Healthcare technology company Aledade, which works with groups participating in the Medicare Shared Saving Program, announced its accountable care organizations saved Medicare more than $69 million in 2018, in part by deploying data analytics to improve care and reduce readmission rates.
By focusing on proactive patient management and preventive care, the company recorded quality improvement and shared savings results in ACOs across the country, such as the Aledade Louisiana ACO, which reduced emergency department visits by 11 percent and inpatient hospitalizations by 15 percent, saving Medicare $7 million.
“Despite continually rising health care costs, we’re not getting our money’s worth,” Mat Kendall, executive vice president of provider networks at Aledade, told Healthcare IT News. “That’s why we are working with independent physicians to advance a value-based model of care that can successfully achieve the healthcare triple aim of better care, better health outcomes and lower costs.”
Aledade provides a suite of technologies including data analytics, clinical and administrative workflow tools and a population health management platform to help its partner practices succeed with accountable care
“Some key capabilities we provide include real-time alerts when a patient visits an ER or hospital, insights into patients’ total care continuum, and automated tools to improve prioritization for high-risk or chronic care patients,” said Kendall. “We also provide in-person practice transformation specialists to ensure our partners are able to successfully take advantage of these solutions.”
On average, Aledade ACOs have reduced patient stays in skilled nursing facilities by 17 percent and hospitalizations by six percent, and the physicians practicing in Aledade’s Medicare ACOs earned an average quality score of 96 percent across all of the ACOs in 2018.
In another example, this time in Pennsylvania, the Aledade PMA ACO reduced emergency department visits by 17 percent and inpatient hospitalizations by 21 percent, saving Medicare $15.5 million.
“With our technology, our partner practices not only have big picture insights into their quality and costs, but can track patient needs such as annual wellness visits, emergency department follow-ups, and transitional care-management appointments in real-time,” said Kendall. “Our technology empowers physicians with the insights needed to improve care, pinpoint emerging health risks or cost drivers among patients, and coordinate care management efforts.”
He said noted Aledade’s ACOs demonstrate that when given the right tools and support, primary care physicians can improve their patients’ health and reduce total costs of care.
“As consolidation and other market forces push some doctors out of independent practice, what’s clear to us is that these independent primary care doctors are particularly well-positioned to thrive in the new value-based health care system,” Kendall noted.
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