Care Coordination

Medac, an urgent care provider organization, and Wilmington (N.C.) Health have announced a new affiliation, effective March 1.

Wellmark Blue Cross and Blue Shield has signed accountable care organization contracts with three physician groups in Iowa this month, according to a Des Moines Register report.

Atlanta-based Emory Healthcare signed an accountable care organization agreement with Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Georgia and Blue Cross Blue Shield Healthcare Plan of Georgia Jan. 22.

The joint venture between Denver-based SCL Health System and Scottsdale, Ariz.-based home care management company Univita Health has acquired All Care Home Health.

Denver-based Physician Health Partners, a management services organization owned and operated by primary care physicians, has partnered with Cigna for a collaborative accountable care initiative, the payer's version of an accountable care organization.

The accountable care organization between Downers Grove, Ill.-based Advocate Health Care and BlueCross BlueShield of Illinois resulted in slower growth in the use of inpatient services in 2012, according to a Crain's Chicago Business report.

As CMS grows its partnerships with states to improve the value of healthcare, it has placed a particular focus on improving use of emergency care. In an informational bulletin, CMS discusses three key strategies to reduce inappropriate emergency department use:

Getting into accountable care is a challenge for any provider organization, but especially so for small, rural hospitals and physician groups. Many smaller organizations don't have as much access to capital as their urban counterparts, for instance, and are therefore…

Vanderbilt University Medical Center didn't seem to have enough beds. A recent evident bed shortage forced staff to place patients in any available bed space, including empty beds in the emergency department and intensive care unit. At one point, 30…

Swedish Covenant Hospital reaches out to the community to help the uninsured get coverage.