The Brighton Health Plan regularly performs prospective UR for surgical procedures. Brighton’s prospective UR activities are likely to include
Adele Stanley, a member of the Greenhouse Health Plan, recently went to a network pharmacy to have a prescription filled. The pharmacist informed Ms. Stanley that the prescribed drug was not in the plan formulary and that reimbursement for the drug was not available except in extraordinary circumstances. The pharmacist asked Ms. Stanley if she would accept a generic substitute.
The paragraph below contains two pairs of terms enclosed in parentheses. Determine which term in each pair correctly completes the paragraph. Then select the answer choice containing the two terms that you have chosen.
Greenhouse’s prescription drug reimbursement policy indicates that the plan formulary is classified as (open / closed), and that compliance by patients and providers is (mandatory / voluntary).
Demetrius Farrell, age 82, is suffering from a terminal illness and has consulted his health plan about the care options available to him. In order to avoid unwanted, futile interventions, Mr. Farrell signed an advance directive that indicates the types of end-of-life medical treatment he wants to receive. His family is to use this document as a guide should Mr. Farrell become incapacitated.
The document that Mr. Farrell is using to communicate his end-of-life healthcare wishes to his family is known as a
Health plan performance measures include structure measures, process measures, and outcome measures. The following statements are about the characteristics of these three types of performance measures. Three of the statements are true and one is false. Select the answer choice containing the FALSE statement.
The paragraph below contains two pairs of terms or phrases enclosed in parentheses. Determine which term or phrase in each pair correctly completes the paragraph. Then select the answer choice containing the two terms or phrases that you have selected.
The process for collecting and analyzing data differs for quality assessment (QA) and quality improvement (QI). For QA, data collection focuses on (objective / both objective and subjective) data, and data analysis identifies the (degree / cause) of variance.
As a follow-up to a performance improvement plan for member services, the Stellar Health Plan conducted an evaluation of the success of the plan. Stellar conducted its evaluation as the plan was being carried out. The evaluation focused on specific activities and assessed the relative importance of those activities to the plan as a whole. This information indicates that Stellar’s evaluation of the plan was both
The case management team at the Hightower Health Plan reviewed the medical records of the following two plan members to determine the type of care each one needs and the most appropriate setting for that care:
Ira Morton was hospitalized for a severe stroke. Although his medical condition is stable, the stroke left him partially paralyzed and he will require extensive rehabilitation and 24-hour medical care.
Theresa Finley is recovering from a total hip replacement and is in need of short-term physical therapy and twice-weekly visits from a licensed nurse to check her blood pressure and the healing of her incision.
From the answer choices below, select the response that correctly identifies the level of care that would be most appropriate for Mr. Morton and Ms. Finley.
Elaine Newman suffered an acute asthma attack and was taken to a hospital emergency department for treatment. Because Ms. Newman’s condition had not improved enough following treatment to warrant immediate release, she was transferred to an observation care unit. Transferring Ms. Newman to the observation care unit most likely
Health plans arrange for the delivery of various levels of healthcare, including
1. Emergency care
2. Urgent care
3. Primary care delivered in a provider’s office
In a ranking of these levels of care according to cost, beginning with the least expensive level of care and ending with the most expensive level of care, the correct order would be
The following statement(s) can correctly be made about the use of screening for secondary prevention:
1. Screening activities may involve specialty care providers as well as primary care providers (PCPs) and the health plan
2. Secondary prevention often results in more utilization of services immediately following screening
3. Screening focuses on members who have not experienced any symptoms of a particular illness
DUR can be conducted prospectively, concurrently, or retrospectively. One true statement about prospective DUR is that it
The Westchester Health Plan classifies its key processes into the following categories: high-risk, high-volume, problem-prone, and high-cost. Westchester also prioritizes the categories in terms of importance. The process category that Westchester most likely ranks highest in importance is
In most health plans, the formulary system is developed and managed by a P&T committee. The P&T committee is responsible for
The following statements are about health plans’ use of electronic data interchange (EDI). Three of the statements are true and one is false. Select the answer choice containing the FALSE ALSE statement.
All states have laws describing the conditions under which pharmacists can substitute a generic drug for a brand-name drug. With respect to these laws, it is correct to say that in every state,
Adele Stanley, a member of the Greenhouse Health Plan, recently went to a network pharmacy to have a prescription filled. The pharmacist informed Ms. Stanley that the prescribed drug was not in the plan formulary and that reimbursement for the drug was not available except in extraordinary circumstances. The pharmacist asked Ms. Stanley if she would accept a generic substitute.
If Ms. Stanley agrees to the generic substitution, she will receive a drug that
The American Accreditation HealthCare Commission/URAC (URAC) has an accreditation program specifically for case management services. From the answer choices below, select the response that correctly identifies the type(s) of case management services addressed by URAC’s standards and the type(s) of organizations to which these standards may be applied.
Determine whether the following statement is true or false:
Under a carve-out arrangement for disease management, patients typically maintain their existing relationships with primary care providers (PCPs) for all care, including disease management.
Examples of alternative healthcare practitioners are chiropractors, naturopaths, and acupuncturists. The only well-established credentialing standards for alternative healthcare practitioners are those available from NCQA. These NCQA credentialing standards apply to
CMS has developed two prototype programs—Programs of All-inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE) and the Social Health Maintenance Organization (SHMO) demonstration project—to deliver healthcare services to Medicare beneficiaries. From the answer choices below, select the response that correctly identifies the features of these programs.
One of the steps in drug utilization review (DUR) is defining optimal drug use, which can be accomplished by applying diagnosis criteria and drug-specific criteria. Drug-specific criteria are standards that identify the
The paragraph below contains two pairs of terms or phrases enclosed in parentheses. Select the term or phrase in each pair that correctly completes the paragraph. Then select the answer choice containing the two terms or phrases you have chosen.
TRICARE enrollees have the right to challenge authorization and coverage decisions. Such challenges are referred to as (appeals / grievances) and are typically handled by the (TRICARE contractor / Area Field Office).
Various government and independent agencies have created tools to measure and report the quality of healthcare. One performance measurement tool that was developed by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) is
The nature of behavioral healthcare creates unique medical management challenges for health plans. One method health plans have used to support the delivery of appropriate services in a cost-effective manner is to
Determine whether the following statement is true or false:
The utilization review (UR) process produces the greatest number of case management referrals.
The following statements describe situations in which health plan members have medical problems that require care. Select the statement that describes a situation in which self-care most likely would not be appropriate.
The following statements are about medical management considerations for dental care. Select the answer choice containing the correct statement.
Many health plans use HRA to target their preventive care programs to the healthcare needs of their members. With regard to HRA, it is correct to say that
When conducting performance assessment, a health pln may classify the key processes associated with its services into the following categories: high-risk, high-volume, problem-prone, and high-cost.
The following statements are about this classification of processes. Three of the statements are true and one is false. Select the answer choice containing the FALSE statement.
Some health plans administer a questionnaire known as the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) as part of their health risk assessment (HRA) processes. The following statements are about the BRFSS. If statements (A) through (C) are all correct, select answer choice (D). Otherwise, select the one correct statement.
Home healthcare encompasses a wide variety of medical, social, and support services delivered at the homes of patients who are disabled, chronically ill, or terminally ill. The time period(s) when health plans typically use home healthcare include
1. The period prior to a hospital admission
2. The period following discharge from a hospital
In order to be effective, a clinical pathway must improve quality and decrease costs.
For this question, if answer choices (A) through (C) are all correct, select answer choice (D). Otherwise, select the one correct answer choice.
The QAPI (Quality Assessment Performance Improvement Program) is a Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services (CMS) initiative designed to strengthen health plans’ efforts to protect and improve the health and satisfaction of Medicare beneficiaries. QAPI quality assessment standards apply to
The following statements are about QAPI as it applies to Medicare+Choice plans and Medicaid health plan entities. Select the answer choice containing the correct statement.
In recent years, the demand for prescription drugs has increased dramatically. Factors that have contributed to this increase include
Health plans often use accreditation as a means of evaluating the quality of care delivered to plan members. Accreditation of subacute care providers is available from the
Health plans that offer healthcare programs for Medicare beneficiaries have a strong financial incentive for identifying high-risk seniors as early as possible. The identification of high-risk seniors is typically accomplished through the use of
The following statement(s) can correctly be made about the hospitalist approach to inpatient care management:
1. Management of inpatient care by hospitalists may significantly reduce the length of stay and the total costs of care for a hospital admission
2. Most health plans that use hospitalists do so through a voluntary hospitalist program
3. A hospitalist’s familiarity with utilization management (UM) and quality management (QM) standards for inpatient care may reduce unnecessary variations in care and improve clinical outcomes
The Mental Health Parity Act (MHPA) of 1996 is a federal law that establishes requirements for behavioral healthcare coverage for group plan members. The MHPA
Occasionally, employers combine workers’ compensation, group healthcare, and disability programs into an integrated product known as 24-hour coverage. One true statement about 24-hour coverage is that it typically
State governments serve as both regulators and purchasers of health plan services. The influence of state governments as purchasers is focused on
The paragraph below contains two pairs of phrases enclosed in parentheses. Select the phrase in each pair that correctly completes the paragraph. The select the answer choice containing the two phrases you have selected.
Calvin Montrose, age 75, has difficulty performing basic self-care activities, such as bathing, dressing, and eating, without assistance. This information indicates that Mr. Montrose needs assistance with (activities of daily living / instrumental activities of daily living) that are used to measure his (functional status / health status).
The following statements are about health plans’ development of medical policies. Three of the statements are true and one is false. Select the answer choice containing the FALSE statement.
Determine whether the following statement is true or false:
Participation in disease management programs is currently voluntary.