CMS Launches Consolidated Care Compare Site

In September, CMS launched an updated Care Compare site — a streamlined redesign of eight existing tools that provide the public with information on quality metrics for physicians, hospitals and other providers. CMS advertises the new site as a “single user-friendly interface that patients and caregivers can use to make informed decisions about health care based on cost, quality of care, volume of services, and other data.” CMS also announced several improvements to the Procedure Price Lookup tool — including adding physician fees in addition to facility fees — to give Medicare beneficiaries a more accurate prediction of out-of-pocket costs. Finally, the agency updated the Provider Data Catalog, which will allow researchers to access and analyze publicly reported data more easily.

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