| Louisville, KY -
The National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA), an independent,
not-for-profit
organization dedicated to measuring the quality of America’s
health care, designated Passport Health Plan as receiving Excellent
Accreditation. This is the highest accreditation status for service
and clinical quality given to a health plan that meets or exceeds NCQA’s
rigorous requirements for consumer protection and quality improvement.
Passport scored 97 out of 100 points. HEDIS® results are in the
highest range of national performance.
Dr. Larry N. Cook, Chairman of University Health Care’s (Passport)
Board of Directors and Chairman of the Department of Pediatrics for
the University of Louisville School of Medicine said, “This
is our report card. You can’t do much better than A+. We attribute
our success to the many physicians and other health care providers
who have dedicated themselves to making this health plan work. They
serve on committees that oversee the development of policies related
to all medical management and quality issues. I think this proves
that provider sponsored health plans can work very well.”
The NCQA Accreditation evaluates how well a health plan manages
all parts of its delivery system—physicians, hospitals, other
providers and administrative services— in order to continuously
improve health care for its members and is an evaluation of how a
health plan ensures that its members are receiving high-quality care.
NCQA President Margaret E. O’Kane said, “’Earning ‘Excellent’ Accreditation
reflects a health plan’s ability to work with their members
and their physicians to improve the quality of clinical care. It
shows that they are building the kinds of partnerships that are critical
to delivering great care and great service.”
“We have met the goals set forth by the Commonwealth of Kentucky
when they established this health plan in 1997. This report shows
improved care for Medicaid members and we have saved taxpayers millions
of dollars in the process,” said Joyce Hagen-Schifano, President
of Passport Health Plan and Senior Vice President and Chief Executive
Officer-Kentucky Division of AmeriHealth Mercy Health Plan.
"This rating is a great tribute to the hard work from the health
care providers in Passport," said Cabinet for Health Services
Secretary Marcia R. Morgan. "It's gratifying to know that they
are being recognized for the high quality care they provide Medicaid
recipients."
NCQA is an independent, not-for-profit organization dedicated to
assessing and reporting on the quality of managed care plans, managed
behavioral healthcare organizations, preferred provider organizations,
new health plan, physicians organizations, credentials verification
organizations, disease management programs and other health related-programs.
NCQA is committed to providing information on the quality of health
plans. Consumers can easily access health plans’ NCQA Accreditation
statuses and other information on health care quality on NCQA’s
Web site at www.ncqa.org, or by calling NCQA Customer Support at
(888) 275-7585.
The NCQA rates health plans in seven categories. The areas measured
are:
- Credentialing
- Medical Records
- Preventive Health
- Quality Improvement
- Member’s Rights and Responsibilities
- HEDIS®
- CAHPS®
HEDIS®/CAHPS® are the measurement tools used by the nation’s
health plans to evaluate their performance in terms of clinical quality
and customer service.
Passport Health Plan provides Medicaid managed care services for
over 120,000 members in Jefferson and the 15 surrounding counties.
Counties of service include Breckinridge, Bullitt, Carroll, Grayson,
Hardin, Henry, Jefferson, Larue, Marion, Meade, Nelson, Oldham, Shelby,
Spencer, Trimble, and Washington. Passport Health Plan is owned by
University Health Care, Inc. UHC, Inc. contracts with AmeriHealth
Mercy Health Plan of Philadelphia to administer the program. AmeriHealth
Mercy and its affiliated health plans comprise the largest multi-state
Medicaid managed care organization in the United States. Through
its ownership, affiliation or management, AmeriHealth Mercy touches
the lives of nearly 1,000,000 Medicaid and State Children’s
Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) members in five states including
Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Missouri, Kentucky, and South Carolina.
AmeriHealth Mercy Health Plan is a healthcare ministry of the Sisters
of Mercy in affiliation with AmeriHealth HMO, Inc. |
