Introduction and Background
The articles that comprise this special edition of the Health Care Financing Review cover a wide range of topics pertaining to the public reporting of health care quality. For many years, CMS and other purchasers have used public reporting of health care quality measures not only for public accountability of plans and providers for the care they provide, but also to assist consumers, health plans, and purchasers in making informed decisions to select higher quality care. While many purchasers are moving toward implementing pay-for-performance or value-based purchasing strategies, which will undoubtedly have their own impact on the health care ...