Quantitative Data Analysis Projects

Featured Project:

Analysis of Case-Mix Growth

Client: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services,

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

In FY 2008, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) made changes to its Medicare severity diagnosis related group (MS-DRG) system for the inpatient prospective payment system (IPPS) and the Medicare severity long-term care hospital diagnosis related group (MS–LTC–DRG) system.

The purpose of this project is to estimate the observed change in national average case-mix between FY 2007 and FY 2008 and between FY 2008 and FY 2009 under the MS-DRG system, and determine what portion of that change is the result of documentation and coding improvements rather than a real increase in patient severity of illness. An additional objective of the study is to perform a separate analysis for Sole Community Hospitals (SCHs), Medicare Dependent Hospitals (MDHs), and Puerto Rico hospitals to see whether these hospitals, which are not fully subject to the documentation and coding adjustment, are experiencing significant increases in case-mix under the MS-DRG system. For long-term care hospitals (LTCHs), the goal is to develop an estimate of annual real case-mix growth, to estimate the observed change in case-mix in FY 2008 based on LTCH claims data, and to estimate the proportion that is a real increase versus an apparent increase.

Part C and Part D Payment Error Analysis / Payment Validation / MARx Payment Error Rates Support

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

IMPAQ is working for the fourth consecutive year with CMS to provide support in estimating components of payment error and improper payments in Medicare Part C and Part D; support payment validation and data integrity issues related to payments in these programs; and provide consultation and additional analyses regarding Part C and Part D payment error, including BPV and/or MARx payment error.

Examining the Relationship Between Alcohol Policies and Violence (CDC)

Client: Division of Violence Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Few public health issues have proved as challenging as the quest to determine whether government policies aimed at reducing alcohol consumption in the US would in turn reduce various types of violence that may result in injury or death. While there is strong documented association between alcohol use and violence, there is no strong evidence of a causal link between alcohol consumption and violence. Prior related studies have faced substantial challenges in compiling complete, valid, and reliable measures of the full range of policies and regulatory initiatives that may be implemented by States and other jurisdictions to reduce alcohol related violence and its costs. IMPAQ has contracted with the Division of Violence Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to develop an improved statistical approach for estimating this relationship, examining policies from multiple levels of government and multiple types of violence.

Evaluation of the Federal Contractor Selection System

Client: Center for Program Planning and Results of the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Administration and Management (OASAM), U.S. Department of Labor

The scope of this project is to evaluate the Federal Contractor Selection System (FCSS) used by the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) to identify federal contractors who do not comply with federal laws related to employee discrimination. There are four general goals under this project:

Evaluate the quality of the FCSS data used to identify non-compliant federal contractors
Identify employer characteristics and other factors available in the FCSS data that are strong indicators of non-compliance.
Evaluate the effectiveness of statistical models currently used to predict non-compliance.
Suggest improvements in the OFCCP contractor selection process.

To conduct this evaluation, IMPAQ will review the FCCS data and all documentation relevant to the data and the OFCCP selection process. IMPAQ will also conduct interviews with key OFCCP staff to assess the data collection practices, data quality, and OFCCP selection process. Using this information, IMPAQ will examine the quality of the FCSS data and identify factors that predict non-compliance among federal contractors. IMPAQ will also use rigorous quantitative techniques to evaluate the effectiveness of current statistical models to predict contractor non-compliance. The final deliverable will describe the findings of the evaluation, including suggestions for improving the OFCCP selection process.

Development of Medicare Part C, D, and Retirement Drug Subsidy (RDS) Error Rates

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

A risk assessment of Medicare Advantage (MA) payments conducted by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) found that the MA program was susceptible to improper payments exceeding $10 billion, with a 2.5 percent error rate. As a result, CMS contracted with IMPAQ to help identify the systems and processes that were causing these errors.

IMPAQ’s work on this project included two phases. In Phase I, IMPAQ developed a Medicare Part C, D and RDS Risk Assessment which included a payment system overview, a comprehensive identification of risks, a ranking of the risks identified, and a definition of a Part C Payment Errors. Phase II includes the development of a Measurement Methodology for selected Part C, D and Retirement Drug Subsidy (RDS) High Risk Areas.

Data Quality Review

Client: Millenium Challenge Fund – Georgia

The Millennium Challenge Corporation of the United States Government awarded a total of $395 million in grant funding to the Republic of Georgia between 2005 and 2008 to stimulate economic growth in the country. The objective of the Data Quality Review (DQR) project is to ensure that data collected for program monitoring and evaluation are of acceptable quality, reliability, and consistency. As part of the DQR, the IMPAQ team will assess the quality and

consistency of data across different Implementing Entities and other institutions engaged in survey data collection efforts. The IMPAQ team will report on key issues or problematic areas regarding data quality, as well as identify mitigation measures to correct the problems. This review will help to improve the overall effectiveness and efficiency of both the data collection and data analysis efforts for the development projects managed by the Millennium Challenge Fund team in Georgia.

Part C and Part D Payment Error Analysis

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

In accordance with the Improper Payments Information Act (IPIA) of 2002, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has undertaken an initiative to develop methodologies for estimating components of payment error and improper payments in Medicare Part C, Part D, and the Retiree Drug Subsidy (RDS) programs. IMPAQ is supporting this effort through: 1) the development of payment error rates for Medicare Part C and Part D prospective payment systems; 2) the identification of the error rates associated with erroneous external data, such as Low Income Subsidy status; 3) the development of a composite error rate; and 4) the provision of support for the monthly Beneficiary Payment Validation analyses and reports prepared by CMS.

Medicare Prescription Drug Benefit (Part D) Final Payment Process

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

As a subcontractor to StrategicHealthSolutions, IMPAQ provided a full range of statistical, analytical, audit, financial, formulary, and professional services to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to assist them in analyzing the Part D Payment Reconciliation results as determined by the Payment Reconciliation System (PRS). IMPAQ also supported the establishment and implementation of a process for determining final Medicare Part D Payments.