The value of ambulatory care measures: a review of clinical and financial impact from an employer/payer perspective.

To understand the value for payers and purchasers of primary care quality measures in an insured population, we conducted a 2-part analysis. In the first part, we reviewed the economic and clinical literature supporting 62 quality metrics spanning primary care that had been proposed for use in a physician recertification program and in a pay-for-performance program. We then ranked these metrics by both economic and clinical evidence of effectiveness.