MEASURES ASSESSING RESOURCE USE HIGHLIGHT HEDIS® 2008

HEDIS renamed “Healthcare Effectiveness Data and Information Set”
to reflect broader scope, audience

WASHINGTON—Five new measures of health care effectiveness were added today to HEDIS®, the most definitive set of health care quality measures in the nation.

Notable among the additions unveiled today by the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) are a set of measures that will allow purchasers and consumers to compare how much health plans spend on care delivery, in addition to how well they rate in clinical quality. Three new Relative Resource Use measures will enable standardized, risk-adjusted assessments of efficiency and effectiveness in the areas of care for patients with cardiovascular disease, hypertension and chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder (COPD).

NCQA also announced that it is changing the underlying name of HEDIS to reflect its broader scope and utility.  Beginning today, HEDIS will stand for “Healthcare Effectiveness Data and Information Set.” HEDIS was originally conceived as a set of clinical quality measures to inform employers’ decisions when contracting with health plans. Over the past decade, NCQA has expanded the HEDIS measurement set to meet the needs of consumers, purchasers, public programs and others. HEDIS measures are now used to objectively assess the performance of physicians and health plans and forms the basis of several tools used by consumers to make informed health care decisions, including health care report cards and “America’s Best Health Plans,” a collaboration between NCQA and U.S. News & World Report.

“Sound, objective health care quality data has become a part of the decision-making cycle for consumers as well as sophisticated benefits managers,” said NCQA President Margaret E. O’Kane. “Whether they’re using report cards to choose a plan or browsing the Internet to find the best doctor, HEDIS has informed the choices of millions of consumers and helped them shop for care based on effectiveness.”

Other new measures in HEDIS 2008 address lead screening among children and management of COPD. High blood lead levels have significant health implications that are often irreversible in children and lead to unnecessary medical expenses. The new measure would help detect elevated levels of lead exposure among the more than 300,000 children estimated to be at risk. A second new measure examines whether patients with aggravated COPD are prescribed bronchodilators or systemic corticosteroids upon discharge from a hospital or emergency department. Such medications have been shown to shorten recovery periods and prevent relapses and premature deaths.

HEDIS 2008, Volume 2: Technical Specifications is now available in print and electronic formats. To order, call (888) 275-7585 or visit NCQA’s Publications Web page at www.ncqa.org/publications. For a summary of new, modified and retired measures in HEDIS 2008, visit NCQA’s Web site at www.ncqa.org.

NCQA is a private, non-profit organization dedicated to improving health care quality. NCQA accredits and certifies a wide range of health care organizations and recognizes physicians in key clinical areas. NCQA’s Healthcare Effectiveness Data and Information Set (HEDIS) is the most widely used performance measurement tool in health care.  NCQA is committed to providing health care quality information through the Web, media and data licensing agreements in order to help consumers, employers and others make more informed health care choices.

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