Apply Now For New Technical Assistance Offering: All-Payer Claims Database Workshop

The National Association of Health Data Organizations (NAHDO), The Regional All-Payer Healthcare Information Council (RAPHIC) and State Coverage Initiatives (SCI) will be hosting a workshop on the topic of All-Payer Claims Databases (APCDs). The workshop will take place from 1:30 p.m. on Thursday, October 14 through 2:00 p.m. on Friday, October 15 in conjunction with NAHDO’s Annual Conference.The three organizations are requesting that states interested in attending the workshop submit a brief application. Because we want to offer an in-depth experience for participating states, we are planning to limit the workshop to teams of up to four members from up to twelve states. For those states selected, expenses for travel, hotel, and the workshop will be covered.

 

During the afternoon sessions on Thursday October 14, general APCD topics will be highlighted.  Speakers will give a general overview on the status APCDs, including recent developments. They will discuss current uses for APCDs. In addition, a stakeholder panel will discuss what APCDs have to offer businesses, consumers, researchers and public policymakers. This session will be opened to a broader audience following the general NAHDO conference. (Note: The scholarship will not cover the cost of registration for the NAHDO meeting.) On Friday, October 15, the workshop – which will include more hands-on planning and state-specific technical assistance – will be open only to the selected state teams. Applications are due August 20, 2010. They can be sent to sci@academyhealth.org.

 

The workshop is designed to bring together teams of senior state officials who plan to work to make an APCD a success in their state. The workshop will have two tracks. Track One will be for states with serious intent to seek legislation to develop an APCD. Track Two will be for states that have already enacted legislation to implement an APCD.

 

The topics covered in Track One will include financing of APCDs, models of governance and assistance in developing a legislative strategy. Track Two will help states build a stronger connection between data experts and policymakers with the goal of achieving increased and better utilization of existing APCDs. Both tracks will participate in a session designed to help states link their APCD with other reform efforts, including health information exchange. The workshop will also include time for state teams to meet with APCD experts. The experts will be able to help state officials develop plans for accomplishing their state-specific goals.

 

The workshop structure described above is being used in order to ensure that key officials from each state make real progress on their APCD plans. It is designed to be small (to promote interaction and allow for discussion and cross-state learning) and participatory (states will be actively working on their own state plans rather than just absorbing information from outside experts).

 

Each state team should include a representative from up to four of the following positions:

1)     An individual who has primary responsibility for managing the APCD data;

2)     A senior Medicaid official (preferably the Medicaid Director);

3)     A senior official from the insurance agency (or someone who has primary responsibility for integrating the APCD with private plans);

4)     An individual who has primary responsibility for transparency efforts and integration with consumers;

5)     A political representative (either someone from the Governor’s office or a legislative leader); and

6)     An APCD/health reform champion (e.g., a business leader, commission chair, or user).

 

We are asking each state to submit a brief three-page application that includes the following:

 

1)     A list of the proposed team members and why they are being included; and

2)     Depending on your interest in Track One or Track Two:

a.      For Track One:

§         Current level of interest in an APCD, including interest among high-level officials;

§         Political feasibility of passing legislation, including support from key stakeholders and legislative leaders;

§         Primary goals for your APCD once enacted; and

§         How you plan to use the meeting to bring key officials together to overcome challenges to passage and to plan a strategy for enacting APCD legislation.

b.      For Track Two:

§         Current status of the APCD in your state (what you have already accomplished);

§         Primary goals for your APCD over the next 2-3 years; and

§         Challenges you have faced to date and how you plan to use the meeting to overcome these and further your goals.

 

States will be selected on the basis of: 1) the quality of the team they identify; 2) their readiness to implement an APCD or to make better use of an existing one; and 3) whether valuable progress can be made at the workshop on the goals and challenges the state has identified.

 

 

 

The National Association of Health Data Organizations (NAHDO) is a national, not-for-profit membership and educational organization dedicated to improving health care through the collection, analysis, dissemination, public availability, and use of health data. Established in 1986, NAHDO has consistently worked with health data organizations and key stakeholders to expand the number of statewide health data reporting programs and improve the data these programs collect. 

 

In 2006, the Regional All-Payer Healthcare Information Council (RAPHIC) was formed. The initial goal of this group was to be a convening organization for 3 New England States—Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont—to establish standards for data collection and release for the development of a regional all-payer claims database for the Northern New England region. Since then, RAPHIC’s membership has grown to include states across the country, and expanded to include not only state agencies, but other industry stakeholders. RAPHIC is convened by staff members of the NH Institute for Health Policy and Practice (NHIHPP) at the University of New Hampshire (UNH).

 

The NAHDO/RAPHIC team has actively participated in monthly RAPHIC network calls, planning and conducting APCD conferences, and in the provision of technical assistance to states.