2019 Policy and Advocacy Agenda

The Patient-Centered Primary Care Collaborative (PCPCC) engages in team-based advocacy around policy and practice changes that promote robust primary care to achieve the quadruple aim. Our policy strategy is focused on increased investment in primary care through alternative payment models that enable PCMHs and other types of advanced primary care to provide integrated, higher-value care that connects to the community.

Evidence demonstrates – and our Executive Members and Supporters believe – that comprehensive primary care is a high-value intervention that transforms our health care system. We work to empower patients through increased access to advanced primary care, and we support clinicians by encouraging team-based care and by empowering them to deliver the care that patients need and desire. While we engage in a variety of issues, PCPCC’s current policy focus is on allocating the resources needed to achieve advanced primary care and ensuring patient access to such care. More specifically:

Investment in High-Value Primary Care that Improves Outcomes and Prevents Avoidable Costs

Promote a standardized way to measure and report primary care spending as a percentage of overall spend
Collect and disseminate evidence on the impact of adequately resourced primary care models
Make the case for investment in high-value primary care alternative payment models that ensure support for comprehensive, coordinated, team-based primary care with proven results

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Support Payer and Purchaser Innovations that Promote Access to Primary Care

Shape the legislative/regulatory environment for value-based models to ensure that access to high-value primary care is core to benefit design. (Recent studies show a decline in patient use of such care – perhaps due to financial barriers.)
Collect and disseminate evidence linking access to high-performing primary care to improvements in health, affordability, and workforce outcomes
Promote the selection of a primary care provider at enrollment, the removal of financial barriers to primary care through the reduction of copayments and deductibles for high-value primary care services, and access to Patient-Centered Medical Homes

Primary Care Investment Workshop

Slides and Recap of PCPCC's Nov 9, 2018 Workshop on Primary Care Investment

In addition to these two advocacy-related focus areas, PCPCC will continue to convene thought leaders, develop programming, and educate in areas core to its work of strengthening advanced primary care models, including practice-level behavioral health integration, team-based and collaborative care, and patient and family engagement.

Learn more about these efforts as they develop at www.pcpcc.org or reach out the Chris Adamec, Director of Policy at [email protected].

PCPCC has long led the effort to transform primary care into a more integrated, team-based model – captured through the Patient-Centered Medical Home (PCMH). While these models are becoming widely adopted, they rarely have enough resources nor the flexibility in payment structure to meet the goals laid out by the Shared Principles of Primary Care. As shown in PCPCC’s Primary Care Innovations Map, there are exciting demonstrations, plans, and regions that are exceptions to this rule, but clinicians, on a national level, continue to struggle to realize the vision for primary care embodied in the Shared Principles.

PCPCC's Public Policy Statements

PCPCC and Others Call on Congress to Address Patient Matching in 2020 Appropriations Bills

June 4, 2019

PCPCC and Others Support CMS Proposal For Information Sharing With Community Practitioners

June 3, 2019

PCPCC Joins Other Stakeholders in Commenting on Pediatric EHRs

June 3, 2019

Geographic Population-Based Payment (PBP) Model Option Request for Information (RFI)

May 30, 2019

Advocacy Topics

For the latest news, resources, and related content on current critical public policy issues, click on the topics below (additional topics are added as legislative/regulatory action progresses).

Medicare Access & CHIP Reauthorization Act (MACRA)

Care Delivery & Integration

Patients/Consumers & Family/Caregivers

Comprehensive Primary Care (CPC) & CPC+

Payment Reform

State Legislative Activity Tracker

Recent Policy and Advocacy Activity

June 24, 2019

Included in the White House Executive Order on Healthcare Transparency was a provision directing HHS to issue guidance allowing high-deductible health plans to cover preventive care before the deductible – particularly for individuals with chronic conditions. PCPCC has advocated for greater flexibility in pre-deductible coverage, as it would improve access to high-value primary care for the many individuals covered by high-deductible health plans. The order also included a provision potentially allowing direct primary care arrangements to be funded by Health Savings Accounts.

June 20, 2019

As part of a broad group of organizations under the Friends of NQF, PCPCC applauds Congress for the introduction of HR 3031 to continue federal funding for the National Quality Forum. The group also encourages several key changes to the bill to enhance NQF's work, namely increasing public transparency and accountability, advancing reforms to reduce administrative burden and increase alignment, and encouraging innovation in measurement to advance national health priorities.

June 7, 2019

Maine passed "An Act To Establish Transparency in Primary Health Care Spending." The Law will require reporting to the Department of Health and Human Services and the Legislature on the percentage of total medical expenditures paid for primary care by commercial insurers, the MaineCare program, Medicare, the organization that administers health insurance for state employees and others. This bill also requires the Maine Quality Forum to conduct a study on best practices in health care spending reporting and submit its findings to the Department of Health and Human Services and the Joint Standing Committee on Health and Human Services.

June 4, 2019

A broad group of organizations, including PCPCC, called on Congress to include language that seeks to end patient safety issues related to patient matching in FY2020 Appropriations Bills. On July 11, many of the same organizations came together to support an amendment striking Section 510 of the Labor-HHS Appropriations bill which currently prohibits the US Department of Health and Human Services from spending any federal dollars to promulgate or adopt a national patient identifier.

PCPCC Resources

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Advocacy and Policy