Finger Lakes Region Receives $565 Million to Transform Medicaid Healthcare Delivery
New York State Department of Health announced that the Finger Lakes Performing Provider System (FLPPS) is eligible to earn up to $565,448,177 over five years to transform the way health care is delivered to more than 300,000 Medicaid beneficiaries in the Finger Lakes region.
The Finger Lakes Performing Provider System, headquartered in Rochester, is one of 25 Performing Provider Systems in New York State (NYS). FLPPS is comprised of 28 hospitals, 3000 healthcare providers and more than 600 healthcare and community-based organizations in a 13-county region.
“With the many changes in health care, we recognized the importance of regional collaboration to support this important transformation,” says Kathy Parrinello, chief operating officer of Strong Memorial Hospital and FLPPS Board chair. “Our region shares a history of health care innovation and we look forward to our collective success in developing this integrated network.”
The $565 million, allocated by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) and dispersed by New York State Department of Health, is a maximum possible award which can be earned primarily by achieving performance metrics within the Delivery System Reform Incentive Payment (DSRIP) program. DSRIP is part of a Medicaid reform model which, in NYS, has a goal of improving clinical outcomes and reducing avoidable ED use and hospitalizations by 25 percent over five years. Following a comprehensive community needs assessment, FLPPS chose 11 DSRIP projects to focus their work. Each project addresses a current shortfall in the health care system such as the role of behavioral health in primary care and skilled nursing facilities, triage practices in Emergency Department, patient care transitions, chronic disease management and integrating healthcare services across multiple care settings.
“It is too hard for patients with complex health conditions and limited resources to maintain their health using the current system” says Dr. Bridgette Wiefling, M.D., chief quality clinical innovations officer, Rochester Regional Health System and FLPPS Boarmroviders who are sharing information, identifying resources and ultimately developing treatment plans that can be successful.”
The five-year implementation period, which began April 1, followed six months of implementation planning and PPS development. The initiative focuses on system transformation, clinical care management and population health. For safety net providers, such as the Federally Qualified Health Centers whose patient volume is at least one-third Medicaid, uninsured or dual eligible members, DSRIP aligns with the care they currently provide.
“When providing health care services, we cannot separate a patient's economic and social issues from personal health issues. To help our patients achieve better health outcomes, we need to understand the complexity of their lives and connect them with a multitude of resources within their communities. Closer coordination with trusted partners and resources will help us to serve our patients and support our clinicians." says Mary Zelazny, chief executive officer, Finger Lakes Community Health in Penn Yan. For the patient who relies on Medicaid to support the health of their family, the new system promises to improve access to care and create a reliable single source to coordinate their care.
For more information about this award, DSRIP or the Finger Lakes Performing Provider System, contact Meredith Rutherford, FLPPS Communications Director at 585.455.0414, Meredith_Rutherford@dsripfingerlakes.org.
FLPPS leadership, patients and subject matter experts available for interview.
ABOUT DSRIP
The NYS Medicaid Redesign Team (MRT) is redirecting Medicaid funds to projects that radically transform the Medicaid delivery system. These projects are part of the Delivery System Reform Incentive Payment (DSRIP) program. DSRIP will incentivize health care and community-based providers to form regional collaborations and implement innovative system transformation. The overarching objective of DSRIP in NYS is to improve clinical outcomes and reduce avoidable ED use and hospital admissions by 25% over five years.
ABOUT FLPPS
The Finger Lakes Performing Provider System (FLPPS) is one of 25 Performing Provider Systems in NYS who have applied for Medicaid 1115 waiver amendment funds to transform the Medicaid health care delivery system. A performing provider system is a network of healthcare providers and community-based organizations that have agreed to work together to change the health care system in their region using the DSRIP program.