November 2, 2021

MultiCare Connected Care earns high marks from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS)

TACOMA, Wash. — MultiCare Connected Care (MCC), MultiCare’s accountable care organization (ACO), improved care for 36,000 Medicare beneficiaries and saved Medicare $15 million by meeting quality and cost goals in 2020, according to recently released performance data from the federal agency that administers Medicare.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services shared 50 percent of those savings with MCC, which the organization then is able to redistribute and invest in infrastructure and care process improvements.

The ACO earned an aggregate score of 98 percent on federal performance measures, receiving a perfect score on care coordination, patient safety and preventive health. These performance measures are based on factors including the number of preventive health checks, use of electronic health records and the rate of avoidable hospitalizations.

Throughout 2020, MCC providers increased the number of beneficiaries who took advantage of annual wellness visits, including recommended health screenings. They also focused on ensuring smooth transitions for patients transferring from one care location to another, for example from the hospital to a skilled nursing facility. Overall, MultiCare Connected Care covered 36,500 beneficiaries across Pierce, King and Spokane counties in 2020.

ACOs were first authorized in 2012 by the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and are designed to improve the safety and quality of patient care and reduce health care costs. They achieve this by utilizing a network of providers that assumes responsibility, both medically and financially, for a population of patients, such as those receiving Medicare benefits. When ACOs meet predetermined quality and cost-savings benchmarks, they share in those cost savings.

Rather than being driven by the volume of services provides, ACOs focus on value and health outcomes. The primary goals are to improve quality while curbing costs by:

• Keeping people healthy through prevention and effective chronic disease management
• Delivering well-coordinated care
• Seamlessly sharing clinical information

MultiCare Connected Care was established in 2014 as a wholly owned subsidiary of MultiCare Health System. Its Clinically Integrated Network includes health care professionals in the community, as well as MultiCare providers.