UNC Health Alliance and Cigna Collaborate to Improve Health and Value in North Carolina
October 18 2016 - 10:00AM
Business Wire
- Customers benefit from improved care
coordination and greater emphasis on preventive care
- Partnership focuses on quality of care
for area residents
- Program includes registered nurse care
coordinators aligned with Cigna case managers
Cigna (NYSE: CI) together with UNC Health Care and UNC Health
Alliance, a Clinically Integrated Network are launching a
collaborative care initiative that aims to improve the quality and
value of health care and the patient experience, while making an
impact on the health of the community through enhanced access to
care, care coordination and affordability. The initiative will be
the ninth Cigna collaborative care program in the Carolinas.
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Cigna Collaborative Care is Cigna’s approach to accomplishing
the same population health goals as accountable care organizations,
or ACOs. The new arrangement will benefit people who have a health
plan that is insured or administered by Cigna starting January 1,
2017 and who receive primary care from a UNC Health Alliance
provider.
In places where it’s been introduced, Cigna Collaborative Care
is helping to improve the health of Cigna customers while
effectively managing medical costs. The programs are helping to
close gaps in care, such as missed health screenings or
prescription refills, reinforcing the appropriate use of hospital
emergency rooms, increasing the number of preventive health visits
and improving follow-up care for people transitioning from the
hospital to home.
“Cigna’s collaborative care approach provides a platform for
physician collaboration and access to additional information from
Cigna that allows our providers to deliver more efficient and
effective care,” said Seth Glickman, M.D., UNC Health Alliance
president. “This program is closely aligned with the UNC Health
Alliance’s goal of providing patient-centered, coordinated,
high-quality health care for residents of North Carolina.”
“A customer-centered health care delivery system that emphasizes
prevention and primary care, that rewards physicians for the
quality of care and improved health outcomes will ultimately lead
to a healthier population and lower medical costs,” said Edward
Hunsinger, M.D., Cigna’s senior medical director for the
Carolinas.
Under the program, UNC Health Alliance providers will monitor
and coordinate all aspects of an individual’s medical care.
Patients will continue to go to their current physicians and
automatically receive the benefits of the program. Individuals who
are enrolled in a Cigna health plan and later choose to seek care
from a UNC Health Alliance physician will also have access to the
benefits of the program. There are no changes in any plan
requirements regarding referrals to specialists. Patients most
likely to see the immediate benefits of the program are those who
need help managing chronic conditions, such as diabetes, heart
disease and obesity.
Critical to the program’s benefits are the registered nurse
clinical care coordinators, employed by UNC Health Alliance, who
will help patients with chronic conditions or other health
challenges navigate the health care system. The care coordinators
are aligned with a team of Cigna case managers to ensure a high
degree of collaboration between the physician group and Cigna,
which will ultimately provide a better experience for the
individual.
The care coordinators will enhance care by using
patient-specific data from Cigna to help identify individuals being
discharged from the hospital who might be at risk for readmission,
as well as individuals who may be overdue for important health
screenings or who may have skipped a prescription refill. The care
coordinators are part of physician-led care teams that will help
people get the follow-up care or screenings they need, identify
potential complications related to medications and help prevent
chronic conditions from worsening.
Care coordinators can also help individuals schedule
appointments, provide health education and refer people to Cigna's
clinical support programs that are part of their health plan.
Cigna will compensate UNC Health Alliance for the medical and
care coordination services it provides. The financial structure is
centered around paying for the value of care, which includes
quality and efficiency.
Cigna has been at the forefront of the accountable care
organization movement since 2008 and now has 160 Cigna
Collaborative Care arrangements with large physician groups. They
span 29 states, reach more than 1.8 million commercial customers
and encompass more than 82,000 doctors, including nearly 38,000
primary care physicians and more than 44,000 specialists.
About UNC Health Alliance
UNC Health Alliance is a physician-led network of more than
3,600 UNC Health Care employed providers and community physician
partners, working together to provide evidence-based,
patient-centered, affordable health care to patients at more than
400 locations throughout 36 counties across North Carolina. UNC
Health Alliance is a Clinically Integrated Network – an
organization of providers who collaborate across the health care
continuum to improve quality, control health care costs, and work
in partnership to provide coordinated care to better the patient
and provider experience.
About Cigna
Cigna Corporation (NYSE: CI) is a global health service company
dedicated to helping people improve their health, well-being and
sense of security. All products and services are provided
exclusively by or through operating subsidiaries of Cigna
Corporation, including Connecticut General Life Insurance Company,
Cigna Health and Life Insurance Company, Life Insurance Company of
North America and Cigna Life Insurance Company of New York. Such
products and services include an integrated suite of health
services, such as medical, dental, behavioral health, pharmacy,
vision, supplemental benefits, and other related products including
group life, accident and disability insurance. Cigna maintains
sales capability in 30 countries and jurisdictions, and has more
than 90 million customer relationships throughout the world. To
learn more about Cigna®, including links to follow us on Facebook
or Twitter, visit www.cigna.com
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version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161018006018/en/
CignaJill Holliday, 860-226-2094Jill.holliday@cigna.comorUNC
Health AllianceDevon Brady,
984-215-4243Devon.Brady@unchealth.unc.edu
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