Aetna and WESTMED Medical Group Build Medical Home Program

HARTFORD, Conn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aetna (NYSE: AET) and the WESTMED Medical Group announced today a new agreement to reward WESTMED for operating a Patient Centered Medical Home (PCMH).

“The PCMH model of care is designed to reward physicians for delivering better coordinated, higher quality and more efficient care, which will result in an improved overall value and patient experience for our members”

A medical home is a team of doctors and clinicians within a medical practice who work together to provide continuous and comprehensive health care for patients. By providing proactive and ongoing attention, rather than episode-based treatment, doctors in a medical home can provide more efficient and more effective care.

“The PCMH model of care is designed to reward physicians for delivering better coordinated, higher quality and more efficient care, which will result in an improved overall value and patient experience for our members,” said David Kobus, Aetna’s senior vice president of Network Management for New York.

Aetna is a charter member of the Patient Centered Primary Care Collaborative (PCPCC) and has been an early and active supporter of the medical home concept.

“Medical homes can support improvements in care quality, positively impact member health, and reduce medical costs through better efficiency and data sharing,” said Terry Golash, M.D., Aetna senior medical director. “Medical homes allow for improved information exchange and communication among physicians, other care providers, patients and insurers, all of which help enable informed clinical decisions.”

WESTMED has earned Level 3 recognition, the highest level of recognition from the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) Patient Centered Medical Home Program. NCQA recognized WESTMED for providing coordinated, efficient and quality primary care. This is a well-respected bench mark that Aetna has used to reward physician practices who operate as medical homes for their patients.

Dr. Simeon Schwartz, President of WESTMED Medical Group said, “Doctors often talk about quality, but don’t measure it. One of the key characteristics of the medical home is that it brings rigorous measurement and quality analysis to prove that the best care is being provided, resulting in fewer hospitalizations and medical errors.”

The two-year initiative rewards WESTMED for continued and improved patient care coordination and outcomes in categories such as cancer screening measures and diabetic or cardiovascular monitoring and care. Aetna and WESTMED also will share data to support appropriate patient care. This is Aetna’s first PCMH agreement in Westchester County, New York.

About WESTMED

WESTMED Medical Group is a large multi-specialty group medical practice, with headquarters in Purchase, NY. It is staffed by a team of 250 physicians dedicated to providing coordinated, efficient, quality patient care at its 9 locations in central and lower Westchester County. The practice uses state-of-the-art systems and electronic medical records to enhance the health of the community. WESTMED has medical offices in White Plains, Rye, Westchester’s Ridge Hill in Yonkers, Purchase, Scarsdale and New Rochelle. Connect with WESTMED online at www.westmedgroup.com and on Facebook and Twitter.

About Aetna

Aetna is one of the nation's leading diversified health care benefits companies, serving approximately 36.7 million people with information and resources to help them make better informed decisions about their health care. Aetna offers a broad range of traditional, voluntary and consumer-directed health insurance products and related services, including medical, pharmacy, dental, behavioral health, group life and disability plans, and medical management capabilities, Medicaid health care management services and health information technology services. Our customers include employer groups, individuals, college students, part-time and hourly workers, health plans, health care providers, governmental units, government-sponsored plans, labor groups and expatriates. For more information, see www.aetna.com.