Researchers address the opportunities as well as the challenges and costs of transforming practice toward the patient-centered medical home model of care in this editorial.
The authors assert that primary care practices cannot bear the costs of transformation unless they are reimbursed for the costs they incur.
For the needed changes to occur on a wide and sustainable basis, they argue that payers should fund the full cost to primary care practices, which is estimated at a minimum of $7-12 per patient per month in addition to usual fee-for-service reimbursement.
They call for payment reform and cast a vision for an alternative system that fosters a shared sense of responsibility for cost, quality and service in which primary care physicians are held accountable for providing value to patients, and are compensated for the value they provide.
Practice Transformation? Opportunities and Costs for Primary Care Practices By James M. Gill, MD, MPH, and Bruce Bagley, MD, Delaware Valley Outcomes Research, Newark, Delaware, and American Academy of Family Physicians, Leawood, Kan.