CDPHP announced the results of a study
\nthat show the health plan’s Enhanced Primary
\nCare (EPC) initiative produced $20.7 million
\nin savings in 2014, while improving the quality
\nof care for hundreds of thousands of patients.<\/p>\n
In 2008, after noting a decline in the number
\nof local medical students who were choosing
\nto become primary care physicians, CDPHP
\ncreated the EPC program, a patient-centered
\nmedical home model that rewards doctors for
\nspending more time with their sickest patients.<\/p>\n
“EPC has given primary care doctors the
\nfreedom to practice medicine in a way that’s
\ninnovative, efficient, and more convenient for
\ntheir patients. This program puts patients at the
\ncenter of the health care system, and encourages
\na team-based approach to care, allowing
\nprimary care physicians to work together
\nwith pharmacists, nurses, cases managers, and
\nmental health experts to better coordinate the
\ncare of their patients,” said Dr. John D. Bennett,
\npresident and CEO of CDPHP.<\/p>\n
Officials said a cornerstone of the EPC
\nprogram is a unique payment model that
\nrewards primary care physicians (PCPs) for
\ntheir efforts to keep patients healthy. The
\nprogram departs from the traditional fee-for-service
\nmodel, which incentivizes doctors for
\nproviding more, not better care.<\/p>\n
Instead, EPC moves PCPs to value-based
\npayments with the opportunity for enhanced
\nbonus payments.
\n“We knew that in order for EPC to be
\nsuccessful, we needed to get doctors off the
\nso-called ‘hamster wheel’ of fee-for-service.
\nWe are now rewarding doctors for quality
\nover quantity, and offering significant bonus
\nopportunities for those physicians who are able
\nto meet specific performance metrics,” said Dr.
\nBruce Nash, chief medical officer at CDPHP.<\/p>\n
Now in its seventh year, the EPC program
\nincludes 193 physician practices, 836 network
\nclinicians, and nearly 250,000 CDPHP
\nmembers.<\/p>\n
Dr. Holly Cleney, a primary care doctor at Latham Medical Group, part of Community
\nCare Physicians PC, said EPC has allowed her
\nand her colleagues to innovate in ways she
\nnever imagined.
\n“This unique payment model enhances,
\nrather than discourages, our ability to be real
\nprimary care doctors, which means taking
\ncare of our patients both inside and outside
\nthe office. We’re communicating electronically
\nwith our patients, offering group visits, and
\nproviding educational sessions on smoking
\ncessation and diabetes management. We even
\nhave a patient advisory council that provides
\nfeedback on how we’re doing,” she said.<\/p>\n
Officials said in 2014, CDPHP realized a
\ncost-savings of $20.7 million directly related
\nto the EPC program. Approximately 60
\npercent was experienced by members within
\nthe commercial market, while approximately
\n20 percent was experienced by the sickest
\n10 percent of members in the Medicaid and
\nMedicare markets.<\/p>\n
EPC providers received an estimated $12.8
\nmillion more in reimbursements and enhanced
\nbonuses than if they had not participated in
\nthe program, according to the company. In
\nexchange for these increased payments, CDPHP
\nencouraged physicians to change the way they
\ndeliver care to patients.<\/p>\n
This often involves convenient office hours,
\ncommunicating with patients via email, the
\nuse of patient portals and electronic medical
\nrecords, and an overall emphasis on preventive
\ncare.<\/p>\n
In addition to cost savings, the program has
\nalso produced impressive quality results, said
\nofficials. From 2010 to 2014, EPC sites showed
\nsignificant improvements on a series of quality
\nmeasures that included breast and colorectal
\ncancer screenings, childhood immunizations,
\nchildhood well visits, and more.<\/p>\n
CDCHP said throughout the analysis, quality
\nscores for EPC sites rose from 71 to 77 percent.
\nDuring the same time period, quality scores for
\nnon-EPC sites rose from 65 to 68 percent.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
CDPHP announced the results of a study that show the health plan’s Enhanced Primary Care (EPC) initiative produced $20.7 million in savings in 2014, while improving the quality of care for hundreds of thousands of patients. In 2008, after…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":121,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[57,82],"class_list":["post-17795","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-business-news","tag-business-news","tag-healthcare"],"yoast_head":"\r\n