Which statement best describes the relationship between quality and payments in hospital Value-Based Purchasing programs?

• A. Payments are unrelated to quality.
• B. Payments are reduced for better performance.
• C. Payments are linked to performance on targeted quality and efficiency measures.
• D. Payments are only volume-based.

Answer: (C)

In hospital Value-Based Purchasing, what you get paid is tied to how well you perform on predefined quality and efficiency targets. Medicare and other payers adjust payments based on a composite score that reflects performance across domains like clinical quality, patient safety, care coordination, patient experience, and cost efficiency. Hospitals that meet or exceed these targets can earn higher payments or bonuses, while those with lower performance may face reduced payments. This pay-for-performance approach contrasts with strategies that reward volume or ignore quality, making the correct description that payments are linked to performance on targeted quality and efficiency measures.