Home / Project Showcase / Applied Research Studies ProjectsView Printable Version
Project Showcase

Applied Research Studies Projects

Applied Research Studies Projects

Featured Project:  

Development of Performance Measures for

Medicare Part C and Part D Plan Providers

Client: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services,
            U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
 
IMPAQ  developed and implemented performance measurement systems for evaluating health plans providing services under the Medicare Advantage (Part C) and Prescription Drug (Part D) program in three areas directly impacting Medicare beneficiaries and their health plan choices:
  • Voluntary Disenrollment (for Part C & D providers)
  • Accessibility to Care (for Part C providers)
  • Complaints Closure (for Part C & D providers). 

For each of the three sets of performance measures, IMPAQ developed the measurement methodology and analysis approach, conducted a pilot test of draft measure results, conducted final analyses to develop the performance measures, and provided the final measurement results to CMS for distribution to CMS customers and stakeholders.

Development of a Medicare Advantage and Prescription Drug Plan Monitoring Methods

Client: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

The goal of this project is to develop methods and measures for monitoring Medicare Advantage Organizations’ (MAOs) and Prescription Drug Plan sponsors’ (Part D sponsors) performance for a variety of Medicare Part C and D program requirements. To accomplish these goals the IMPAQ team engages in the following tasks:

  • Conducting more than 100 interviews with CMS Subject Matter Experts
  • Extracting and analyzing data from CMS’ Health Plan Management System (HPMS) and other large administrative data sources (e.g., Prescription Drug Events, Transaction Reply Reports)
  • Calculating hundreds of parent organization/contract/PBP-level measures of MAO and Part D sponsor performance for CMS internal use
  • Developing secure web-based surveys and data collection portals for MAO and Part D sponsor to upload required data
  • Requesting and analyzing large datasets that CMS requires plans to maintain but does not require them to submit to CMS (e.g., rejected point-of-sale prescription claims, telephonic enrollment audio files, etc.)
  • Reporting recommendations for increasing MAO and Part D sponsors’ compliance with Medicare Parts C and D regulation.

Additional efforts include conducting gap analyses and developing measures of Part C and Part D sponsors’ administrative function using CMS administrative data.

Job Corps Evaluation

Client: Employment and Training Administration, U.S. Department of Labor

The purpose of this project is to determine the factors that contribute to or impede the successful operation of the U.S. Department of Labor’s Job Corps program.  Through an examination of Office of Job Corps structures and Job Corps Center characteristics and practices that have not previously been evaluated the IMPAQ team will analyze how particular Office of Job Corps structures (such as participant selection criteria, performance-based fees, staffing, and the current Performance Measurement System) affect Job Corps success. We will also evaluate Job Corps Center characteristics, including program components and organizational capacity, and practices that influence the success of the centers to achieve positive effects on their participants. Once factors, practices, and processes that contribute to the success of Job Corps have been identified recommendations for alternative approaches to measuring Job Corps Center performance will be presented.

Specific tasks being performed include:

  • Conducting interviews with Job Corps Management
  • Developing performance measures and ranking systems
  • Conducting site visits to Job Corps Centers
  • Analyzing administrative data
  • Administering a survey to directors of Job Corps Centers.

The final deliverable for this project is a Final Report summarizing the results of the analysis and providing appropriate recommendations to DOL.

Development of a Medicaid/CHIP Environmental Scanning and Program Characteristics (ESPC) Database

Client: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

For the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), IMPAQ is developing a Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) database containing program characteristics and State-specific environmental factors (i.e., population demographics, and health, environmental-air, water, etc., political, economic, and provider factors). Since these programs are State and Federal partnerships, there are many options open to States, which results in various program structures.  Therefore, the factors that impact enrollment, utilization, and spending vary by State.

Funded through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009, under this project the IMPAQ Team will develop a single database to support comparative effectiveness research (CER), and design the structure and reporting mechanisms so that it will be available to the research community in a format(s) that they can easily use.  Potential users of the database include researchers assessing CER and disseminating evidence based information and analysis to: 1) policy and decision makers in Federal and State agencies, 2) clinicians, 3) patients, 4) academia, and 5) consultants and contractors. 

No single source of data contains State/local variations containing program and environmental factors, particularly contextual variables to use for multivariate analysis.  This database will serve as a vital tool in understanding Medicaid and CHIP trends within a State, as well as allowing comparisons across States. It will also provide an opportunity to continue developing, enhancing, and complementing the current Medicaid Analytic eXtract (MAX) data for CER research.

Development of Medicare Advantage and Prescription Drug Plan Performance Measures   

Client: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services 

IMPAQ is collaborating with CMS on a broad effort to review and analyze the CMS’ Medicare Advantage (Part C) and Prescription Drug (Part D) programs for approaches to monitor sponsors and to develop monitoring methods for selected approaches.  The methods and measures selected within this contract will monitor the administration of more than 630 contracts with MA-PD/Cost Plan sponsors and 89 contracts with PDP sponsors for CY2010.  There are several primary tasks/areas for analysis in the project which include:

  • Providing a Part C and Part D monitoring gap analysis
  • Developing a sustainable monitoring method and measures of administrative function for Part C and Part D Sponsors
  • Developing a sustainable monitoring method and measures that ensure that marketing materials and beneficiary communications are available to beneficiaries in the required languages consistent with the CMS Marketing Guidelines
  • Developing a sustainable monitoring method and measures to help ensure beneficiary provider access in the Part C program
  • Developing a sustainable monitoring method and measures of benefits and out of pocket coverage for Part C benefits.

A critical component of each task is “knowledge transfer” regarding all datasets and documented procedures and programs.

Part C and D Complaints Resolution Performance Measure

Client: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

Following on previous work developed by IMPAQ for CMS, we will develop and support implementation of a performance measurement for the Medicare Advantage (Part C) and Prescription Drug (Part D) program that validates plan resolution of beneficiary complaints closed by plans from the unique perspective of the beneficiaries themselves. CMS expects to publish a performance metrics using this data in November 2011. Key activities include analysis of administrative data, a beneficiary survey, and measure development.

Evaluation of Performance of Medicare Part D Organizations' Business Logic for Performance Metrics and Composite Scoring Report Card

Client:  Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
 
IMPAQ International is currently developing and implementing a “report card” which evaluates Medicare Part D drug benefit providers’ performance.  This report card is designed to assist consumers in making an informed choice when selecting a provider for their drug benefit plan.  To develop the report card, IMPAQ developed sophisticated business logic and measurement models using Part D plan sponsor performance data, defined and assigned ratings at the individual measure and domain levels, and developed an overall Part D composite score to evaluate plan performance.  The Part D Report Card results have been posted on the CMS website for use by beneficiaries.
 

National Balancing Indicator Contractor (NBIC) To Conduct Research, Development, amd Technical Assistance on Long-Term Support System Balancing Indicators

Client:  Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
 
IMPAQ is currently developing a set of national indicators to assess states’ efforts to balance their long-term support system between institutional and community-based supports, including the characteristics associated with improved quality of life for individuals.  As part of this project, IMPAQ conducted a literature review to identify current indicators in use or under development, consulted with stakeholders to obtain their perspective on the measures to be included in the set of indicators, developed and tested a set of National Balancing Indicators with states, and supported the development of state data systems to measure the indicators in a consistent fashion.
 

Design, Development, and Implementation Support for the Demonstration Project In Community Health Integration Models in Certain Rural Counties

Client: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

During this contract IMPAQ and its subcontractors, NORC and Eide Bailly, will assist CMS in its exploration of new models for the delivery of health services to improve access to care and to better integrate the delivery of acute care, extended care, and other essential health care services in frontier counties.  The initial phase of this contract will include coordination with the HRSA grantee, Montana Health Education and Research Foundation, to identify problems that contribute to the low level of health care in frontier counties.  This problem assessment task will include a literature review, secondary data analysis, and structured interviews.  After identifying the key problems, IMPAQ will identify solutions to the problems. After CMS reviews the problems and solutions, IMPAQ will design and implement a demonstration based upon the solutions selected by CMS.  During the implementation of the demonstration, IMPAQ will assist CMS with the solicitation efforts, the review of applicants, and the estimation of the waiver costs and will provide implementation technical assistance to the demonstration participants.

Data Review and Guidance Development for Medicare Special Needs Plans and a Quality Improvement Program for Medicare Advantage

Client:  Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

In this task order, IMPAQ is reviewing and evaluating data currently collected by CMS through its oversight activities for the Medicare Advantage (MA) and Special Needs Plans (SNPs) and is helping CMS develop policy guidance on quality oversight and improvement for these programs.  The task order will increase CMS’s ability to understand quality improvement and care coordination strategies currently being undertaken by MA plans, particularly the Quality Improvement Program (QIP) and Chronic Care Improvement Program (CCIP), and to provide guidance to plans on best practices. Among the set of deliverables is a framework upon which CMS guidance under the MA QIP and CCIP authority will be updated.  The specific tasks include:

  • Evaluation and review of audit data to assure appropriate enrollment in Chronic Condition SNPs (C-SNPs);
  • Review and analyze SNP audit data and performance data (e.g. member satisfaction, health status, clinical outcomes);
  • Assist with the development of manual chapters on SNP issues and SNP specific Standard Operating Procedures (SOP); and
  • Data analysis, reporting, trending, and identifying quality improvement processes across the Medicare Advantage program.

In the task order, we will also establish and test a pilot project using beneficiary encounter data for MA and SNP program evaluation and monitoring and identify Value Based Purchasing best practices and strategy recommendations for MA plans.

Evaluation of the Unemployment Insurance Benefits Program

Client: Employment and Training Administration, U.S. Department of Labor 
 
The study of the Unemployment Insurance (UI) Benefits Study, conducted for the U.S. Department of Labor, was designed to develop empirical information on the effectiveness of the UI system.  Using UI claims and wage records collected from 17 states and other related data, the project produced an extensive series of papers related to the effectiveness of UI, the characteristics and trends in UI recipiency, and the assessment of UI as a macro-economic stabilizer. 

A second major task for this project involved conducting a congressionally mandated evaluation of the Reemployment and Eligibility (REA) Initiative.   This study, which supported the expansion of funding for REA, assessed the impact of REA services on reemployment of UI claimants and cost-savings for state UI trust funds.  In addition, the project provided extensive technical assistance to 21 grantee states.   Working closely with state personnel, the project assisted states in responding to USDOL data reporting requirements and in establishing state-centric research designs, including rigorous procedures for randomly assigning UI claimants.   

National Business Group on Health’s Purchaser's Guide Evaluation: 

Feasibility and Methodology Study

Client:  Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
 
The purpose of this project is to design and conduct a feasibility study to inform future evaluations of the National Business Group on Health’s (NBGH) publication, A Purchaser’s Guide to Clinical Preventive Services: Moving Science into Coverage.  The feasibility study includes the following activities:
  • Refinement of an existing conceptual framework on the impact and effects of the use of the Guide on health and productivity outcomes
  • The development of research questions and the identification of potential data sources to address them§          Development of an evaluation design and methodology.
  • The conduct of a pilot test for data acquisition and analysis to address selected research questions.
The results of this feasibility study will be used to support the design and implementation of an anticipated future, broader study of the impact of the Purchaser’s Guide.

Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) Services

Client:  Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
 
The purpose of this project is to obtain, synthesize, and disseminate information about available services and supports for individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASDs) and their families.  For this project, IMPAQ is:
  • Conducting a comprehensive environmental scan of the research literature related to evidence-based services and supports available to individuals with ASDs
  • Performing an assessment of the services currently being provided by nine states to individuals with ASDs
  • Designing model programs of services and supports for children, transitioning youth, and adults with ASDs, including methods for measuring related processes and outcomes
  • Developing and implementing a web-based ASDs information portal.
The results of this study will be disseminated to states throughout the country to help improve the programs and supports provided to individuals with ASDs.
 
Click here to read the Autism Spectrum Disorders Services (ASDs): Final Report on Environmental Scan.