As the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services accelerates the move  toward  a value-based payment model, its efforts depend upon receiving rigorously collected data from health insurers to improve care delivery, says CMS Acting Administrator Andy Slavitt, reports Health Data Management.

He emphasized that  payers should support providers in improving the entirety of their practices, or delivery-system reform won’t work.

Note that Blue Cross Blue Shield has launched a massive database to make information on healthcare quality and cost available to employers, members and provider partners.

Commercial health plans in the Affordable Care Act marketplace and in Medicare will be required to make data  for providers and patients available in machine-readable form.