McKesson, HealthXQ Partner To Accelerate Value-Based Payments
By Christine Kern, contributing writer
The alliance will provide solutions to automate and scale complex bundled payment models.
As payers and providers struggle to master the complexity of bundled payment models, McKesson and HealthQX have announced an alliance that will provide solutions designed to accelerate value-based payments. The alliance will provide solutions to automate and scale complex bundled payment models.
“This is an industry-first, because it gives the industry access to an end-to-end bundled payment solution,” said Mark McAdoo, CEO of HealthQX. “Payers will be able to ensure the highest accuracy and timeliness of provider payments with a truly enterprise-class solution. We look forward to working with McKesson on our shared vision of helping the industry accelerate its transition to value.”
The partnership was announced at the Healthcare Financial Management Association’s yearly National Payment Innovation Summit in Memphis. The financial terms of the deal between McKesson and HealthQX were not disclosed, according to the Philadelphia Business Journal. Under the new arrangement, the pair will jointly market their products and manage consulting and services.
The announcement is perfectly timed, as the CMS implemented the final rule for its first mandatory bundled payment program just last month. Beginning in April, acute care hospitals in targeted regions will receive bundled payments for lower extremity joint replacements or reattachments, supporting the CMS goal of 30 percent of all reimbursements made via alterative payments in 2016 and 50 percent by 2018.
“Interest in bundled payment as a fats path to VBR has never been greater, and payers and providers alike need help getting started and scaling up,” explained Carolyn Wukitch, senior vice president of McKesson Health Solutions. “The power of our combined solutions will help customers with retrospective or prospective payment programs across the board, from the front-end analysis, where HealthQX is a leader, to automating and scaling operations within their claim workflow using McKesson’s innovative suite of value-based reimbursement solutions.”