ACE OMB SiteVisit_2_Correspondence

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Evaluation of the Acute Care Episode (ACE) Demonstration
Site Visit Correspondence

IMPAQ International, LLC

Evaluation of the Acute Care Episode (ACE) Demonstration
Site Visit Correspondence
Exhibit 1: Letter to Site Liaison (ACE Manager)
[IMPAQ International Letterhead]
Date
Dear [SITE LIAISON NAME]:
Thank you for your continued support and guidance with the ACE Demonstration.
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has continued to contract with IMPAQ
International LLC and the Hilltop Institute at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County in
conducting an evaluation of the Acute Care Episode (ACE) Demonstration. As you know, part of
the evaluation involves organizing two site visits at participating hospitals; one in the first year
and the other in the final year of the demonstration.
Now that we are coming up on the final year of the demonstration, there will be another series of
activities including interviews and focus groups with key stakeholders such as the chief
executive officer, chief operating officer, chief financial officer, medical chiefs of service in
orthopedics and cardiology, and managers of nursing, physical therapy, cardiac intervention lab,
and discharge planning departments.
We are employing your assistance once again in identifying appropriate staff for the interviews
and focus groups. Your continued support is imperative in order to select individuals and
produce a complete list of appropriate staff.
As the liaison for your demonstration site, our team will continue to provide you regular
communication about the progress of the evaluation and related activities through phone calls
and email as appropriate. If you have any questions, you may contact Oswaldo Urdapilleta, PhD,
ACE Demonstration Evaluation Project Director at 443-367-0088, ext. 232, or e-mail him at
ourdapilleta@impaqint.com. Alternatively, you may contact Jesse M. Levy, PhD who is the
Federal Project Officer for the Evaluation of the ACE Demonstration. His phone number is 410786-6600; his e-mail address is jesse.levy@cms.hhs.gov.
Thank you for your sustained support and assistance with this evaluation. Your guidance
provides a critical role as we complete this evaluation. We appreciate your time and are looking
forward to working with you again.
Sincerely,
Oswaldo Urdapilleta, PhD

IMPAQ International, LLC

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Evaluation of the Acute Care Episode (ACE) Demonstration
Site Visit Correspondence
Exhibit 2: Letter to Key Stakeholder Interviewees
(CEO/CFO/COO, Hospital Managers, and ACE Manager)
[IMPAQ International Letterhead]
Date
Dear [KEY STAKEHOLDER NAME]:
Thank you for your participation in the ACE Demonstration interview in [YEAR], during the first
year of the demonstration.
We appreciate your insights as they provided invaluable information about the ACE
Demonstration program. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has continued to
contracted with IMPAQ International LLC and the Hilltop Institute at the University of
Maryland, Baltimore County in conducting an evaluation of the Acute Care Episode (ACE)
Demonstration in which [NAME OF SITE] is participating.
As part of the evaluation, we are organizing another site visit at participating hospitals for the
final year of the demonstration. During this site visit, there will be another series of activities
such as interviews and focus groups with key personnel involved in the development and
implementation of the demonstration.
[NAME OF LIAISON], the site liaison from [NAME OF HOSPITAL], is working closely with the
evaluation team and has helped us identify you as a key individual in the ACE Demonstration.
Although you participated in an initial interview, as a critical person in the demonstration, we
would appreciate your participation in this second session. The interviews are expected to last
approximately 1.5 hours and will entail a discussion from your perspective of the extent to which
the demonstration met expectations, strategies that were implemented, and significant
challenges.
A member of our evaluation team will be conducting interviews between [PROVIDE RANGE OF
at [NAME OF SITE] for this site visit. Further, a member of our team will contact you to
schedule an interview at your convenience. If you have any questions about this interview,
please contact Oswaldo Urdapilleta, PhD, ACE Demonstration Evaluation Project Director at
443-367-0088, ext. 232, or e-mail him at ourdapilleta@impaqint.com.

DATES]

We understand that you have many obligations and appreciate your time for this second
interview. Your continued contributions will provide imperative information about the ACE
Demonstration program as we complete this evaluation.
Sincerely,
Oswaldo Urdapilleta, PhD
ACE Demonstration Evaluation Project Director

IMPAQ International, LLC

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Evaluation of the Acute Care Episode (ACE) Demonstration
Site Visit Correspondence
Exhibit 3: Introductory Letter to Focus Group Participants (Beneficiaries)
[IMPAQ International Letterhead]
Date
Dear [FOCUS GROUP PARTICIPANT NAME]:
We hope that this letter finds you well on the road to recovery following your recent
hospitalization.
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has contracted with IMPAQ International
LLC and the Hilltop Institute at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County to conduct an
evaluation of your experience with the [CARDIAC/ORTHOPEDIC] procedure you underwent at
[NAME OF HOSPITAL]. As part of our evaluation we are conducting focus groups with Medicare
beneficiaries who have recently been hospitalized for [TYPE OF TREATMENT] at [NAME OF
HOSPITAL]. Our team is interested in evaluating your experience during that episode of care and
would like to request your participation in these focus groups. Enclosed is a letter from CMS
highlighting the importance of this project and your participation.
Your participation is voluntary and will be held confidential. Refusal to participate will involve
no penalty or loss of Medicare benefits to which you are otherwise entitled, and you may
discontinue participation at any time without any consequences
Please send back the self-addressed stamped post card saying that you will participate or that you
do not want to participate. If you send the post card back saying that you are not interested, you
will receive no further communication about this evaluation.
If you choose to participate, or if you do not send back the letter, someone from our evaluation
team will call you to give you more information about the focus group date and location. If you
choose to participate, the total time will be no more than 1.5 hours. We will provide everything
you need to participate in the focus group. We will also provide you with a $25 stipend as well as
refreshments.
If you have questions and would like to talk to someone about this evaluation or focus groups,
you can speak to a member of our evaluation team by calling 1-800-xxx-xxxx and saying, “I am
calling about the ACE focus groups”.
On behalf of CMS, I would like to thank you in advance for helping us with this very important
evaluation.
Sincerely,
Signatory

IMPAQ International, LLC

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Evaluation of the Acute Care Episode (ACE) Demonstration
Site Visit Correspondence

Exhibit 4: Introductory Letter to Focus Group Participants
(Physicians and Non-Physicians)
[IMPAQ International Letterhead]
Date
Dear [FOCUS GROUP PARTICIPANT NAME]:
Thank you for your participation in the ACE Demonstration focus groups in [YEAR], during the
first year of the demonstration. We appreciate your insights as they provided invaluable
information about the ACE Demonstration program. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid
Services (CMS) has continued to contracted with IMPAQ International LLC and the Hilltop
Institute at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County in conducting an evaluation of the
Acute Care Episode (ACE) Demonstration in which [NAME OF SITE] is participating.
As part of the evaluation, we are organizing another site visit at participating hospitals for the
final year of the demonstration. During this site visit, there will be another series of activities
such as interviews and focus groups with key personnel involved in the development and
implementation of the demonstration.
This letter is being sent to you because you have been selected to participate in another focus
group with some of your colleagues to discuss your perspective about various aspects of the
implementation, outcomes, and evolution of the demonstration. Although you participated in the
initial round of focus groups, as a critical person in the demonstration, we would appreciate your
involvement in this second session.
The focus groups are expected to last approximately 1.5 hours. We will provide everything you
need to participate in the focus group as well some refreshments. Our evaluation team will be
conducting focus groups between [RANGE OF DATES] at [NAME OF SITE] for this site visit. A
member of our team will contact you to give you more information about the focus group date
and location.
If you have any questions about these focus groups, please contact Oswaldo Urdapilleta, PhD,
ACE Demonstration Evaluation Project Director at 443-367-0088, ext. 232, or e-mail him at
ourdapilleta@impaqint.com. Furthermore, [LIAISON NAME] is the liaison for [NAME OF SITE], you
may also contact [HIM/HER] at [NUMBER AND EMAIL].
Thank you for your support. We understand that you have many obligations and appreciate your
time for this second round of focus groups. Your continued contributions will provide imperative
information about the ACE Demonstration on [NAME OF SITE] and its patients.
Sincerely,
Signatory
IMPAQ International, LLC

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Evaluation of the Acute Care Episode (ACE) Demonstration
Site Visit Correspondence
Exhibit 5: Official CMS Letter to Beneficiaries
DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH & HUMAN SERVICES
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services
7500 Security Boulevard, Mail Stop C3-21-28
Baltimore, Maryland 21244-1850

Dear [FOCUS GROUP PARTICIPANT NAME]:
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has contracted with IMPAQ
International, LLC and the Hilltop Institute at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County to
conduct an evaluation of your experience from the treatment you received at [NAME OF
HOSPITAL].
As part of the evaluation, IMPAQ will be conducting focus groups with Medicare beneficiaries
who have recently been hospitalized for [TYPE OF TREATMENT] at [NAME OF HOSPITAL]. CMS is
committed to hearing from Medicare beneficiaries and understanding your experiences.
We would like to invite you to participate in a focus group with other beneficiaries. Your
decision to participate will be held confidential. Additionally, if you choose not to participate
there will be no changes to your Medicare benefits to which you are otherwise entitled.
If you choose to participate, a representative from IMPAQ will be contact you within a few days
with more specific information. I hope when you are contacted you will accept the invitation
and share your perspective.
Your input will be valuable in assisting CMS in assessing programs and policies for the future.
If you have any questions, please feel free to call me at (410) 786-6600 or e-mail me at
jesse.levy@cms.hhs.gov.
Sincerely,

Jesse M. Levy, PhD
Medicare Acute Care Demonstration Evaluation
Project Officer
Office of Research, Development and Information
Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services

IMPAQ International, LLC

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