WALNUT CREEK, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aetna (NYSE: AET), Hill Physicians Medical Group, Inc., Dignity Health Medical Foundation and Dignity Health hospitals today announced an accountable care collaboration and the introduction of the Aetna Whole HealthSM product. The new product, designed for businesses with employees who reside in Sacramento, San Joaquin, and Yolo Counties, will be available starting in April 2015.
An accountable care collaboration is a group of health care providers who assume responsibility for the quality and cost of care for a group of patients. Aetna members will receive an enhanced level of coordinated care in addition to the member benefits of their current Aetna plan.
This new collaboration with Hill Physicians Inc. and Dignity Health will provide coordinated care for Aetna members through more than 280 primary care physicians, 837 specialists, 37 hospitals and 14 urgent care facilities.
“Aetna is excited to collaborate with Hill Physicians and Dignity Health to transform patient care and build a more effective, sustainable health care delivery model in Northern California,” said Mark Reynolds, Aetna’s president for Northern California. “Our accountable care agreement with these two organizations will ensure that our members receive the care that they need to help them live healthier, more productive lives.”
The accountable care collaboration gives employers better health care options for their employees, and will feature a new model of health care delivery designed to offer:
- Cost savings to employees who use providers in the accountable care network;
- A more coordinated, personalized experience for patients; and
- Better health care outcomes.
“In a marketplace as dynamic as ours, it’s important to be innovative,” said David Joyner, COO of Hill Physicians. “We’re very pleased that Aetna chose Hill Physicians and Dignity for the launch of its Whole Health product in northern California.”
New payment agreements reward improvements in quality and costs of care
The agreement features a new payment model to reward Hill Physicians and Dignity Health for meeting quality, efficiency and patient satisfaction measures, including:
- The percentage of Aetna members who get recommended preventive care and screenings;
- Better management of patients with chronic conditions, such as diabetes and heart failure;
- Reductions in avoidable hospital readmission rates; and
- Reductions in emergency room visits.
“We are pleased to be a part of this new product with Aetna and Hill,” said Joe Jasser, MD, President and CEO of Dignity Health Medical Foundation. “We look forward to collaborating and coordinating to best serve the members who select it.”
Aetna is working with health care organizations across the country to develop products and services that support value-driven, patient-centered care for all health care consumers. Nationally, more than 2.3 million Aetna members are served by value-based health care models.
About Hill Physicians Medical Group
Hill Physicians Medical Group is the largest independent physician association in California and a recognized leader in innovative healthcare, including successful Accountable Care Organization arrangements for commercial populations. The Standards of Excellence Program of the California Association of Physician Groups recognizes Hill Physicians as a leader in patient-centered care, care management practices, health information technology, accountability and transparency. Committed to serving healthy lifestyles, Hill Physicians Medical Group offers extensive health education services to its patients, including wellness classes, health screenings and self-help through its online information portal at www.HillPhysicians.com.
About Dignity Health
Dignity Health, one of the nation’s six largest health care systems, is a 21-state network of nearly 9,000 physicians, 55,000 employees, and more than 380 care centers, including hospitals, urgent and occupational care, imaging centers, home health, and primary care clinics. Dignity Health Medical Foundation, established in 1993, supports 13 medical groups and imaging centers in Northern, Central and Southern California, with 642 physicians. Headquartered in San Francisco, Dignity Health is dedicated to providing compassionate, high-quality and affordable patient-centered care with special attention to the poor and underserved. In 2013, Dignity Health provided nearly $1.7 billion in charitable care and services. For more information, please visit our website at www.dignityhealth.org.
About Aetna
Aetna is one of the nation's leading diversified health care benefits companies, serving an estimated 45 million people with information and resources to help them make better informed decisions about their health care. Aetna offers a broad range of traditional, voluntary and consumer-directed health insurance products and related services, including medical, pharmacy, dental, behavioral health, group life and disability plans, and medical management capabilities, Medicaid health care management services, workers' compensation administrative services and health information technology products and services. Aetna's customers include employer groups, individuals, college students, part-time and hourly workers, health plans, health care providers, governmental units, government-sponsored plans, labor groups and expatriates. For more information, see www.aetna.com and learn about how Aetna is helping to build a healthier world. @aetna
