The long-term goal of the initiative, which launched January 1, is to build a delivery model that improves quality through better coordination of care, while taking unnecessary or duplicative costs out of the health care system, reducing costs for Cigna customers and their employers. Critical to the program's success are complex case managers employed by Franciscan Alliance who will become part of the physician-led care team and serve as clinical care coordinators. They help patients with chronic conditions or other health challenges navigate the health care system. For example, they identify patients discharged from the hospital who might be at risk for readmission, help patients get the follow-up care or screenings they need, identify any issues related to medications and help prevent chronic conditions from worsening. The care coordinators use patient-specific data from Cigna to help them identify patients in need of these services and are aligned to a team of Cigna case managers to ensure a high degree of collaboration between the two organizations. Care coordinators can also help patients schedule appointments, provide health education and refer patients to the Cigna health management and wellness programs that may be available to them through their employer's benefit plan.
Franciscan Alliance and Cigna expanded their accountable care initiative aimed at improving the quality of care for Cigna customers to Northern Indiana, effective Jan. 1, 2014. The collaboration focuses on providing coordinated, cost-efficient health care to improve the overall health status of the Cigna population in Central, and now Northern Indiana.
