In this policy brief, we assess variation in Medicare’s star quality ratings of Medicare Advantage (MA) plans that are available to rural beneficiaries. Evidence from the recent Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) quality demonstration suggests that market dynamics, i.e., firms entering and exiting the MA marketplace, play a role in quality improvement. Therefore, …
Tag Archives: Health
RUPRI Health Panel member, Jennifer Lundblad, discusses rural hospital innovation
In Health & Hospitals Networks latest publication, Jennifer Lundblad, RUPRI Health Panel Member and president and CEO of Stratis Health, discusses how rural hospitals and rural communities are well-positioned to create innovative population health and wellness programs. “A rural environment lends itself to population health and wellness,” she says. “Providers probably know the patient and their family, they …
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RUPRI Health Center Examines Rural Premium Trends in Health Insurance Marketplace
Health Insurance Marketplaces: Premium Trends in Rural Areas Since 2014, when the Health Insurance Marketplaces (HIMs) authorized by the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) were implemented, considerable premium changes have been observed in the marketplaces. This policy brief from the RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis assesses the changes in average HIM …
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RUPRI Health Center Examines Beneficiary Assignment Updates in Medicare ACOs
Medicare Accountable Care Organizations: Beneficiary Assignment Update This brief updates Brief No. 2014-3 and explains changes in the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Accountable Care Organization (ACO) regulations issued in June 2015 pertaining to beneficiary assignment for Medicare Shared Savings Program ACOs. Overall, the regulatory changes are intended to (1) encourage ACOs to …
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Medicaid Payment and Delivery System Reform: Challenges and Opportunities for Rural Health Systems
Medicaid has grown significantly in its importance to rural health systems and communities; a higher proportion (22 percent) of rural residents was enrolled in Medicaid than Medicare (20 percent) in 2014. At the same time, the use of payment and delivery innovations has grown significantly, but varies across the U.S. As a result of expansions …
RUPRI Leader Keith Mueller Receives Regents Award for Faculty Excellence from the University of Iowa
Keith Mueller, Director of the RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis, Gerhard Hartman Professor and head of the Department of Health Management and Policy, was chosen by the selection committee of the Faculty Senate as one of six members of the University of Iowa faculty to receive a 2016 Regents Award for Faculty Excellence. …
RHIhub Integrating Health & Human Services in Rural Communities Webinar
April 14, 2016 @ 2:00 pm – 3:00 pm The Rural Health Information Hub and the NORC Walsh Center for Rural Health Analysis will introduce a new Rural Services Integration Toolkit designed to help rural communities improve access to health and human services. Developed by NORC on behalf of the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy (FORHP), …
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Rural “Adjacent Possible” Innovation: Systems Thinking for Collective Impact, Beyond the Health Sector
This presentation discusses the four rural considerations which includes our ‘disruptive milieu’, systems thinking: rural advantage, regional rural innovation, and new rural opportunities. Presented by Charles W. Fluharty (President and CEO, Rural Policy Research Institute) to the Iowa Center for Rural Health and Primary Care Advisory Committee on March 7, 2016 in Iowa City, Iowa. …
Featured RUPRI Leader: Jennifer Lundblad
Jennifer is the President and CEO of Stratis Health, a non-profit based in Minnesota that focuses on collaboration and innovation in health care quality and safety. She has been a member of the RUPRI Health Panel since 2009, in addition to Stratis Health and RURPI partnering on a national Rural Health Value Project that focuses …
RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis reviews Rural Medicare Advantage Plan Payment in 2015
Payment to Medicare Advantage (MA) plans was fundamentally altered by the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010 (ACA). This brief finds that while plans operating in both rural and urban areas have experienced a reduction in MA payment, the reduction in rural payment overall has been less significant. In addition, MA plans have …
Policy Brief: Medicare Value-Based Payment Reform
Medicare Value-Based Payment Reform: Priorities for Transforming Rural Health Systems View Policy Brief | Related: View Full Report In January 2015, Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Burwell announced new goals and timelines for moving Medicare reimbursement from fee-for-service to value-based payment. These payment changes are driving delivery system reforms by making healthcare …
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Medicare Value-based Payment Reform: Priorities for Transforming Rural Health Systems
View Report | Related: View Policy Brief In recognition of unsustainable healthcare cost growth and sub-optimal delivery system performance, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010 (ACA) contains provisions that redesign healthcare payment and delivery. ACA payment change provisions are driving delivery system reform by making healthcare organizations more accountable for patients’ health …
National Rural Health Day- Live Webcast: Featuring Dr Keith Mueller – Rural Health Delivery System Reform
November 19, 2015 November 19th, 2015 is the 5th Annual National Rural Health Day! The Rural Assistance Center is pleased to partner with the National Organization of State Offices of Rural Health for a series of live National Rural Health Day events that celebrate the power of rural. Join Dr. Keith Mueller, Director of the Department of …
Dr. Tim McBride, RUPRI Health Panel Member, to lead Center for Health Economics and Policy – Washington University
View Full Article Washington University in St. Louis has announced the launch of the Center for Health Economics and Policy (CHEP), to be housed in the Institute for Public Health. The goal of the new center is to improve population health in America by encouraging health policy and economics research and dissemination. The center will …
Accountable Care Communities in Rural: Laying the Groundwork in Humboldt County, CA – 2015
This joint paper was authored by members of both the Health and Human Services Panel in June 2015. The paper presents a case for the viability of Accountable Care Community (ACC) models in rural communities, including in rural Humboldt County, California. Accountable Care Communities reflect a unified approach to improving the health and reducing the …
SOAR as a Collective Impact Model: Lessons for Rural Health and Human Services
This presentation discusses the SOAR Program of work and the goals with each step. It also touches base on prioritizing and the framework for regional rural innovation. Presented by Charles W. Fluharty (President and CEO, Rural Policy Research Institute) to National Advisory Committee on Rural Health and Human Services on May 27, 2015 at Natural …
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Transitioning to a High Performance Rural Health System
This presentation discusses how hospitals should respond and why response should be other than incremental adjustment. It will touch base on change and how it creates opportunities as well as threats. Presented by Keith J. Mueller, PhD (Director, RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis) and Charles W. Fluharty, M. Div. (President, Rural Policy Research …
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Thinking Bigger About Smaller Places: “Adjacent Possible” Design Thinking and Collective Impact Investing for Healthier Rural People and Communities
This presentation recalibrate the rural/urban paradigm and dialogue as well as challenging the hegemony of the urban metaphor in a disruptive milieu. Presented by Charles W. Fluharty (President and CEO, Rural Policy Research Institute) to the Transforming Safety and Health in the Heartland Conference in Ankeny, Iowa on November 19, 2014. View Presentation
Advancing the Transition to a High-Performance Rural Health System. RUPRI Health Panel. November 2014.
In Advancing the Transition to a High-Performance Rural Health System, the RUPRI Health Panel discusses strategies and options for creating a pathway to a transformed, high-performing rural health system. This paper builds on the RUPRI Health Panel’s earlier paper that conceptually defined the core elements of a high-performance rural health system. We have also incorporated …
Access to Rural Health Care – Literature Review and New Synthesis
This report reviews important access definitions and frameworks from the literature. The review serves as a concept map to create a unique synthesis of perspectives that may be used by researches and policy makers to design or clarify access to health care providers. Prepared in August 2014 by the RUPRI Health Panel: A. Clinton MacKinney, …
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Rural Health Strategies for a Value-Based Future
This presentation touches on rural health context as well as transfer of financial risk. It will also discuss redefine, redesign and a toolbox for value. Presented by A. Clinton MacKinney (Deputy Director and Assistant Professor, RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis) at the ASHNHA Conference in Anchorage, Alaska on April 22, 2014. View Presentation
The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010: Impacts on Rural People, Places, and Providers: 2010 First and 2014 Second Look
These two policy documents from 2010 and 2014 take a first and second look at the implementation of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010 and how it contributes to reshaping the health care delivery landscape, particularly in rural areas. Prepared in September 2010 and April 2014 by the RUPRI Health Panel: Andrew …
A Second Look at the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010
Presented by the Rural Policy Research Institute Health Panel: Keith Mueller, PhD; Timothy McBride, PhD; Andrew Coburn, PhD. At the Annual Meeting of the National Rural Health Association in April 2014 in Las Vegas, Nevada. View Presentation
Transitioning to a Value-Based Health Care Future
This presentation discusses the climate of change in health care, payment policies and price reduction threats. It will also touch base on the Affordable Care Act. Presented by A. Clinton MacKinney (Deputy Director and Assistant Professor, RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis) at the Improving Health in a Climate of Change NACo in San …
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The Impact of Payment Reform on Rural Medicare Advantage Enrollment and Quality
This project examines the implications of changes in Medicare Advantage (MA) payment implemented in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010 (ACA) and in the current Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) demonstration of quality-based bonus payments. This research also focuses on key issues including: how the changes to MA payment, including bonus …
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How to Succeed by Trying: Adapting to Change
This presentation discusses important ways rural hospitals need to think about adapting to the changing policy and demographic landscape. Presented by Keith Mueller (Director, RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis) for the Rural Hospital Conference Colorado Hospital Association in Colorado Springs, CO on May 8, 2013. View Presentation
ACOs and Much More: Health Reform Comes to Rural America
This presentation explores the utility of Accountable Care Organizations in a rural context. Presented by Keith Mueller (Director, RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis) to the Colorado Rural Hospital Conference in Colorado Springs, CO on May 8, 2013. View Presentation
Frontier Extended Stay Clinics: A Sustainable Community Model
This presentation examine the unique advantages that the Frontier Extended Stay Clinic model offers to rural populations. Presented by A. Clinton MacKinney and Patricia Atkinson at the NRHA Annual Rural Health Conference in Louisville, Kentucky on May 8, 2013. View Presentation
Impact on Health System Market Changes on Rural Health: ACO, PCMH, VBP Consolidation
This presentation discusses how the rural healthcare landscape is changing and explores emerging implications for rural healthcare providers. Presented by Keith Mueller (Director, RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis) for the State Offices of Rural Health – Region D meeting in San Diego, California on May 1, 2013. View Presentation
Rural Emergency Care: Stepping Up to the Challenge
This presentation explores the Rural Emergency Department as a flagship healthcare service provider for rural hospitals, hospital systems, and communities. Presented by A. Clinton MacKinney (Deputy Director and Assistant Professor, RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis) on April 26, 2013. View Presentation
Research to Policy and Practice: Sustaining Rural Health Services
This presentation explores how current and emerging research might impact rural health care providers and policy makers in strengthening sustainable models of healthcare provision in rural areas. Presented by Keith Mueller (Director, RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis) for the IAHL Roundtable Discussion in Des Moines, Iowa on February 28, 2013. View Presentation
Transforming Health Care in Rural America: Turning Change into Improvements for Rural Residents
This presentation provides analysis of current changes to health care and health care systems that provide services in rural areas. Mueller offers tips for transitioning toward an optimal system that fits within this evolving context. Presented by Keith Mueller (Director, RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis) to the Rural Health Leadership Conference in Phoenix, …
Transferring Risk: The Road to Health Care Value
This presentation discusses to increase health care value for rural communities by exploring how to transfer risk from payers to hospitals and physicians. Presented by A. Clinton MacKinney (Deputy Director and Assistant Professor, RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis) to the Rural Health Leadership Conference February 10-13, 2013. View Presentation
ACOs and Much More: Health Reform Comes to Rural America
This presentation explores the utility of Accountable Care Organizations in a rural context. Presented by Keith Mueller (Director, RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis) to the CAH Administer Meeting in Helena, MT, January 23-24, 2013. View Presentation
RUPRI Health Panel Provides Comments to HRSA on Designation of Frontier & Remote Areas. December 2012.
RUPRI Health Panel Provided Comments to HRSA on Proposed Designation of Frontier & Remote Areas. December 29, 2012. Read Comment Letter Here
RUPRI Health Panel Provides Comments to Office of Personnel Management regarding 45 CFR part 800 proposed rule of Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act; Establishment of the Multi-State Plan Program for the Affordable Insurance Exchanges. December 2012.
RUPRI Health Panel Provided Comments to 45 CFR part 800 Proposed Rule Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act; Establishment of the Multi-State Plan Program for the Affordable Insurance Exchanges. December 18, 2012. Read Comment Letter Here
RUPRI Health Panel Provides Comments to CMS on Health Insurance Market Rule. December 2012.
RUPRI Health Panel Provided Comments to CMS-9972-P, Proposed Rule: Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act; Health Insurance Market Rules; Rate Review. December 18, 2012. Read Comment Letter Here
The Current and Future Role and Impact of Medicaid in Rural Health
This brief outlines and describes the current Medicaid program and its importance to rural America. It also discusses rural implications of program expansion, including whether and how states choose to implement changes. View Report This report was written by Health Panel Members Keith Mueller, Andrew Coburn, Jennifer Lundblad, A. Clinton MacKinney, Timothy McBride, Sidney Watson …
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Anticipating the Rural Impact of Medicare Value-Based Purchasing. RUPRI Rural Health Panel. April 2012.
Click Here for Brief
Pursuing High Performance In Rural Health Care. RUPRI Rural Futures Lab. January 2012.
Authored by RUPRI Health Panel. Click Here for Brief
The High Performance Rural Health Care System of the Future
The RUPRI Health Panel offers an aspirational vision, for a highperformance rural health care system. The RUPRI Health Panel envisions rural health care that is affordable andaccessible for rural residents through a sustainable health system thatdelivers high quality, high value services. A high performance rural healthcare system informed by the needs of each unique rural …
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Place-Based Policies and Public Health
Place-Based Policies and Public Health: The Road to Healthy Rural People and Places View Report This joint paper by the RUPRI Health Panel and Human Service Panel examines how effective place-based policies can influence how rural and metropolitan areas develop, how well they function as places to live, work, operate a business, preserve heritage, and …
RUPRI Rural Health Panel: Comments responding to Request for Information Regarding Accountable Care Organizations and the Medicare Shared Saving Program: CMS‐1345‐NC. December 2010
Click Here for Comment Letter
Securing High Quality Health Care in Rural America: The Impetus for Change in the Affordable Care Act
View Report The ACA calls for the development of a National Health Care Quality Strategy and Plan (National Quality Strategy) that, by definition, will affect health care that is delivered to millions of Americans who live in rural areas and thousands of health care providers who care for them. The goal of this paper is …
RUPRI Rural Health Panel Comment Letter: Reply to request for comments regarding Exchange‐related provisions of the ACA. October 2010
Click Here for Comment Letter
Designation HPSAs & Medically Underserved Populations: A Primer. RUPRI Health Panel. August 2010.
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Impact of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act on Covered Persons. RUPRI Rural Health Panel. December 2009.
Authored by Timothy McBride, PhD Click Here for Report
A Rural Perspective/Commentary Regarding “Expanding Health Care Coverage: Proposals to Provide Affordable Coverage to All Americans” Senate Finance Committee. RUPRI Rural Health Panel. May 2009.
Click Here for Brief Click Here for Executive Summary
A Rural Perspective/Commentary Regarding “Transforming the Health Care Delivery System: Proposals to Improve Patient Care and Reduce Health Care Costs. Senate Finance Committee. RUPRI Rural Health Panel. April 2009
Click Here for Brief Click Here for Executive Summary
CMS Value-Based Purchasing Program & Critical Access Hospitals. RUPRI Health Panel. January 2009
Click Here for Brief Click Here for Summary
