Health insurer Cigna has announced two new collaborative accountable care initiatives — its version of an accountable care organization — with Santa Clara County IPA in San Jose, Calif., and Patient Physician Network in Plano, Texas.
SCCIPA is a group of more than 850 primary care and specialty physicians. The group's agreement with Cigna covers more than 13,000 patients in a Cigna PPO health plan who receive care from a SCCIPA provider.
PPN is a 75-physician entity made up of the Plano Physicians' Group and Huguley Medical Associates. Its accountable care agreement with Cigna includes more than 6,000 patients covered by a Cigna health plan who seek care from a PPN provider.
As part of both agreements, Cigna will give the groups patient-specific data to help the physicians better track and coordinate care. Additionally, care coordinators — registered nurses employed by either group — help patients schedule appointments and guide them through the healthcare maze as part of the collaboration.
Cigna will pay each group for medical and care coordination services, and SCCIPA and PPN can also be rewarded for meeting quality and cost targets through a pay-for-value reimbursement structure.
Both agreements went into effect Oct. 1. With the addition of these two agreements, Cigna now has 75 collaborative accountable care agreements in 26 states.
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