CMS utilizes data to manage disparities in care

The Medicare Advantage managed care program suffers from racial and ethnic disparities in care, the CMS (Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services) appreciates in a newly released report.

In accordance to the report, African Americans and Hispanic beneficiaries had significantly more difficulty getting required care and making medical appointments than Whites, and African Americans had a tougher time getting prescriptions than Whites.

“While these information do not tell us why differences exist, they show where we have issues and can help spur efforts to understand what can be done to reduce or eliminate differences,” Cara James, PhD, director of the CMS Office of Minority Health, said in a statement.

The data comes from the Healthcare Effectiveness Data and Information Set of medical and administrative data on how well the requirements of Medicare beneficiaries are being met, as well as the Medicare Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems.