• E-mail
• Print
• Comment
• Font Size
• Digg
• del.icio.us
• Discuss article

Health Plus of New York Expands Use of Health Integrated Program to Reach Significantly More Members with Chronic Conditions

Posted on: Thursday, 9 April 2009, 06:30 CDT

Agreement renewed and expanded after 18-month pilot of Synergy Targeted Population Management(R) showed member health improvements and significant reductions in costs

NEW YORK and TAMPA, Fla., April 9 /PRNewswire/ -- Health Plus, one of New York-area's largest providers of State-sponsored health insurance, and Health Integrated, a Targeted Population Health Management company focused on the critical interplay between medical and psychosocial health, have renewed and expanded their partnership to benefit significantly more Health Plus Medicaid members who have complicated chronic medical conditions.

Health Plus has been offering the Health Integrated Synergy Targeted Population Management(R) program since 2007 as its branded "To Your Health!" service. Health Plus has deployed Synergy to improve the health status and quality of life for its most expensive and high-risk members -- those with chronic illnesses and co-morbid psychosocial issues such as depression or stress, or barriers such as lack of transportation; all while reducing the overall cost of care. These patients are clinically complex and often struggle with intense psychological or behavioral factors that exacerbate medical conditions and increase care costs through avoidable and inappropriate healthcare utilization. The program is privately labeled to seamlessly manage this critical segment of the population within the context of Health Plus' broader risk management and chronic illness strategies.

"The results of the first 18 months of our To Your Health! program have been outstanding, both clinically and financially. Using Synergy, we've been able to reach, engage and improve the health of our most challenging members while significantly reducing the cost of care," says Clifford Marbut, MD, chief medical officer for Health Plus. "We look forward to expanding the program so that significantly more of our members can leverage Synergy."

Health Plus offers the services of Synergy Targeted Population Management via To Your Health! at no additional cost to its Medicaid members. The program includes a specially trained clinician -- a dedicated care coach -- who develops a plan and guides an individual member through care based on his or her specific needs. The coach works with the individual to set health goals and break down barriers to care, and provides tools to help the individual achieve those goals. The Synergy program includes a specialized engagement component that is uniquely tuned to high-risk, challenging Medicaid populations to drive active participation, without which change and impact is not possible.

"We are proud of the success of our partnership with Health Plus, and the results of its To Your Health! program in empowering an important patient base to be more knowledgeable about their own health, more motivated to follow prescribed treatments and more able to establish and achieve goals to better health," says Sam Toney, MD, vice chairman and chief medical officer at Health Integrated. "Working with Health Plus has in turn enabled us to evolve Synergy to implement more effective services as standard components for the Medicaid population."

Chronic illness is a serious problem in the U.S., affecting 140 million Americans -- many who also suffer from psychological conditions or social challenges. Health Integrated addresses medical and psychosocial barriers by providing a program to health plan customers for coaching, educating and supporting chronically ill members, ultimately enabling these patients to better manage their disease in the context of their lives while also improving their health. In addition, Health Integrated's integrated approach can help reduce unnecessary healthcare utilization and costs. The Company's offerings include:

• Synergy Targeted Population Management, a health management program designed to improve clinical outcomes for the chronically ill and lower avoidable utilization by addressing the critical interplay between psychological, social and physical health.

• Synthesis Health Management Services(R), a complete suite of medical and behavioral health management programs that can stand alone or be integrated to meet customer needs. Synthesis includes services for case management, physician review, nurse advice/triage, utilization management and behavioral health integration, a groundbreaking carve-in service that assists health plans in integrating behavioral health management with medical management.

Health Plus and Health Integrated began their partnership in 2001. Through its Synthesis Behavioral Health Integration(R) offering, Health Integrated also provides a suite of behavioral health management services, including crisis line and physician review, for Health Plus' membership.

About Health Plus of New York

Health Plus, a not-for-profit, multi-cultural organization, is one of the fastest growing managed care organizations in New York City. It was established in 1984 with a commitment to provide coordinated quality health care and improving access to health care for uninsured and under-served families. In its annual review of managed care plans, the New York State Department of Health ranked Health Plus as the top plan for quality in its 2002 and 2003 "Consumer's Guide to Medicaid Managed Care in New York City." Health Plus is New York City's leading provider of Child Health Plus, a New York State Department of Health program that offers parents free or low-cost health insurance for children under the age of 19. In 2005 and 2006 "CRAIN'S New York Business" magazine ranked Health Plus ninth among the largest health maintenance organizations in the New York area.

About Health Integrated

Health Integrated is a Targeted Population Health Management company dedicated to integrating health with life. Driven by a strong entrepreneurial culture, Health Integrated addresses the critical interplay between physical, psychological and social health. Working with health care providers, health plans and their members, Health Integrated drives improvements in health status, quality of life and clinical outcomes while reducing avoidable utilization and healthcare costs. For more information, visit http://www.healthintegrated.com.

CONTACT: Mike Miniati, Health Integrated 813-388-4030 or mminiati@healthintegrated.com

This release was issued through eReleases(TM). For more information, visit http://www.ereleases.com.

SOURCE Health Integrated

Source: PR Newswire

More News in this Category