The White House statement on medicare (wrong)

Patients our top priority
By Mark McClellanThu Mar 16, 6:39 AM ET

The Medicare program is taking unprecedented steps to improve quality and to support Americans in getting the best care at the lowest cost. We are providing the most important new benefits in Medicare's history, including drug coverage and preventive care. We are providing consumers with vital information on the quality of care at almost all of the nation's hospitals and nursing homes. We are taking steps to pay more for better care, not just more services.

The Institute of Medicine found that quality of care is improving. Still, more progress remains our top priority. Medicare's Quality Improvement Organization program is an important element of this effort to get the right care for every person, every time. QIOs are making a positive difference in such areas as preventing surgical infections and reducing the use of restraints in nursing homes.

But we agree that the program can be even better, and we have already taken steps to get more bang for the buck. The QIOs have increased efforts to help health care providers measure and improve their performance.

And to help make sure beneficiaries know about their ability to file complaints and get them addressed promptly, we have increased our outreach efforts through our publications and our website. We are engaged in an ambitious outreach campaign, have improved the service on our 1-800-MEDICARE toll-free phone line, and have established an ombudsman's office to assist people with Medicare-related problems.

The Institute recommended building on these efforts by having specific organizations specialize in handling complaints, and we will take steps to implement this to the maximum extent possible under the law.

Many of the recommendations require legislative changes and funding that are not currently available to us. So we look forward to continuing to work with Congress, health professionals, and our valued partners and stakeholders to make further progress in improving care for Medicare beneficiaries and all Americans.

Together, we can get more benefits from what the Institute refers to as "a potentially valuable nationwide infrastructure dedicated to promoting quality health care."

Mark McClellan is administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.

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