Providing user-friendly performance data enables patients to choose plans and providers that perform well in the areas about which each patient cares most. This incentivizes plans and providers to improve in the areas about which patients care most.

*Milestone details:

*Full name: Make data on provider and plan performance publicly available in a form that consumers can use to make choices among providers and plans.

*Relevance to the ACA:

The ACA both requires public reporting and offers states resources they can use to ease that task and support consumers seeking to use the information. Some relevant provisions include:

§1001 - Creates uniform definitions of standard insurance terms so that consumers may compare health insurance coverage and understand the terms of coverage.

§1002 - Awards grants to states to establish or support offices that, among other items, track consumer problems with health insurance and educate them about health insurance.

§1311 - Requires an Exchange to establish a call center to assist consumers and maintain a website that, among other items, provides standardized comparative information about qualified health plans, including information to enable comparisons among plans on cost, quality and enrollee satisfaction.

§3001, §3004, §3005, §10322 - Require the Secretary of HHS to make public performance information on certain hospitals, rehabilitation centers, and hospice centers.

§3015 - Requires the Secretary to develop a public website providing quality measures tailored to providers, patients, researchers, and states.

§1003, §10101 - provides grants to establish nonprofit Medical Reimbursement Data Centers which must make health care cost information readily available to the public through an Internet website.