NPC’s Ciarametaro to Lead Panel Discussion on Bundled Payments at AMCP 2015 Nexus

Mike Ciarametaro, research director at the National Pharmaceutical Council, will outline bundled payment best practices and case studies on October 28 at the Academy of Managed Care Pharmacy’s 2015 Nexus.

Bundled payments are more than simply grouping together commonly associated services, Mr. Ciarametaro says. Instead, he explains that the goal of bundled payments is to provide a better level of care for patients by creating a structure that recognizes physicians as the clinical leaders and keeps physician risk manageable by paying for the value of care rather than the volume of care.

His presentation coincides with the U.S. health care system’s rapid shift from a fee-for-service system to one that is performance-based. This transformation offers significant opportunities—as well as risks—and opens the door to new care delivery and payment models; bundled payments are just one example.

At its core, a bundled payment is essentially reimbursement for clinically defined episodes of care. These episodes of care can be simple, like a stress test administered by a single provider, or complex, like a one-year payment for cancer treatment that includes multiple providers and settings of care.

As Mr. Ciarametaro will discuss, clinical practice is constantly evolving due to new innovations, and there is a lot more to learn about bundled payments, as well as other innovative care models.

For more information about the Nexus and its agenda, including Mr. Ciarametaro’s presentation, please visit www.amcpmeetings.org.