For the first time, the database includes a measure of flu shots given to adults aged 50-64 last year. The metric is important, reports the NCQA, because influenza hospitalizes 120,000 older adults and kills 40,000 people annually. As a result, the number of flu shots administered in a particular area gives health care consumers, insurers and providers an idea of the population’s general health.
“Quality Compass gives the health care market what it needs most—clear, easy to understand information about performance,” says NCQA Executive Vice President Greg Pawlson. “It’s a buyers guide for anyone who has to make a decision about which health plan to contract with.”
The database also includes information on NCQA accreditation and plan-specific results on HEDIS and CAHPS measures, data sets that measure clinical performance and member satisfaction, respectively. It also allows employers to directly compare a health plan’s HEDIS and CAHPS scores to competitors or to national and regional benchmarks.
“Quality Compass gives our organizations a complete picture of where we stand,” says Jane Elliott, director of Quality Management for Health Alliance Market Plans. “It’s a crucial tool that not only helps us identify those areas where we excel, but also those areas where we need to focus our quality improvement efforts.”
Also included in Quality Compass is a customized version of the Quality Dividend Calculator 2004, an interactive Web-based tool that allows employers to estimate gains in productivity and reductions in sick leave that result from selecting a higher quality health plan. The estimates are based on the plans’ HEDIS results and information provided by the employer about the demographics of their workforce. Users can select multiple plans and compare the results.
As with past editions, this year’s version of the Quality Compass includes comprehensive national, regional and state averages and benchmarks for commercial health care plans. Quality Compass is the database upon which NCQA’s annual State of Health Care Quality report is based. The report will be released on Sept. 23.
For more information, visit www.ncqa.org.
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