Recommendations to Improve Payment Policies for Comprehensive Dementia Care

Abstract

Access to comprehensive dementia care is limited. Recent changes in billing for professional services, including new physician fee schedule codes, encourage clinicians to provide new services; however, current reimbursement does not cover costs for all needed elements of dementia care. The Payment Model for Comprehensive Dementia Care Conference convened more than 50 national experts from diverse perspectives to review promising strategies for payment reform including ways to accelerate their adoption. Recommendations for reform included payments for services to family caregivers; new research to determine success metrics; education for consumers, providers, and policymakers; and advancing a population health model approach to tier coverage based on risk and need within a health system.