Livanta bags $120 mn deals in Govt CMS program

ANNAPOLIS JUNCTION, USA: Livanta LLC, a government contracting firm with experience in the healthcare arena, was awarded two contracts by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) as part of the agency's restructuring of the Quality Improvement Organization (QIO) Program.

The two contracts cover five years and total more than $120 million.

"Livanta is committed to helping CMS in its mission of improving patient care, health outcomes, and saving taxpayer dollars," said Anthony C. Wisniewski, chairman of the Livanta board of directors. "We are pleased to be recognized for the contribution our organization can make in this arena. Livanta's dedicated professionals look forward to meeting the needs of patients covered under Medicare while delivering on the goals of the QIO Program."

This phase of the restructured Beneficiary and Family-Centered Care (BFCC) QIO Program, according to CMS, supports case review and monitoring activities separate from the traditional quality improvement activities. 

In a press release issued by Dr. Patrick Conway, deputy administrator for innovation and quality and CMS chief medical officer, he stated, "One of the most critical roles of CMS is to protect the quality and safety of care delivered to beneficiaries. Care needs to be patient-centered and directly engage patients, families, and caregivers." He further said that "the quality of care review is essential to ensure care delivered to all beneficiaries meets professionally recognized standards."

Livanta was awarded CMS contracts that cover two regions.The Northeast region, known as Area 1, includes Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, Vermont, and the Virgin Islands.The West Coast region, known as Area 5, includes Alaska, Arizona, California, Hawaii, Idaho, Nevada, Oregon, and Washington State.

As the BFCC-QIO, Livanta will conduct quality of care reviews, discharge and termination of service appeals, and other areas of required review in various provider settings.

CMS regards the QIO Program as an integral part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' national quality strategy for providing better care, better health at lower costs, and providing "boots on the ground" technical assistance through a national network of independent organizations working to improve care delivery at the community level.