Wisconsin seeks healthcare experts to advise on CMS State Innovation Models award plan
For Immediate Release
For more information contact:
Nicole Singer
nsinger@blmpr.com
(414) 270-3000, ext. 231
Wisconsin seeks healthcare experts to advise on CMS State Innovation Models award plan
Appleton, Wisconsin (Jan. 15, 2015) — Something special is happening in Wisconsin healthcare! Our state recently received a $2.49 million Model Design award as part of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Innovation Center’s (CMMI) State Innovation Models (SIM) initiative. The award, which begins in February 2015, allows Wisconsin to engage a diverse group of industry leaders—providers, payers, purchasers, consumers—to develop and submit a State Health System Innovation Plan within a year.
“The goal is to outline innovative payment and service delivery models with a broad mission to improve health, improve the quality of care, and decrease costs for Wisconsin’s healthcare consumers,” said Julie Bartels, who is leading the State Test Plan team under the co-oversight of the Department of Health Services and the Statewide Value Committee.
The team is looking for people and organizations willing to commit time and expertise in a variety of areas:
- Four transformation teams focused on: population health, behavioral health, delivery redesign, and payment transformation
- Two supporting teams focused on: quality and cost measurement, and health information technology
There also will be opportunities for those unable to commit time who still wish to provide input. Likewise, for those who view healthcare transformation through a broader population health improvement lens, the team will solicit input from partners in community agencies, public health, and many more.
“Our plan will only be as strong and comprehensive as the state-grown talent invested in creating it,” Bartels said.
Wisconsin has a legacy of leading the nation and industry in recent healthcare innovation—from organizations like the Wisconsin Collaborative for Healthcare Quality and the Wisconsin Health Information Organization, to the quality of its individual systems and associations, to leading-edge electronic medical records and a willingness to engage in multi-stakeholder and intersystem collaborations.
“The State Health System Innovation Plan is a chance not only to continue that great tradition, but to integrate all our previous efforts under one umbrella plan, working in a single unified direction toward higher quality healthcare for Wisconsinites,” Bartels said.
Done well, this plan also could position Wisconsin to receive significant funds to implement and test the model design in future years under extended CMMI funding programs.
Interested organizations can contact Bartels at jbartels@createvalue.org to help shape the vision for Wisconsin’s healthcare plan.
ThedaCare Center for Healthcare Value
The ThedaCare Center for Healthcare Value is an education institute that believes we must have three essential elements for sustainable change in healthcare: Delivery of care designed around the patient; payment and incentives based upon value and outcomes; and transparency of performance (quality and cost) throughout the healthcare system. Founded in 2008 and headquartered in Appleton, Wisconsin, we are a small not for profit with a big mission to help change the healthcare industry. Learn more at: createvalue.org.
