CLEVELAND--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Medical Mutual of Ohio and The MetroHealth System today announced a unique partnership that will change the way health care is delivered in Northeast Ohio. CLECare is a new insurance product designed to provide better care and a better patient experience at a lower cost – approximately 15 percent savings compared to typical insurance premiums.
CLECare offers employers and their covered employees and dependents a tailored network of providers, each committed to coordinating care for patients at all stages of their health needs. MetroHealth will provide most of the care – including tests, doctor visits and hospital stays – at its rapidly expanding network of health centers, emergency departments and inpatient facilities. Other care including selected complex procedures, behavioral health services, home and hospice care will be offered by other organizations around Northeast Ohio.
This network makes it easier for patients to access care at a better value. The network will improve the patient experience by sharing clinical information and reducing unnecessary treatments. It will also allow members to access the most appropriate care within the network.
“This rare and intense collaboration improves patients’ access to the best care for their needs while reducing costs,” said Akram Boutros, MD, president and CEO of MetroHealth. “The partnership really came together because all of us are committed to improving patient care.”
MMO acquired the insurance business from HealthSpan effective March 1, 2016, and MetroHealth assumed care for HealthSpan’s 40,000 plus patients in Cuyahoga County on April 1 of this year. As the organizations came together to address the needs of the former HealthSpan community, they saw an opportunity to create a partnership that will deliver more affordable health care to more people in Cuyahoga County.
“We expect significant interest from former HealthSpan insurance purchasers and the growing number of employers and individuals in Cuyahoga County who seek better value for their health care dollars,” said Rick Chiricosta, chairman, president and CEO of Medical Mutual of Ohio.
CLECare is available now through Medical Mutual. For more information, visit MedMutual.com.
About The MetroHealth System
The MetroHealth System is an essential health system committed to providing health care to everyone in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, and improving the health of the community overall. Its 7,200 employees deliver care to everyone at its main campus, just west of downtown Cleveland, and at more than 25 other MetroHealth locations. It also provides health care at more than 20 additional sites in Cuyahoga County through community partnerships such as the School Health program.
MetroHealth is home to Cuyahoga County’s only verified Level I Adult Trauma Center and Level II Pediatric Trauma Center, and it is one of two adult and pediatric burn centers in the state of Ohio verified by the American Burn Association and the Committee on Trauma of the American College of Surgeons. In the past year, MetroHealth provided more than one million patient visits in its hospital and health centers. MetroHealth also is an academic medical center committed to teaching and research; each of its active physicians holds a faculty appointment at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine. MetroHealth has earned Magnet status, which places it in the top six percent of all hospitals nationwide for nursing excellence.
MetroHealth’s mission is, “Leading the way to a healthier you and a healthier community through service, teaching, discovery and teamwork.” For more information, visit metrohealth.org.
About Medical Mutual of Ohio
Founded in 1934, Medical Mutual of Ohio is the oldest and largest health insurance company based in Ohio. For more than 80 years, the company has served customers with high-quality, affordable group and personal health insurance plans, and third-party administrative services to self-insured group customers. As a mutual health insurance company, Medical Mutual is unique in that it operates for the benefit of its members. Unlike publicly-traded insurance companies that must maximize their financial return, Medical Mutual does not answer to stockholders or Wall Street analysts. For more information, visit the company’s award-winning website at MedMutual.com.
