Rockford Health System and Humana Form Accountable Care Agreement for Northern IL

ROCKFORD, Ill.--In an effort to improve patient care through enhanced population health management, Rockford Health System and Humana Inc. (NYSE: HUM) have established a new Accountable Care agreement for members throughout northern Illinois.

The agreement, effective May 1, 2015, will unite one of the country’s leading health and well-being companies and one of the region’s largest health systems in a common goal – to implement efficient healthcare delivery that improves wellness opportunities and lowers costs.

Established in 1883, the Rockford Health System includes Rockford Memorial Hospital, Rockford Health Physicians, Visiting Nurses Association and the Rockford Memorial Development Foundation. The system also has a wide network throughout the region, including 450 physicians on the medical staff, nearly 3,400 employees and more than 300 volunteers.

Humana recognizes the need to marry a physicians' clinical expertise with business savvy to drive a cohesive integrated care approach. By partnering together with Rockford Health System on accountability, care moves from an episodic to a value-based model that improves costs, quality and the patient experience.

"The patient is at the center of everything we do at Rockford Health System. We have a strong culture focused on quality, patient safety and continual improvement. Creating this partnership just makes sense. Patients will be assured they are receiving the highest quality care following best practices. This will ultimately lead to better outcomes," said Rockford Health System President and CEO Gary E. Kaatz.

Humana’s pay-for-value programs promote evidence-based, high-quality care with a focus on physician support for successful population health management. Humana’s newest accountable care relationship is designed to serve the needs of Humana Medicare Advantage members based in the Rockford area.

“This new agreement with Rockford Health System will not only enhance quality of care for patients, but will also expand access for Humana members to one of the largest, most well-established health systems throughout northern Illinois,” said Charles Dow, President of Senior Products for Humana in the Great Lakes region. “Rockford Health System has a long history serving the residents of Rockford and ensuring patients are at the center of care. We’re looking forward to working hand-in-hand with this organization to accomplish the Triple Aim: improved outcomes, a better patient experience and lowered costs.”

The new Humana-Rockford Health System accountable care agreement includes value-based incentives tied to performance improvement and supports successful population health management and a world-class patient experience for Humana members and Rockford Health System patients in northern Illinois. The arrangement offers more personalized care and a broad range of population health tools like our predictive analytics, chronic care, disease management and wellness programs.

Through our programs, Humana can provide actionable patient data, providing physicians with a total patient population health picture. The value-based incentive arrangement emphasizes quality outcomes and leverages standard measures defined by the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) Healthcare Effectiveness Data and Information Set (HEDIS), including Breast Cancer Screening, Colorectal Screening, Comprehensive Diabetes Care, and High-risk medications.

Humana has nearly 30 years of accountable care experience, reflected in results from approximately one million MA members that showed significant improvements in quality, outcomes and costs in 2013.

Today, Humana has approximately 1.5 million individual Medicare Advantage and 230,000 commercial members, cared for by approximately 45,500 primary care physicians in more than 900 accountable care relationships across 43 states and Puerto Rico. For more information, visit humana.com/accountable-care.

About Rockford Health System

Rockford Health System is the largest and most comprehensive health system serving northwestern Illinois and southern Wisconsin, providing nearly 1 million patient encounters a year through Rockford Memorial Hospital, Rockford Health Physicians, the Visiting Nurses Association, and Van Matre HealthSouth Rehabilitation Hospital. In addition to its leading programs in adult, neonatal, maternal and pediatric critical care, Rockford Memorial Hospital also is distinguished by its numerous quality award recognitions, including being a six-time recipient of the HealthGrades Patient Safety Excellence Award and having been named for three consecutive years to the U.S. News & World Report list of “Best Regional Hospitals.”

About Humana

Humana Inc., headquartered in Louisville, Ky., is a leading healthcare company that offers a wide range of insurance products and health and wellness services that incorporate an integrated approach to lifelong well-being. By leveraging the strengths of its core businesses, Humana believes it can better explore opportunities for existing and emerging adjacencies in healthcare that can further enhance wellness opportunities for the millions of people across the nation with whom the company has relationships.

More information regarding Humana is available to investors via the Investor Relations page of the company’s web site at www.humana.com.