Lower Health Care Costs

Research shows NCQA PCMH Recognition improves patient care and reduces costs.

  • One pilot program showed a a 9.3% reduction in emergency department utilization (resulting in approx. $5 million in savings per year) and a 10.3% reduction in ambulatory-care-sensitive inpatient admissions for patients with two or more comorbidities.1
  • Another study found PCMH Recognition was associated with $265 lower average annual total Medicare spend per beneficiary (4.9%), lower hospital spending and fewer emergency department visits (55 fewer visits per 1000 beneficiaries for all causes).2

1 Rosenthal MB, Alidina S, Friedberg MW, Singer SJ, Eastman D, Li Z, Schneider EC. (2015). A Difference-in-Difference Analysis of Changes in Quality, Utilization and Cost Following the Colorado Multi-Payer Patient-Centered Medical Home Pilot. Journal of General Internal Medicine.

2 Van Hasselt M, McCall N, Keyes V, Wensky SG & Smith KW (2014). Total Cost of Care Lower among Medicare Fee-for-Service Beneficiaries Receiving Care from Patient-Centered Medical Homes. Health Services Research.