Of 100 surveyed orthopedic departments in hospitals across the nation, 56 percent expressed concerns of being unprepared for the new Medicare bundled payment model, effective April 1.
Function and Outcomes Research for Comparative Effectiveness in Total Joint Replacement and Wellbe conducted the survey.
Here are seven takeaways:
1. CMS' Comprehensive Care for Joint Replacement Model will correlate payment with quality and patient satisfaction measures.
2. Ten percent of orthopedic programs reported being fully prepared.
3. Seventy-five percent of respondents plan to hire new staff to coordinate patients and collect data.
4. Under the new model, providers must track and prove value in patient care and will be responsible for the cost of joint replacement care from the time of surgery through 90 days post-discharge.
5. The quality measures will include patient-reported outcomes.
6. FORCE-TJR tracked more than 25,000 joint replacement patients, and found hospitals may underestimate readmission costs by 25 percent. This is because one out of four patients who have a readmission does not return to the hospital where they underwent the original surgery.
7. FORCE-TJR national benchmarks offer a diagnostic assessment of a hospital's readiness for CJR.
"As new rulings are introduced, leaders would be better served by thinking more creatively about empowering patients and their families with digital tools to be connected participants in their care — they can be your most productive and effective members of your care team," said James Dias, CEO, Wellbe.