Cityblock Health is expanding its footprint in North Carolina through a new partnership with Humana.
The provider, which uses a care model designed to reach the most vulnerable patients, is making care available to nearly 20,000 Medicare Advantage and dually eligible Humana members as of July 1. Through the partnership, Cityblock will deploy its wraparound care management model for these members and coordinate care with the patients' primary care team and Humana.
Patients can access care through Cityblock both in person and virtually around the clock, with services ranging from primary care to urgent care to behavioral health, according to an announcement provided first to Fierce Healthcare.
As this is the first time that Cityblock is partnering with Humana, it's "validating" to the team that the work they're doing is resonating, said Mike Roaldi, president of Cityblock, in an interview.
"Certainly value-based care has had its skeptics," he said, "and you know I think we continue to prove what the model is capable of. As we continue to add these national partners, that's great affirmation of the value that we're adding."
Roaldi said that securing a partnership with a company like Humana is a key step to continue expanding the reach of the company's care model into new regions. Partnering in one state and delivering a positive patient experience there sets the foundation to build into new markets, he said.
Starting in a set market first also allows the partners to establish how to best work together, including data flow and clinical approaches, Roaldi said.
Particularly as the team looks to grow value-based care, working with an insurer in a market that's more mature in those models, as Medicare Advantage is, serves as a significant boon.
"We need to prove ourselves, and then we have the opportunity to build on the infrastructure to scale quickly," said Roaldi.
One of the elements supporting the partnership is Cityblock's ongoing focus on investing in the underlying technology. Its care model is backed by an AI-powered platform that supports personalization and drives a better experience and outcomes.
Roaldi said the team has put significant time into determining where AI offers the greatest value, rather than treating the tech as a "panacea" that can do everything. Cityblock has seen success in leaning on technology to streamline administrative processes and distill critical information on highly vulnerable patients to the clinical team at the point of care.
"That was only possible through sound design and operating in a way that requires a little more thought than just, 'Oh, we're going to roll out this new tool for the whole company tomorrow,'" Roaldi said.