ANS: 4% of operators achieved better performance.

Only 46 (4%) of the 1.103 medical-hospital operators evaluated in the country by the National Supplementary Health Agency (ANS) in 2010 reached the index that indicates the best performance. The Supplementary Health Qualification Program Report, released today, shows that 249 companies (23%) received the worst scores and were in the lowest of the five evaluation ranges.

The scale ranges from 0 to 1. The closer to zero, the worse. In the three intermediate ranges, the 0,20 to 0,39 range concentrated 188 operators (17%), the 0,40 to 0,59 range had 306 companies (28%), and the 0,60 to 0,79 range had 314 (28%). The program coordinator, João Matos, highlighted, however, that 71,1% of health plan clients were with operators whose score was equal to or greater than 0,5 last year – in 2009, the same rate was 72,9%. "We have 41 million people with operators with a score higher than 0,5, that is, well-qualified. The percentage had a slight reduction, but the absolute number of beneficiaries increased," said the coordinator. In 2010, the set of health plans included 58 million people in the country.

According to Matos, the objective of publishing the index is "to stimulate competition in the sector and improve service." According to the ANS (National Supplementary Health Agency), the percentage of companies in the two highest rating brackets increased from 11% in 2007 to 32% in 2010, while the percentage of operators in the lowest bracket decreased from 32% in 2007 to 23% in 2010. For the regulatory agency, the result "demonstrates a significant positive evolution in the quality of operators over the last three years." During the same period, the percentage of beneficiaries in the two best-rated brackets increased from 19% (in 2007) to 56% (in 2010). The list with the names of the operators, separated by rating brackets, is available on the ANS website.

In the case of the 414 exclusively dental operators, only 22 (5%) were in the best-performing range. According to the agency, there was growth in the percentage of companies in the two highest ranges (from 13% in 2007 to 29% in 2010) and a decrease in the percentage of those in the lowest range, from 40% in 2007 to 32% in 2010.

The performance index is obtained from the average of evaluations in four dimensions: Healthcare, Structure and Operation, Economic-Financial, and Beneficiary Satisfaction. The first measures "processes and practices carried out to favor access to health services and qualified, comprehensive, and effective care for consumers." In the Structure and Operation category, the ANS (National Agency for Supplementary Health) evaluates "certain attributes and dimensions of the proficiency, performance, structure, and operation of the operators, with an impact on the health level of the beneficiaries."

In the Economic-Financial dimension, operators need to "demonstrate with financial guarantees that they have sufficient balance to serve their consumers with quality and on an ongoing basis." Companies under ANS intervention due to weaknesses in economic-financial management receive a zero score in this area. In Beneficiary Satisfaction, the agency evaluates "how well the expectations and needs of clients are met and verifies the reasons for satisfaction or dissatisfaction with the services provided." For the 2011 cycle, the ANS held a Technical Chamber to evaluate the new indicators and weights of the dimensions, which are currently under public consultation.