Washington § 41.05.690 - Performance measures committee — Membership — Selection of performance measures — Benchmarks for purchasing decisions — Public process for evaluation of measures.

(1) There is created a performance measures committee, the purpose of which is to identify and recommend standard statewide measures of health performance to inform public and private health care purchasers and to propose benchmarks to track costs and improvements in health outcomes.

(2) Members of the committee must include representation from state agencies, small and large employers, health plans, patient groups, federally recognized tribes, consumers, academic experts on health care measurement, hospitals, physicians, and other providers. The governor shall appoint the members of the committee, except that a statewide association representing hospitals may appoint a member representing hospitals, and a statewide association representing physicians may appoint a member representing physicians. The governor shall ensure that members represent diverse geographic locations and both rural and urban communities. The chief executive officer of the lead organization must also serve on the committee. The committee must be chaired by the director of the authority.

(3) The committee shall develop a transparent process for selecting performance measures, and the process must include opportunities for public comment.

(4) By January 1, 2015, the committee shall submit the performance measures to the authority. The measures must include dimensions of:

(a) Prevention and screening;

(b) Effective management of chronic conditions;

(c) Key health outcomes;

(d) Care coordination and patient safety; and

(e) Use of the lowest cost, highest quality care for preventive care and acute and chronic conditions.

(5) The committee shall develop a measure set that:

(a) Is of manageable size;

(b) Is based on readily available claims and clinical data;

(c) Gives preference to nationally reported measures and, where nationally reported measures may not be appropriate, measures used by state agencies that purchase health care or commercial health plans;

(d) Focuses on the overall performance of the system, including outcomes and total cost;

(e) Is aligned with the governor's performance management system measures and common measure requirements specific to medicaid delivery systems under RCW 70.320.020 and 71.24.435;

(f) Considers the needs of different stakeholders and the populations served; and

(g) Is usable by multiple payers, providers, hospitals, purchasers, public health, and communities as part of health improvement, care improvement, provider payment systems, benefit design, and administrative simplification for providers and hospitals.

(6) State agencies shall use the measure set developed under this section to inform and set benchmarks for purchasing decisions.

(7) The committee shall establish a public process to periodically evaluate the measure set and make additions or changes to the measure set as needed.

Effective date—2019 c 325: See note following RCW 71.24.011.

Finding—2014 c 223: "(1) The legislature finds that the state of Washington has an opportunity to transform its health care delivery system.

(2) The state health care innovation plan establishes the following primary drivers of health transformation, each with individual key actions that are necessary to achieve the objective:

(a) Improve health overall by stressing prevention and early detection of disease and integration of behavioral health;

(b) Developing linkages between the health care delivery system and community; and

(c) Supporting regional collaboratives for communities and populations, improve health care quality, and lower costs." [ 2014 c 223 s 1.]