Resolutions
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that Post-Acute and Long-Term Care Medical Association (PALTmed) should work with other stakeholders in LTC to investigate, monitor and/or determine specific recommendations ACOs should follow in the following areas to promote best LTC patient care:
- Accountable Care Organizations (ACOS) should clearly delineate how fair and equitable payment for long term care physician services will be made.
- ACOs should establish meaningful relationships with long-term care providers to ensure smooth and successful transitions of appropriate patients to and from long-term care environments. In particular, ACOs should ensure physician responsibilities including communication among all involved sites of service are clear and support best patient care.
- ACOs should clarify how quality measures and incentive programs will affect providers in long term care.
- Long-term care providers should have easy access to the ACOs’ electronic medical records; and, absent a formally established relationship with an ACO, there should be continuing efforts to provide quality care between a long-term care provider and an ACO.
- ACOs should allow smaller physician practices to participate in the Medicare’s Shared Savings Program by joining with them in a coordinated manner to promote accountability for a patient population.
- ACOs should encourage investment in infrastructure to improve the processes and outcomes for high quality and efficient delivery of care in all care settings.
- ACO program standards should be relaxed to allow for the generally lesser technologic capabilities of the small practice and those practices involved with long-term care.
- Incentive payments should be provided by the ACOs for facilities caring for their patients to invest in electronic medical records.
Note: Effective August 13, 2024, AMDA - The Society for Post-Acute and Long-Term Care Medicine is now Post-Acute and Long-Term Care Medical Association (PALTmed).