the NJHFMA Annual Institute in Atlantic City in early October.  April Venable, the Director of Population Health at Inspira Health Network (Vineland, NJ) and I presented how gainsharing is a foundation for Inspira’s population health initiatives. April gave a great perspective of how the future of healthcare payment has begun at Inspira.

In mid-October,  Sandy Saunders, the Assistant Director – Strategy, Planning and Business Development of NYU Langone Medical Center and I presented at the Society for Healthcare Strategy and Market Development annual conference in Washington, DC.  With more than 1,700 attendees, SHSMD is the preeminent event for healthcare marketing and strategy.  More than 60 healthcare executives heard our session on how gainsharing fit into AHA’s “Mind-Map”theory, and is the next frontier of strategy alignment for hospitals and physicians.

Also in October, AMS’ Vice President Anthony Stanowski presented at the prestigious International Hospital Federation World Congress.  The IHF Congress attracts an international audience of policy wonks, national healthcare governing bodies/associations, and large system executives.  Anthony was on a panel discussion called “Healthcare Delivery Challenges”.

AMS is not done speaking this year!  I will be at the CMS Region III Medical Societies/Hospital Associations Annual Meeting discussion with New Jersey Hospital Association’s Senior Vice President of Health Economics Sean Hopkins on November 4, 2015.  We will discuss the hospital association role in gainsharing’s success in both the demonstration program and under BPCI Model 1.  Our partners from MHA and the Hospital and Healthsystem Association of Pennsylvania (HAP) will be in attendance.  The discussion should broaden since we will have three of our five hospital association partners together in one room.

Lastly, we have finalized the details for a webinar on the HAP gainsharing program on November 23, 2015. This webinar is free to all HAP members.  Click here for more details.

We expect that AMS’ gainsharing approach might be at a few programs in 2016.  Hope to see you at an upcoming event!