Integra, UnitedHealthcare launch Medicaid accountable-care entity

PROVIDENCE – A Medicaid accountable-care entity has been launched by Integra Community Care Network LLC and UnitedHealthcare Community Plan of Rhode Island to improve health outcomes, increase patient satisfaction and reduce the overall cost of care for people enrolled in the UnitedHealthcare Medicaid plan.
As part of the Rhode Island Accountable Entities Pilot, UnitedHealthcare is collaborating with physician groups to improve coordination of care for people enrolled in Medicaid.
This joint effort began with the passage of Gov. Gina M. Raimondo’s Reinventing Medicaid Act of 2015, which aims to create savings without reducing eligibility or cutting benefits.
As a result, UnitedHealthcare and Integra will work to better coordinate patients’ care, using shared technology and information about emergency-room visits and hospital admissions, and services that help patients manage their chronic health conditions and encourage healthy lifestyles.
The companies say this will make it easier to share important health information among physicians involved in patients’ care.
UnitedHealthcare’s and Integra’s accountable-care program changes incentives so that care providers have a shared responsibility for the overall cost of care.
More than 20,000 people enrolled in UnitedHealthcare’s Medicaid health plans in Rhode Island will benefit from this collaboration, according to a news release.
“From the start, our work to Reinvent Medicaid was driven by the goal to expand access to care, improve quality and coordination, and lower costs for taxpayers,” Raimondo said in a statement. “Accountable entities like this will reward collaboration and help spark transformation throughout Medicaid. I applaud Integra and UnitedHealthcare for leading the way on this effort.”
The Integra care-provider network is composed of Care New England and South County Health systems, Rhode Island Primary Care – the state’s largest primary care organization – and independently employed physicians.

Said Dr. Albert Puerini, president of Rhode Island Primary Care, “We feel that this innovative partnership will help our patients better navigate the complicated health care system. Our goal is to keep the patient central in the health care continuum, through broad coordination of care emphasizing prevention, education and positive lifestyle changes.”
UnitedHealthcare will give the entire care team clear, actionable data about individual patients’ health needs, potential gaps in care and proactive identification of high-risk patients, the release said. Community-based health workers and care managers will also be used to support community-based care coordination, such as helping with planning after a patient is discharged from the hospital and scheduling follow-up appointments.
UnitedHealthcare serves nearly 300,000 Rhode Island residents with a network of 15 hospitals and more than 4,500 physicians and other care providers statewide.

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