FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE July 18, 2008

CONTACT: Alicia Aebersold, NQF 202 783 1300 or aaebersold@qualityforum.org

Legislation

Statement of Dr. Janet Corrigan, President and CEO of The National Quality Forum

Medicare law provision will make quality front and center in America’s efforts to successfully reform our nation’s healthcare system

Washington, DC – A provision in the Medicare law passed by the Senate will bring timely light and heat to America’s efforts to fundamentally and successfully reform our nation’s healthcare system. The provision directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to commission an initiative to deploy uniform, evidence-based performance measures and a reporting infrastructure that takes stock of how and whether our system of healthcare is meeting the needs of American families.

The initiative provides $10 million per year for fiscal years 2009 through 2012 to:

• set national priorities that identify reforms that will yield the biggest results;
• endorse and maintain measures that promote health, safety, and efficiency; and
• promote the development of electronic health records that support performance management by making the coordination and monitoring of practices possible.

It is refreshing to see longstanding rhetorical support for “quality” backed by funding and leadership at the highest levels of government. 

It is truly remarkable how little performance information is available to guide decision making in healthcare. The lack of transparency and shared knowledge of how the system is performing, where there are strengths and where there are clear shortcomings and even life-threatening practices and conditions, has perpetuated a broken system.

We are on the cusp of a historic opportunity to more fundamentally reform healthcare, which accounts for 16 percent of America’s economy and touches virtually every American. The priority-setting and measurement infrastructure made possible under this legislation will engage all facets of the “system” to work together to produce performance information that will guide more informed decision making.

This effort will be particularly important for the work of the NQF National Priorities Partnership (NPP) -- 27 national, highly-influential health, government, and consumer organizations who are committing to specific, measurable actions that will collectively have a significant impact on American healthcare quality.  NPP (which includes the Institute for Healthcare Improvement, National Committee for Quality Assurance, AARP, AFL-CIO, AQA, American Nurses Association, American Medical Association, Consumers Union, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospital Quality Alliance, Institute of Medicine, National Institutes of Health, The Joint Commission, US Chambers, governors, and others) will identify a list of priorities and goals for measurable improvement for the nation over the next 3-5 years. These include eliminating disparities; enhancing patient outcomes and experience with care; and reducing waste. By identifying specific areas with the greatest potential for high-impact improvement, NPP can achieve a significant measurable difference in improved health and healthcare.

The mission of the National Quality Forum is to improve the quality of American healthcare by setting national priorities and goals for performance improvement, endorsing national consensus standards for measuring and publicly reporting on performance, and promoting the attainment of national goals through education and outreach programs.  NQF, a non-profit organization (qualityforum.org) with diverse stakeholders across the public and private health sectors, was established in 1999 and is based in Washington, DC.