House of Delegates Moves Forward on Key Issues

Abstract

ORLANDO, FL — The Society House of Delegates (HoD) passed several significant resolutions and white papers at its recent meeting. “It was an incredibly productive and interesting meeting. We made tremendous progress on several key issues within a limited time frame,” said 2015–2016 HoD Chair Milta Little, DO, CMD. “The issues addressed — and the items passed — highlight the amount of public policy work that is being done and what additional work the Society is being asked to do. There is a big push on public policy efforts, and that will be a key part of HoD efforts in the year ahead,” said Dr. Little. Among the policy-related resolutions: •%Ensuring Appropriate Risk Adjustment Prior to Implementation of Value-Based Purchasing (B16): This directs the Society to work with stakeholder organizations and federal agencies to require the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to clearly define risk stratification indices and develop a cost-to-risk algorithm. This algorithm is to be based on previous utilization data and will incorporate unique patient characteristics including age and frailty.•%Reimbursing Physician Practices for Administrative Costs of VBP Programs (C16): This directs the Society to work with the American Medical Association and other interested parties to seek legislative action modifying the CMS value-based purchasing regulations to ensure that all eligible professionals who participate in the VBP programs receive appropriate compensation on their Medicare charges for the attributed population and for added administrative costs.•%Support for the End of the Meaningful Use Program by CMS (I16): This calls for the Society to seek legislative and regulatory action to remove PA/LTC patient encounters from the Meaningful Use program. This would include any future iterations of Meaningful Use under the Merit-Based Incentive Payment System, until such time that interoperable certified technology is widely available in these settings. It also directs the Society to work with appropriate stakeholders to incentivize health information technology systems that support the interoperability, continuity of care, and care coordination specific to PA/LTC residents. The HoD also passed two resolutions about establishing specialty of post-acute and long-term care medicine that call for the Society to work with CMS to seek full recognition of PA/LTC medicine as a medical specialty and engage American Board of Medical Specialties to prepare for this recognition. The HoD also passed three white papers on the following topics: •%Capacity for Sexual Consent in Dementia in Long-Term Care (A16)•%Dementia Care in Transitions (M16)•%Post-Acute and Long-Term Care Population Served (N16) Suzanne Gillespie, MD, RD, CMD, 2016–2017 HoD chair, noted that the topics addressed “reflect the diversity of our membership and the issues that affect and interest us all.” She was impressed by the level of knowledge demonstrated by House delegates and the “robust dialogue that took place on the various topics.” For details about the white papers and resolutions passed by the HoD, go to http://www.paltc.org/papers?type=All&topic=All. Senior contributing writer Joanne Kaldy is a freelance writer in Harrisburg, PA, and a communications consultant for the Society and other organizations.