September 8, 2022

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), has earned shared savings for the fourth consecutive year in the Medicare Shared Savings Program (MSSP).

Data from CMS indicates that MCC saved Medicare over $22 million by exceeding quality and cost goals in 2021. CMS shared 50 percent of those savings with MCC, earning $11,087,755, which the organization is then able to redistribute to participating providers and invest in infrastructure and care process improvements.

The accountable care organization (ACO) earned an aggregate score of 98.84 percent on quality performance measures, exceeding the performance standard of 61.69 percent. This score is based on preventative screenings like Mammograms and Flu Vaccines, management of chronic conditions, keeping beneficiaries from being readmitted after a hospital stay, and beneficiaries’ assessment of their care through the CAHPS Survey.

Throughout 2021, 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 about 34,000 beneficiaries across Pierce, King, Kootenai, and Spokane counties in 2021.

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 unnecessary health care costs. They achieve this by utilizing a network of providers that assumes responsibility, both medically and financially, for a population of Medicare patients. When ACOs meet predetermined quality and cost-savings benchmarks, they share in those cost savings with CMS.

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.