Study: Pa. medical homes show little quality gain, cost savings
Patient-centered medical homes (PCMHs) may not offer quite as much in quality improvements and reduced costs as once hoped, according to a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association.
The study evaluated the Southeastern Pennsylvania Chronic Care Initiative, one of the oldest and largest medical home pilots. The pilot resulted in minimal quality improvement and failed to save money over a three-year period, according to Mark W. Friedberg, MD, RAND researcher and the study's lead author. The results don't necessarily mean PCMHs don't work but that cost savings and quality improvement goals are challenging to meet, he added.
The study compared 32 Pennsylvania medical homes with traditional primary care practices. Between 2008 to 2011, medical homes achieved slight improvement in one of 11 quality metrics, according to researchers, and didn't save on costs. However, the medical homes earned $92,000 in bonuses per physician during the three-year period.
Editor Beth earned a bachelor’s degree in journalism and master’s in health communication. She has worked in hospital, academic and publishing settings over the past 20 years. Beth joined TriMed in 2005, as editor of CMIO and Clinical Innovation + Technology. When not covering all things related to health IT, she spends time with her husband and three children.