Posts Tagged authorization

STUDY: Prior Authorization Hurdles Have Led to Serious Adverse Events

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STUDY: Prior Authorization Hurdles Have Led to Serious Adverse Events

FEB 5, 2019 CHICAGO — More than one-quarter of physicians surveyed, about 28 percent, report the prior authorization process required by health insurers for certain drugs, tests and treatments have led to serious or life-threatening events for their patients, according to new survey results released by the American Medical Association.

The AMA survey of 1,000 practicing physicians found that prior authorization continues to have a distressing impact on both patients and physician practices. Despite widespread calls for meaningful reform during the last two years, the survey illustrates that prior authorization programs and existing processes remain costly, inefficient, opaque, and hazardous in some cases.“The AMA survey continues to illustrate that poorly designed, opaque prior authorization programs can pose an unreasonable and costly administrative obstacle to patient-centered care,” said AMA Chair Jack Resneck, Jr., M.D. “The time is now for insurance companies to work with physicians, not against us, to improve and streamline the prior authorization process so that patients are ensured timely access to the evidence-based, quality health care they need.”

Critical physician concerns highlighted in the AMA survey include:

  • More than nine in 10 physicians (91 percent) say that prior authorizations programs have a negative impact on patient clinical outcomes.
  • Nearly two-thirds of physicians (65 percent) report waiting at least one business day for prior authorization decisions from insurers – and more than one-quarter (26 percent) said they wait three business days or longer.
  • More than nine in 10 physicians (91 percent) said that the prior authorization process delays patient access to necessary care, and three-quarters of physicians (75 percent) report that prior authorization can at least sometimes lead to patients abandoning a recommended course of treatment.
  • A significant majority of physicians (86 percent) said the burdens associated with prior authorization were high or extremely high, and a clear majority of physicians (88 percent) believe burdens associated with prior authorization have increased during the past five years.
  • Every week a medical practice completes an average of 31 prior authorization requirements per physician, which take the equivalent of nearly two business days (14.9 hours) of physician and staff time to complete.
  • To keep up with the administrative burden, more than a third of physicians (36 percent) employ staff members who work exclusively on tasks associated with prior authorization.

“The AMA is committed to attacking the dysfunction in health care by removing the obstacles and burdens that interfere with patient care,” said Dr. Resneck. “To make the patient-physician relationship more valued than paperwork, the AMA has taken a leading role by creating collaborative solutions to right-size and streamline prior authorization and help patients access safe, timely, and affordable care, while reducing administrative burdens that pull physicians away from patient care.”

In January 2017, the AMA with 16 other associations urged industry-wide improvements in prior authorization programs to align with a newly created set of 21 principles intended to ensure that patients receive timely and medically necessary care and medications and reduce the administrative burdens. More than 100 other health care organizations have supported those principles.

In January 2018, the AMA joined the American Hospital Association, America’s Health Insurance Plans, American Pharmacists Association, Blue Cross Blue Shield Association and Medical Group Management Association in a Consensus Statement outlining a shared commitment to industry-wide improvements to prior authorization processes and patient-centered care.

The AMA welcomes the opportunity to work collaboratively with health plans and others to create a partnership that lays the foundation for a more transparent, efficient, fair, and appropriately targeted prior authorization process. Please visit the AMA website to learn more about the organization’s ongoing collaborative efforts.

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Association’s Board to Evaluate Prior Authorization Process

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Association’s Board to Evaluate Prior Authorization Process

The Medical Association recently received information from a consortium of health care providers, which included the American Hospital Association, America’s Health Insurance Plans, the American Medical Association, the American Public Health Association, Blue Cross Blue Shield Association and the Medical Group Management Association, who have partnered to identify opportunities to improve the prior authorization process. The Board of Censors during its last meeting tasked the Council on Medical Services to further investigate the consortium’s report.

The consortium’s goals are to promote safe, timely and affordable access to evidence-based care for patients; enhance efficiency; and reduce administrative burdens. However, according to a 2012 Kaiser Family Foundation estimate, physicians spend 868.4 million hours annually on prior authorizations. In a 2011 study by Health Affairs, the average annual per-doctor cost of interacting with insurance plans to complete prior authorizations was about $83,000.

The consortium has targeted five areas that offer improvement in prior authorization programs that can bring meaningful reform:

  • Selective application of prior authorizations
  • Prior authorization program review and volume adjustment
  • Transparency and communication regarding prior authorization
  • Continuity of patient care
  • Automation to improve transparency and efficiency

Once the Council on Medical Services concludes its investigation, more information will be available.

Read the Consensus Statement on Improving the Prior Authorization Process from the consortium.

Read the Medical Association’s feature article from Alabama Medicine Magazine, Between Doctors & Patients: Prior Authorizations

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Medical Association Joins Coalition for PA Reform

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Medical Association Joins Coalition for PA Reform

Responding to unreasonable hurdles for patients seeking care, the Medical Association has joined a coalition including the American Medical Association and 16 other health care organizations urging health plans, benefit managers and others to reform prior authorization requirements imposed on medical tests, procedures, devices and drugs.

The coalition, which represents hospitals, medical groups, patients, pharmacists and physicians, says that requiring pre-approval by insurers before patients can get certain drugs or treatments can delay or interrupt medical services, divert significant resources from patient care and complicate medical decisions. Concerns that aggressive prior authorization programs place cost savings ahead of optimal care have led Delaware, Ohio and Virginia to recently join other states in passing strong patient protection legislation.

Given the potential barriers that prior authorization can pose to patient-centered care, the coalition is urging an industry-wide reassessment of these programs to align with a newly created set of 21 principles. Prior authorization programs could be improved by applying the principles’ common-sense concepts grouped in five broad categories:

  • Clinical validity,
  • Continuity of care,
  • Transparency and fairness,
  • Timely access and administrative efficiency, and
  • Alternatives and exemptions.

“Strict or bureaucratic oversight programs for drug or medical treatments have delayed access to necessary care, wasted limited health care resources and antagonized patients and physicians alike,” said AMA President Andrew W. Gurman, M.D. “The AMA joins the other coalition organizations in urging health insurers and others to apply the reform principles and streamline requirements, lengthy assessments and inconsistent rules in current prior authorization programs.”

The data entry and administrative tasks associated with prior authorization reduce time available for patients. According to a new AMA survey, every week a medical practice completes an average of 37 prior authorization requirements per physician, which takes a physician and their staff an average of 16 hours, or the equivalent of two business days, to process.

The AMA survey illustrates that physician concerns with the undue burdens of pre-authorizing medical care have reached a critical level. Highlights from the AMA survey include:

  • Seventy-five percent of surveyed physicians described prior authorization burdens as high or extremely high.
  • More than a third of surveyed physicians reported having staff who work exclusively on prior authorization.
  • Nearly 60 percent of surveyed physicians reported that their practices wait, on average, at least 1 business day for prior authorization decisions —and more than 25 percent of physicians said they wait 3 business days or longer.
  • Nearly 90 percent of surveyed physicians reported that prior authorization sometimes, often, or always delays access to care.

The AMA survey findings indicate there is a real opportunity to improve the patient experience while significantly reducing administrative burdens for both payers and physicians by reforming prior authorization and utilization management programs.

See also Medical Association Joins Call to CMS to Delay EHR Certification Requirements and Medical Association Urges CMS to Reduce EHR and MU Burden on Physicians

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Physicians Call for Prior Authorization Reform

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Physicians Call for Prior Authorization Reform

The Medical Association has joined a coalition of physicians’ groups, hospitals, medical groups, pharmacists and other health care organizations to urge health plans, benefit managers and other groups to reform prior authorization requirements imposed on medical tests, procedures, devices and medications. The coalition is responding to what has been deemed unreasonable hurdles for patients seeking care and argue that requiring pre-approval by insurers before certain treatments can delay or interrupt medical services, divert significant resources from patient care and complicate medical decisions.

Given the potential barriers prior authorizations can pose to patient-centered care, the coalition is urging an industry-wide reassessment of these programs to align with a newly created set of 21 principles. Prior authorization programs could be improved by applying the principles’ common-sense concepts grouped in five broad categories:

  • Clinical validity,
  • Continuity of care,
  • Transparency and fairness,
  • Timely access and administrative efficiency, and
  • Alternatives and exemptions.

“Strict or bureaucratic oversight programs for drug or medical treatments have delayed access to necessary care, wasted limited health care resources and antagonized patients and physicians alike,” said AMA President Andrew W. Gurman, M.D. “The AMA joins the other coalition organizations in urging health insurers and others to apply the reform principles and streamline requirements, lengthy assessments and inconsistent rules in current prior authorization programs.”

The data entry and administrative tasks associated with prior authorization reduce time available for patients. According to a new AMA survey, every week a medical practice completes an average of 37 prior authorization requirements per physician, which takes a physician and their staff an average of 16 hours, or the equivalent of two business days, to process.

The AMA survey illustrates that physician concerns with the undue burdens of preauthorizing medical care have reached a critical level. Highlights from the AMA survey include:

  • Seventy-five percent of surveyed physicians described prior authorization burdens as high or extremely high.
  • More than a third of surveyed physicians reported having staff who work exclusively on prior authorization.
  • Nearly 60 percent of surveyed physicians reported that their practices wait, on average, at least one business day for prior authorization decisions—and  more than 25 percent of physicians said they wait 3 business days or longer.
  • Nearly 90 percent of surveyed physicians reported that prior authorization sometimes, often, or always delays access to care.

For specialists like Montgomery oncologist Stephen Davidson, M.D., at the Montgomery Cancer Center, issues with PAs can begin when the patient checks in for the first appointment.

“There are days when I have patients who are scheduled to see me as new patients. They are at the front door. They have something that brought them here that has also emotionally disturbed them greatly. If their PA is not in place, they can’t so much as walk down the hall to see me,” Dr. Davidson said. “This happens…constantly.”

Dr. Davidson and his team see an average of 60 patients each day. During that time, he and his treatment team are also securing PAs for patients for imaging and medicine. Rarely are cancer medications generic, making them very expensive, so PAs must be secured for monthly refills, taking even more time away from patient care.

“It has become a tremendous burden,” Dr. Davidson said. “Somewhere along the way the burden of proof shifted from the insurance company to the physician. Traditionally there has been a respect for a physician’s judgment and decision making on behalf of the patient. That’s a very special and sacred relationship. Now, because of a number of factors, primarily economic, we have insurance companies that don’t respect the physician’s authority in the decision-making process.”

Read more about what Dr. Davidson and Lee Carter, M.D., of Autaugaville had to say about PAs in our article from Alabama Medicine magazine, Between Doctors & Physicians: Prior Authorizations.

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Between Doctors & Patients: Prior Authorizations

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Between Doctors & Patients: Prior Authorizations

Physicians face various regulatory and administrative hurdles in a day, but few are as frustrating, or as expensive, as prior authorizations, or PAs. Commercial insurance companies, Medicaid, Medicare and other third-party interests use PAs to reduce costs. This leaves physicians and their staff wondering when the practice of medicine became more about the dollars and cents than what makes sense for patients?

“The system is there for a reason, and we understand that,” Lee Carter, M.D., said. Dr. Carter practices family medicine in Autaugaville, a rural community in Autauga County with a population of less than 1,000. “But, it can be very frustrating, not only to the physicians and our staff, but to the patients who have to wait for their medications.

According to a 2012 Kaiser Family Foundation estimate of about 835,000 practicing physicians, 868.4 million hours are spent annually on PAs. A 2011 study by Health Affairs estimated physicians spend an average of $83,000 annually interacting with insurance plans to secure prescribed treatments, procedures or therapies for patients needing prior approvals.

In Dr. Carter’s practice, he and his partner treat a variety of issues in their patients ranging from colds and flu to more chronic conditions like diabetes and ADHD as well as procedures involving MRIs and X-rays. Each physician has a staff member devoted to prescription renewals and obtaining PAs. Still, keeping up with the demands of charting and following the rules for the payers for PAs can be daunting.

“When a patient comes in that you’ve been treating for months or even years, and you know there’s something new out there that will work better for that situation, you want to find what works best for your patient. Most of the time, that medication is going to be a generic, which is covered by most insurance plans because it’s cheaper for them and it’s cheaper for your patient. But, what if that med doesn’t work for your patient? What if your patient is allergic to that med or another med? You have to find a balance. That’s the key,” Dr. Carter said.

For specialists like oncologist Stephen Davidson, M.D., at the Montgomery Cancer Center, issues with PAs can begin when the patient checks in for the first appointment.

“There are days when I have patients who are scheduled to see me as new patients. They are at the front door. They have something that brought them here that has also emotionally disturbed them greatly. If their PA is not in place, they can’t so much as walk down the hall to see me,” Dr. Davidson said. “This happens…constantly.”

Dr. Davidson and his team see an average of 60 patients each day. During that time, he and his treatment team are also securing PAs for patients for imaging and medicine. Rarely are cancer medications generic, making them very expensive, so PAs must be secured for monthly refills, taking even more time away from patient care.

“It has become a tremendous burden,” Dr. Davidson said. “Somewhere along the way the burden of proof shifted from the insurance company to the physician. Traditionally there has been a respect for a physician’s judgment and decision making on behalf of the patient. That’s a very special and sacred relationship. Now, because of a number of factors, primarily economic, we have insurance companies that don’t respect the physician’s authority in the decision-making process.”

According to Dr. Davidson, the burden of proof isn’t specific to oncology. Physicians fighting to get the best treatment regimens for their patients have all experienced the same process with payers in trying to secure prior authorizations, and perhaps the most time consuming and frustrating part of the system is the peer-to-peer conversations in which physicians advocate on behalf of their patients with the payers.

“The problem is that in oncology specifically, and with medicine in general, it’s not black and white,” Dr. Davidson said. “There is a lot of leeway. There is a lot of individualism for treatment plans for patients, so problems start to happen when major insurance companies hire third-party companies to come in and do nothing but screen all your imaging and either green-light or red-light your treatment plans.”

For both of these physicians, the delay caused by the waiting game can put the patient’s health in the balance. Dr. Carter often encourages his patients to engage in the appeals process with their health insurance plan by calling the numbers listed on their insurance cards. Dr. Davidson has enlisted the assistance of his patients as well.

“When the patient calls the insurance company and gets into the conversation, it shows just how much the patient is concerned about the situation,” Dr. Carter said. “It absolutely helps for the patient to get involved and review with their insurance company what treatments have already been tried, and why they didn’t work. The patient is looking for a solution just as much as the physician.”

Fortunately, in Dr. Carter’s experience, a reply for a PA request usually takes 24 to 48 hours. Things get more complicated, however, for specialists like Dr. Davidson.

“There is more bureaucratic pressure placed on the medical practice and more delay and anxiety on the part of the patient (when dealing with PAs),” Dr. Davidson said. “We are a larger facility, and we have five full-time employees that deal with nothing but authorizations. It’s still a burden for us. I don’t know how smaller practices deal with it. Essentially your first swipe at the PA is a website, so someone is taking a patient’s medical record and actually typing it into an online form to see if it will fit exactly cookie-cutter into this form. The patient is not cookie cutter. There is no way to cookie cutter every patient, no matter what the specialty or situation.”

Some states have pursued legislative solutions to PA problems, but with little success, as insurance companies and their lobbyists come out in droves in opposition. As non-physicians increasingly attempt to dictate health care delivery, the Medical Association is committed to finding solutions to PAs and other related issues so that we keep health care decisions between doctors and patients.

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