Coordinated Care to Improve Quality of Care for Chronically Ill Medicare Beneficiaries - Iowa

This demonstration tests whether coordinated care programs can improve medical treatment plans, reduce avoidable hospital admissions, and promote other desirable outcomes among beneficiaries who constitute a small proportion of the Medicare fee-for-service (FFS) population, but who account for a major proportion of Medicare expenditures. Iowa was one of 15 sites selected as part of the Medicare Coordinated Care demonstration project to provide case management and disease management services to Medicare FFS beneficiaries with complex chronic conditions. This project will allow CMS to test a wide range of programs aimed at reducing costs and increasing quality of care for chronically ill Medicare FFS beneficiaries. The Balanced Budget Act of 1997 requires that the projects focus on chronically ill Medicare FFS beneficiaries who are eligible for both Medicare Part A and Part B and requires that the projects' payment methodology be budget neutral.