Managed Care and the Quest for Quality Measures

Abstract

models that a one-size-fits-all approach to performance measurement may not be feasible. The market for performance data is equally diverse. Employers of every shape and size, federal and state government purchasers, consumers, regulators, accrediting bodies, and policy makers all have a stake in holding managed care organizations accountable for their services. But for each of these constituents, the stakes are a little bit different. "It's a challenge for everyone. No single set of measures is going to meet everyone's needs completely," says Cary Sennett, M.D., Ph.D., vice president of performance measurement for the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA), a Washington, DC-based health plan accrediting body and one of the key players in the managed care performance measurement movement. MARY DARBY