NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--New York State Department of Health awarded MetroPlus Health Plan the highest “quality measures” score among Medicaid managed care plans statewide, the Health Plan announced today. The State’s overall 2016 Quality Incentive results weigh the quality measures score especially heavily—representing two-thirds of its maximum possible score—pointing to their importance.
“Our quality measures score reflects the high quality of care we provide to our Medicaid recipients every day,” said Dr. Arnold Saperstein, President and CEO of MetroPlus Health Plan. “We are here to serve our members. The quality scores tell us that our members feel we are getting a lot of things right. All of us at MetroPlus, across every department, are extremely proud to have participated in the important work it took to achieve these results.”
In addition to its obvious importance for beneficiaries and those who are considering enrolling, the results are also important to the health plan since stronger results bestow incentive premium awards on the health plan. “We focus on quality for the good of our members, but the added financial benefit is welcome,” said Dr. Saperstein.
The areas where MetroPlus scored particularly highly include timeliness of prenatal care, administration of flu shots, smoking cessation, asthma medication management, and two key indicators of diabetes management. MetroPlus also received high scores for postpartum care and well child visits.
These results reflect the investment MetroPlus makes in keeping its members healthy. MetroPlus staff work closely with designated members throughout the year to remind them of appointments and to stress the importance of maintaining their medication regimens to improve their health.
Contributing to the impressive showing were a number of initiatives and improvements the Plan made recently with quality and member satisfaction in mind, including expanding the scope of its quality outreach and member engagement programs, improving provider data sharing, and collaborating more effectively with its vendors and business partners.
MetroPlus recently began a new member reward program designed to incentivize members to stay healthy. This program, provided under a contract with Finity, allows members to earn points for achieving health outcomes such as obtaining preventive care and completing needed health screenings. Members have already begun earning points and redeeming those points for prizes, such as art sets and basketballs.
The Plan, a wholly owned subsidiary of NYC Health + Hospitals, also attributes its success to the high quality of its provider network, including Health + Hospitals and community providers, as well as a myriad of community partnerships.
With more than 30 years’ experience in managed care and over 500,000 members on board, MetroPlus will continue to reach out to New Yorkers in need of health insurance. The Plan can now add “highest scoring” to its core message of free or low-cost quality health care.
About MetroPlus Health Plan
Since 1985, MetroPlus Health Plan has built a reputation for providing access to affordable, quality health care to eligible New Yorkers. A wholly-owned subsidiary of NYC Health + Hospitals, the nation’s largest public health system, MetroPlus is the plan of choice for over half a million New Yorkers. In addition to Medicaid Managed Care, MetroPlus offers Child Health Plus; several Medicare Plans; a Special Needs Plan (SNP) for people with HIV and their families; a Long-Term Managed Care Plan; MetroPlus Gold, a plan exclusively for New York City employees; FIDA and HARP plans, and more than five dozen NY State of Health Marketplace products. The company’s robust network of primary care doctors and specialists includes many independent community providers. Culturally sensitive, and fluent in more than 40 languages, MetroPlus staff is as diverse as the great city it serves. Visit us at metroplus.org and join the conversation at facebook.com/metroplushealth and twitter @metroplushealth.
About NYC Health + Hospitals
NYC Health + Hospitals is the largest public health care system in the nation serving more than a million New Yorkers annually in more than 70 patient care locations across the city’s five boroughs. A robust network of outpatient, neighborhood-based primary and specialty care centers anchors care coordination with the system’s trauma centers, nursing homes, post-acute care centers, home care agency, and MetroPlus health plan—all supported by 11 essential hospitals. Its diverse workforce of more than 42,000 employees is uniquely focused on empowering New Yorkers, without exception, to live the healthiest life possible. For more information, visit www.nychealthandhospitals.org and stay connected on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/NYCHealthandHospitals or Twitter at @NYCHealthSystem.