Genuine Health Group’s president and CEO, Joe Caruncho, announced today that its subsidiary, PremierMD ACO, saved more than $5 million in healthcare costs for the federal Medicare program during 2016 while delivering outstanding care to the thousands of Medicare beneficiaries it serves. The multi-million dollar savings confirmed by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) demonstrates how the company’s value-based care model delivers robust financial results along with high-quality health outcomes. Genuine’s PremierMD ACO operates under the Medicare Shared Savings Program, which means CMS will reward the company by returning half the savings, or approximately $2.6 million, to the physician ACO. Genuine Health, in turn, will distribute about 70 percent of the performance payment to its participating doctors.
The savings are calculated based on how much Medicare anticipated spending on healthcare for the same population of beneficiaries, taking into consideration patients’ ages and health circumstances, including chronic diseases like diabetes and those requiring dialysis. In addition, the evaluation required high scores for quality measurements, such as delivering timely care, high levels of patient satisfaction, and low hospital readmission rates.
“This confirmation from CMS proves that performance-based compensation works for everyone involved,” said Joe Caruncho. “Patients enjoy better health outcomes, Medicare – and taxpayers – saves millions of dollars, and the doctors participating in our Miami ACO earn financial incentives for delivering the highest quality care.”
Genuine Health’s value-based care model relies on advanced analytics to better gauge patients’ healthcare risks; novel approaches to chronic disease management, including in-home primary care; and collaboration with experienced primary care physicians. It applies the model to those patients assigned to its ACO, PremierMD, as well as to patients in certain Medicare Advantage plans, including United Healthcare South Florida, with which Genuine recently forged a management agreement.
“It’s not enough to simply save money for Medicare,” added Dr. Victor Toledano, president of PremierMD ACO. “We also have to meet a high bar for quality. That’s the real measure of success: delivering better health care at a lower cost.”
For more information on Genuine Health Group, Miami Accountable Care Organizations, or to schedule an interview with Joe Caruncho, please contact Meieli Sawyer at 305-668-0070 or msawyer@weinbachgroup.com.