HzV-Kardio: Evaluation of a healthcare program cardiology contract of the AOK according to § 73c SGB V in Baden-Wurttemberg (FKz: 01VSF16003)

German health policy legislation (§73c SGB V) allows contracts between Social Health Insurances (SHI) and outpatient physicians (general practitioners and specialists) to enable special and innovative programs of healthcare. To optimize healthcare for patients with cardiovascular diseases, such a contract was concluded between the largest SHI in Baden-Wurttemberg (AOK Baden-Wurttemberg) and SHI-accredited cardiologists. The contract entails different quality arrangements and incentives.

Beside the University of Frankfurt am Main (Institute of General Practice, work package 1), the aQua Institute, Göttingen (work package 3) and the University of Heidelberg (Department of General Medicine and Health Services Research, work package 4), we, the University Hospital Jena (Institute of General Practice and Family Medicine, work package 2), are partner in the evaluation of this contract.

Our work package focuses on health care utilisation and their costs (health economic analysis) by analysing insurance claims data of AOK Baden-Wurttemberg. With focus on different cardiovascular diseases (coronary heart disease, heart insufficiency, cardiac arrhythmias, valvular heart diseases and atrial fibrillation), a cohort of patients participating in the program (intervention group) will be compared to a cohort of patients in regular healthcare (control group).