Interview with Bonnie LaPlante, HCH Director

What was the reason for starting a Health Care Homes newsletter?

Staying informed and preparing for the future is a critical aspect of our work as the health care landscape in Minnesota and nationally continues to evolve. The Health Care Homes (HCH) program’s goal for the newsletter is to highlight the innovative work of certified clinics and their partners, provide informational updates from the national and local level, provide useful resources and tools, and keep partners informed of the work of the Health Care Homes Advisory Committee and work groups.

Health Care Homes recently announced its updated mission, vision and goals. What is at the top of your mind as the program moves forward?

Recent strategic planning efforts identified the issue areas of Program Innovation, Financial Sustainability, Learning and Technical Assistance (TA), Partnerships and Communication, and Measurement and Evaluation that now make up the five work groups of the HCH advisory committee. While each strategic issue is critical to achieving our goals, Learning and TA, Financial Sustainability, and Program Innovation will be meeting more often during the coming months as we work on priority areas: advancing certification standards, a vibrant learning community, and value-based reimbursement.

Why is value-based reimbursement important and how does HCH help clinics achieve value-based payment?

Moving to a value based system requires a strong primary care strategy to sustain goals for population health improvement and lower total cost of care.  The effort put into HCH transformation will position clinics to respond to this changing health care landscape including Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act (MACRA). I am pleased to share that the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has determined that the HCH certification process qualifies clinics for points in MACRA (see MACRA Benefits for Certified HCH below).

    The Health Care Homes team looks forward to sharing updates on the program’s work and stories of innovation from across the state through The Connection. As we continue to collaborate with all of you to promote access to patient-centered, team-based, coordinated care we welcome your feedback, questions, and suggestions for future newsletters. Please email your comments to health.healthcarehomes@state.mn.us

    Thank you for being a HCH partner.

 Thanks to everyone who was part of Learning Days 2017 “Our Journey Toward Accountable Health,” held April 4-5, 2017 at the River’s Edge Convention Center in St. Cloud. The annual event featured two national keynote speakers, more than 30 peer-based interactive breakout sessions and in-depth workshops for HCH stakeholders at beginning, intermediate and advanced levels.

Daniel Dawes, author of “150 Years of Obama Care: The History and Future of the Affordable Care Act” kicked things off with perspectives on the role of the ACA in driving health reform and health equity. Melissa Thomason, patient advocate, inspired participants with personal stories to illustrate the importance of patient and family-centered care. Other highlights included expanded networking time, a new conference App, increased use of social media, two days of exhibits, and a Health Care Homes interactive zone. The zone gave participants an opportunity to interact with HCH staff, get their groove on with PlayStation Just Dance, preview the new HCH Learning Management System (debuting later this year), and weigh in on the meaning of health and value of HCH learning activities.  General sessions included a preview of video stories from 2016 Learning Days stakeholders viewable on the MDH YouTube channel.

Looking ahead, HCH stakeholders may see modifications to Learning Days. A Learning and Technical Assistance work group is studying how HCH learning activities have evolved over time and applying best practices to develop a comprehensive strategy for learning that will include the new learning management system and perhaps new learning modalities as well.  “While Learning Days won’t go away, it may come back in 2018 with a fresh approach,” said Carol Bauer, Learning Days project manager.  “We know our stakeholders really value this annual opportunity to get together face to face and learn from each other. Our goal is to make it better every year.”

 The Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act (MACRA) led to the establishment of the new CMS Quality Payment Program consisting of two tracks: the Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS), and Advanced Alternative Payment Models (APMs). Health Care Homes (HCH) certified clinics participating in MIPS automatically receive 100% of possible points in the Clinical Practice Improvement Activities (CPIA) category. To obtain this benefit clinics will need to attest to their certification status. Details on the attestation process will be forthcoming from CMS in either late 2017 or early 2018. For general information on MACRA, you can visit the CMS website. If you have questions specific to implementing the Quality Payment Program in Minnesota, contact Stratis Health.

 Have you heard? Based on input from our partners, Health Care Homes updated the HCH Certification Assessment Tool. Requirements and standards remain the same, but are in a more user-friendly format.  For further information, please contact your assigned MDH HCH Nurse Planner or email Health Care Homes.

Clinics Certified in 2017

Winona Health - Winona Clinic

RiverView Health - RiverView Clinic Crookston