Quality partnership tapped to consult on state quality and cost reporting initiative

A nonprofit research group best known for reporting on clinical quality and the patient experience in doctors' offices is joining a state effort to compare healthcare quality and cost across multiple healthcare settings.

Massachusetts Health Quality Partners said today it has won a three-year contract to be the analytic consultant to the Massachusetts Health Care Quality and Cost Council to publish comparative cost and quality information on the state’s website. Future funding for the project depends on the state budget, but this year's amount is $299,932. The council, a semi-independent state agency created by the 2006 Massachusetts healthcare law, launched a site in December to help consumers compare hospital quality and cost.

Mass. Health Quality Partners will work with Milliman Inc., a consulting firm based in Seattle. Milliman will provide expertise on cost and the Massachusetts partnership will bring its experience in choosing, evaluating, and reporting quality measures, in line with standards set by the National Quality Forum.

Mass. Health Quality Partners is a collaboration of physicians, hospitals, health insurers, consumers, government agencies, and academics. In addition to gathering information on medical groups and doctor's offices, the partnership has also studied quality in acute-care hospitals, deploying community-wide electronic health record systems, and ways to improve care for people with diabetes.