Happy Holidays from Health Care - From Policy to Practice

We're taking some time off from our coverage of the health care industry to celebrate the season with our loved ones. We want to sincerely thank you for your readership, your comments and your participation. We look forward to returning to the world of healthcare policy in 2011!

Here are our top posts from 2010:
MDRP 2010 Conference - AMP after HCR: Implementation is Here – What Issues Still Remain?
MDRP 2010 Conference - Operational and System Answers
MDRP 2010 Conference - Translating the Impact of Healthcare Reform on your Medicaid, Medicare and PHS/340B Processes

We wish you Happy Holidays!

The Medicare Congress Session Spotlight: Annual Wall Street Report: Economic Outlook For Medicare Advantage Health Plans

We're gearing up for the 8th Annual The Medicare Congress, and will highlight some of the great speakers and sessions being featured in Scottsdale, Arizona; January 24-26, 2011. IIR’s Medicare event is the longest-running and most comprehensive event where top-level executives from the nation's leading health plans convene to exchange best practices and develop long term strategies to survive and prosper in the Medicare marketplace. Download the Brochure to find out more about the full 2011 Medicare Congress activities and presentations taking place this January.

This week’s highlight session is this year’s Annual Wall Street Report: Economic Outlook for Medicare Advantage Health Plans. With decreased reimbursements threatening the Medicare industry, health plans are facing the risk of profit loss. Hear from Joshua Raskin, Managing Director, Barclays Capital as he shares his in-depth analysis on the financial outlook for 2011 and identifies opportunities to ensure profitability for your health plan in the coming years. The key takeaways for this year’s Wall Street Report include:

• Assessment of the financial impact of Medicare health plans in light of decreased reimbursement,
• Clear understanding of the economic impact of reform on Medicare Advantage and Part D
• Up to date information on the current state of the program, reimbursement phase outs, and the star systems

As a holiday gift to our group members, receive an additional 10% off the current price break rates. That’s a savings of up to $475. Register online only with priority code WinterLink. But hurry as this offer ends December 31, 2010 at 5pm.

How will the Federal Budget Issue Impact your Health Plan’s Business Strategy?

The National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform just released their recommendations on how to close our country’s fiscal gap. With over 12% of the federal budget going to Medicare and 30+ million baby boomers becoming eligible over the next 10 years, which leads us to the question: How will the current federal budget issues impact the future of Medicare?

The industry is projected to see a 17% cut in reimbursement over the seven years. Join the debate over breakfast on January 26, 2011, in Phoenix, Arizona, at the 8th Annual Medicare Congress as Dr. Murray N. Ross of the Kaiser Permanente Institute For Health Policy examines the current economic climate and how it relates to health care reform.

Download the 8th Annual Medicare Congress Brochure to find out more about Dr Ross's presentation and the rest of the agenda:
http://bit.ly/f6Kp8T

Government Programs Session Spotlight: Background and Goals of the Medicaid Drug Rebate Program

Leading up to Government Programs 2011, we'll be highlighting a session from the upcoming conference. It will take place March 7-9, 2011, in Baltimore, Maryland. For more information, download the brochure.

Featured Session: Background and Goals of the Medicaid Drug Rebate Program
Presenter: John Bliss, Manager, Contract Management, GRACEWAY PHARMACEUTICALS
About the session:
• Understand the history of key legislative acts and how they affected the program
• Learn medicaid rebate terminology to decipher the acronyms
• Follow the fl ow of payments and reimbursements to understand the big picture
• Identify the roles of AMP, AWP, ASP, WAC, BP, FSS, and non-FAMP

Dual Eligibles Workshop featured at this year’s The Medicare Congress

UMass Medical School's Center for Health Care Financing (CHCF) awarded a two-year; $7.3 million contract to help identify 1 million dual eligibles in California. Yesterday's post looks further into this.

Are you ready for the influx of business?

Attend the Dual Eligibles dinner workshop at the 8th Annual Medicare Congress to examine the challenges and opportunities for managing the dual eligible population. Enjoy dinner at this fun, informative event as we address the care needs and costliness of these beneficiaries. Dual eligibles are a high-need, high-cost population with different coverage and payment policies. Don’t lose out on this opportunity to integrate care and achieve operational efficiency, growth, and profitability. Tom Lescault, CEO, Scan Health Plan Arizona and Dr. Cary Sennett, CMO, Medassurant will be leading the workshop.

Visit the Medicare Congress’ webpage to download the brochure and find out more about this workshop and other presentations at this year’s event:
http://bit.ly/ho3q8t

California looking to identify their duel eligables

The UMass Medical School’s Center for Health Care Financing (CHCF) recently signed a contract with the State of California to identify the projected 1.1 million individuals who are eligible for both Medicare and Medicaid. Mass High Tech states that the CHFC believes that they will help California save $100 million throughout the contract, which will help California more effectively coordinate with the Social Security Administration and recover from past expenditures.

The Medicare Congress, taking place January 24-26, 2010, in Phoenix, Arizona looks at many of the issues facing Medicare today, including a the a dinner workshop titled Manage Dual Eligibles To Improve Care and Control Costs, lead by Tom Lescault, CEO, Scan Health Plan Arizona. To find out more about The Medicare Congress, visit the webpage and download the brochure.