Mass. doctors agree to global payment

An independent physician organization in Massachusetts representing 1,800 doctors and Blue Cross Blue Shield (BCBS) of Massachusetts Inc. signed a multi-year contract that pays physicians with a modified global payment model designed to encourage cost-effective care rather than reward doctors for the quantity of the care they deliver to patients.

The physician organization that signed the Alternative Quality Contract (AQC) is Beth Israel Deaconess Physician Organization (BIDPO), which is affiliated with Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. The organization has 500 primary care physicians and 1,300 specialists and is the largest physician organization to join the AQC to date. The BIDPO network includes hospital and community-based physicians.

The AQC includes a global, or fixed, payment per patient adjusted for age, sex, and health status as well as payments tied to performance on nationally accepted measures of quality, health outcomes, and patient care experiences. The contract's global payment covers all services received by a patient, including primary, specialty, and hospital care.