Get a Handle on Physician Assessment Programs

A good many U.S. physicians have run up against -- and perhaps been frustrated by -- a health insurer's tiered network, report card, or quality and efficiency rating during the past several years.

To help family physicians understand the intricacies of performance reporting, the Academy has developed a free resource for members dubbed the "AAFP Members' Guide to Physician Assessment Programs." (Members Only; 8-page PDF; About PDFs)

Bruce Bagley, M.D., AAFP's medical director of quality improvement, is well aware of physician consternation, and even anger, about quality measurement and reporting. He helped develop the guide, which is written in a question-and-answer format and includes answers to such questions as:

The 29-question guide also addresses how physicians can validate their data, appeal their assessment reports and much more.

Bagley pointed out that the AAFP is constantly working to ensure that health plans use measurement systems that are "fair, honest and reliable." But no system is perfect, he added.

In all likelihood, physician measurement and reporting programs are here to stay, said Bagley. "So rather than just rail against them, physicians should take the feedback the programs provide and use it to improve their practices."