The 19-hospital Bon Secours Health System has teamed up with health insurance giant Aetna on a new accountable care agreement that officials say will support some 57,000 fee-for-service Medicare beneficiaries across five states. 

 

Health system officials announced Monday that Medicare patients across Kentucky, New York, South Carolina and Virginia will be a part of this new agreement. 

 

Bon Secours will tap Aetna subsidiary Healthagen for the technology, analytics and care coordination services to facilitate better care for Medicare beneficiaries whose primary physician participates in the Good Help ACO, billed as one of the nation's largest Medicare beneficiary pools.  

 

[See also: Pop health analytics top ACO priority.]

 

"Working together with Bon Secours, we are bringing fee-for-service Medicare beneficiaries a new model of health care that emphasizes coordination and collaboration," said Tom Grote, president of Aetna's Virginia, Maryland and Washington, D.C. operations, in a June 25 press statement. "We are excited to empower Bon Secours' physicians with greater access to the information and resources they need to better care for patients and make the experience simpler and more effective."

 

The capabilities will complement existing Bon Secours technology, such as electronic medical records. 

 

Officials say the technology and services included in the new ACO agreement include installing health information exchange technology for secure, two-way exchange of health information across a patient's care team and desktop-based access to clinical decision support and workflow tools to help physicians better track, monitor and report on patient health outcomes.

 

"This is an exciting partnership between two well-established organizations. It brings together our extensive primary care network with Aetna's insurance skills. I believe the partnership will accelerate our transformation to higher value for our communities," said Marlon Priest, MD, Bon Secours' chief medical officer, in a June 25 press statement. 

 

By identifying the individuals who may benefit, the care team can offer clinical programs and health interventions to help prevent avoidable health issues, effectively manage those that exist and minimize the progression of chronic disease. The collaboration will have a significant focus on patient engagement and compliance to help ensure the long-term success of the overall effort.

 

[See also: Beth Israel inks Cambridge ACO agreement.]

 

In 2012, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services offered incentives for eligible providers to participate in one of several ACO programs. To date, more than 250 organizations are participating in Medicare ACOs, reaching eight percent (4 million) of Medicare beneficiaries. CMS has projected ACOs will lead to $940 million in savings over a four-year period.