The Cedars recently joined the EMHS Beacon Health Pioneer Accountable Care Organization, or ACO, one of the experimental new models of care driven by the efficiency requirements of the Affordable Care Act.
We sat down with David Polisner, MD, of Mercy Hospital, for the inside scoop. His grandfather is a long-time member of The Atrium at The Cedars, so Dr. Polisner has wonderful insight into the impact ACO membership will have here.
“An ACO is a group of providers coordinating patient care to control costs and promote quality,” Dr. Polisner explains. “The standards for membership are high. When Mercy joined the EMHS network and the Beacon Health Pioneer ACO, The Cedars was our natural partner. Many of our providers already send patients to The Cedars because the care is excellent and our missions are so closely aligned.”
Dr. Polisner believes our ACO will immediately benefit a select group of Medicare patients:
• Qualified Medicare patients will get the right care in the right place in the fastest time
• Doctors will communicate more effectively to seamlessly coordinate their care.
“Patients needing skilled nursing care have to stay three nights in the hospital before Medicare will pay for treatment here,” explains Angela Hunt, Chief Operating Officer at The Cedars. “Because of our ACO membership, Mercy can send qualified patients who need our services at the Rehabilitation or Skilled Care Center right away, where they can access specialized care in a less stressful environment, all at a lower cost.”
While the ACO is still in its trial stages, Dr. Polisner knows more benefits for more patients lie ahead. “The relationship between our organizations—aligned and working together— will bring only good things,” he says.