Brown & Toland and Cigna Expand Accountable Care in Bay Area
<0> CignaMark Slitt, 860-226-2092orBrown & Toland PhysiciansRichard Angeloni, 415-972-4307 </0>
Cigna (NYSE: CI) and have expanded their initiative to include additional Brown & Toland doctors and locations. As of October 1, Brown & Toland’s East Bay affiliate, Alta Bates Medical Group (ABMG), began participating in the program, giving Cigna customers access to 327 additional physicians at numerous locations in Oakland, Berkeley and elsewhere in the East Bay.
“This expansion is a great vote of confidence in Cigna's collaborative accountable care program, and also great news for Cigna's Bay Area customers,” said Peter B. Welch, president and general manager for Cigna in northern California. “This means broader access to better coordinated health care that’s focused on prevention and wellness.”
Richard Fish, Brown & Toland’s chief executive officer, added, “We are delighted to work with Cigna to expand the collaborative accountable care program to our East Bay members. Our ACO model continues to show good results for different patient populations, and our care managers and the entire care coordination team is ready to work with our East Bay doctors to proactively implement programs and services designed to help members achieve better health.”
Collaborative accountable care is Cigna's approach to accomplishing the same population health goals as , or s – the “” of , and
Critical to the program’s benefits are clinical care coordinators, including nurses, physicians, and other professionals, employed by Brown & Toland, who help patients with chronic conditions or other health challenges navigate the health care system. The care coordinators enhance care by using patient-specific data from Cigna and Brown & Toland to identify individuals being discharged from the hospital who might be at-risk for readmission, as well as patients who may be overdue for important health screenings or who may have skipped a prescription refill.
The care coordinators are part of the physician-led care team that helps patients get the follow-up care or screenings they need, identify any issues related to medications, and help prevent chronic conditions from worsening.
Patients also receive health education and have access to both organizations’ wellness and clinical programs, such as disease management programs for diabetes, heart disease and other conditions; and lifestyle management programs, such as programs for tobacco cessation, weight management and stress management.
The principles of the patient-centered medical home are the foundation of Cigna's collaborative accountable care initiatives. Cigna then builds on that foundation with a strong focus on collaboration and communication with physician practices. Cigna has in 26 states, encompassing more than 760,000 commercial customers and more than 30,000 doctors, including more than 14,000 primary care physicians and more than 16,500 specialists. Cigna launched its first collaborative accountable care program in 2008 and its goal is to have 100 of them in place with one million customers in 2014.
Collaborative accountable care is one component of the company's approach to physician engagement for health improvement, which also includes the innovative Cigna-HealthSpring care model for Medicare customers. Today, well over one million Cigna and Cigna-HealthSpring customers benefit from 240 engaged physician relationships across 31 states, with more than 58,000 doctors participating, including more than 20,000 primary care physicians and nearly 38,000 specialists.
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 approximately 80 million customer relationships throughout the world. To learn more about Cigna®, including links to follow us on Facebook or Twitter, visit .
Founded in 1992, Brown & Toland Physicians is a leading network of independent doctors focused on delivering personalized, high quality, and affordable healthcare to the San Francisco Bay Area. Brown & Toland’s 1,500 physicians, who care for more than 300,000 HMO and PPO patients, are dedicated to improving care through a number of patient-centered programs and use of electronic tools such as an electronic health record, which helps doctors coordinate and deliver care. The group is leading the way forward in healthcare with its patient-centered medical home, My Health Medical Group, and by participating in multiple accountable care projects, such as the Pioneer Accountable Care Organization model. To learn more, visit .