By SuperUser Account on 5/11/2017
VALUE CARE ALLIANCE PARTICIPATING IN PCMH+ PROGRAM
Effort to Improve Health and Quality of Care for 17,000 Medicaid Beneficiaries Statewide
Derby, Connecticut – April 17, 2017 – The Value Care Alliance (VCA) is now participating in the new Person-Centered Medical Home Plus (PCMH+) program, which is overseen by the Connecticut Department of Social Services (DSS). This innovative care model puts healthcare providers in charge of medical decisions and care coordination with the goal of improving Medicaid patients’ health outcomes and quality of life while reducing the state’s healthcare costs.
The VCA is comprised of Griffin Hospital, Middlesex Hospital, St. Vincent’s Medical Center, and the Western Connecticut Health Network (WCHN), which includes Danbury Hospital, Norwalk Hospital, and New Milford Hospital, as well as the six hospitals’ affiliated physician groups. Through its participation in the PCMH+ program, the VCA is charged with improving both the health and quality of care for approximately 17,000 Medicaid beneficiaries living in the communities served by VCA members.
“As one of only two advanced networks selected to participate in the PCMH+ program by DSS, the VCA will leverage the strengths of its individual hospital members and their primary care physician networks to coordinate patient care with specialists, hospitals and pharmacists,” said Kirsten Anderson, MD, the VCA’s Chief Medical Officer. “We embrace this opportunity to be part of Connecticut’s effort, which is being led by DSS as part of this State Innovation Model (SIM) initiative, to improve the care of thousands of Medicaid enrollees throughout the state.”
PCMH+ program objectives include reducing care duplication, avoiding errors, and ensuring that patients follow through with their treatment plans. This model of primary care-directed preventive medicine helps keep people healthier and reduces overall healthcare expenses through more proactive and coordinated care management, including following best practices for recommended health screenings, establishing strong physician-patient relationships and ensuring appropriate, timely care. DSS seeks to reduce healthcare costs for the state by using the PCMH+ model to help patients avoid more expensive treatments, such as avoidable emergency room visits, which can occur when care is not coordinated or is delayed until patients seek treatment when their conditions worsen.
The VCA and other PCMH+ program participants, including seven (7) Federally Qualified Health Plans and one (1) additional advanced network, must meet a core set of stringent quality standards to ensure that the care provided to Medicaid patients in the program is not only cost-effective, but appropriate, safe, and timely. DSS evaluates PCMH+ quality performance using a combination of nine scoring measures, four challenge measures, and 14 reporting measures.
“The VCA’s participation in the PCMH+ program is consistent with our member hospitals’ commitment to the triple aim of improving the patient experience of care, improving the health of populations, and reducing the cost of healthcare,” said Patrick Charmel, VCA Chairman and President and CEO of Griffin Hospital. “We are encouraged by this collaborative approach, which is consistent with Connecticut’s SIM initiative, and we are committed to working with DSS to achieve these goals.”
About Value Care Alliance
The Value Care Alliance (VCA) is a collaboration among high-quality, low-cost Connecticut healthcare systems. This includes six member hospitals and their affiliated physicians working together to enhance efficient, coordinated care and promote local governance with shared leadership in healthcare decision making. The Alliance provides opportunities to exchange best practices among its members with the goal of reducing healthcare expense and improving quality. Additionally, the Alliance delivers data and analytical capabilities to enable efficient and effective care management and optimize the coordination of care across multiple settings. The Alliance is the largest collaboration of independent health care providers in the state. Hospital and physician leaders are working together to set the direction for the Alliance and to enhance the delivery of clinically integrated care, as it helps its members and their patients respond to the changing healthcare environment. For more information, see www.valuecarealliance.com.