CIGNA and Good Shepherd Health System Develop New Quality Program

• Changes how hospitals are paid for services, strengthening outcomes for individuals in Texas
• Helps moderate costs for CIGNA clients and customers

PLANO, Texas--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- CIGNA announced today that it has established a new way to pay hospitals and doctors affiliated with Good Shepherd Health System in Texas. This new payment model is a first of its kind in Texas and will help reduce costs for CIGNA clients and customers and improve quality by making one lump sum payment to a doctor or hospital for more than 100 common heart and joint procedures.

“We know that complications or errors following a surgical procedure cost our customers both time and money,” states Jason Motter, regional vice president of sales for CIGNA HealthCare in <location value="LS/us.tx" idsrc="xmltag.org">North Texas. “We are pleased that we can work with Good Shepherd to develop this new quality model that encourages adherence to proven clinical guidelines and strengthens care coordination among physicians and the hospital leading to reduced hospital re-admissions.”

According to the Congressional Budget Office, one out of five patients is readmitted to the same hospital as a result of complications, errors or a related condition. Under this new pilot program, Good Shepherd will accept a global one-time payment from CIGNA for these identified procedures with the cost of any avoidable readmission within 30 days to be covered by the hospital at no-charge to the client or the customer.

“We are excited about our innovative relationship with CIGNA. We know that this approach will change the way health care is delivered in East Texas and will help us deliver improved and more cost-effective care for area employers and patients,” says Good Shepherd Health System president and chief executive officer Ed Banos.

The program begins July 1, 2011 and will be effective for all CIGNA clients and customers in Texas who use Good Shepherd doctors and hospitals.

About CIGNA

CIGNA (NYSE: CI) is a global health service and financial company dedicated to helping people improve their health, well-being and sense of security. CIGNA Corporation's operating subsidiaries in the United States provide an integrated suite of health services, such as medical, dental, behavioral health, pharmacy and vision care benefits, as well as group life, accident and disability insurance. CIGNA offers products and services in more than 29 countries and jurisdictions and has approximately 66 million customer relationships throughout the world. All products and services are provided exclusively by such operating subsidiaries and not by CIGNA Corporation. Such operating subsidiaries include Life Insurance Company of North America, CIGNA Life Insurance Company of New York, and Connecticut General Life Insurance Company. To learn more about CIGNA, visit www.cigna.com. To sign up for email alerts or an RSS feed of company news, log on to http://newsroom.cigna.com/rss. Also, follow us on Twitter at @cigna, visit CIGNA’s YouTube channel at http://www.youtube.com/cigna and listen to CIGNA's podcast series with healthy tips and information at http://www.cigna.com/podcasts or by searching "CIGNA" in iTunes.

About Good Shepherd Health System

Good Shepherd Health System is a three hospital healthcare system with hospitals located in Longview, Marshall and Linden, Texas and system net revenue of $511 million. The Longview medical center is a full service, acute-care 425-bed regional referral center, that is designated a Level II Trauma Center, an Accredited Chest Pain Center, and a Certified Primary Stroke Center. With an average of 20,000 inpatient discharges and more than 88,000 patient visits to the Emergency Room each year, Good Shepherd serves as the region’s primary tertiary care facility. The Medical Center is also home to the region’s first Level IIIa Neonatal Intensive Care Unit and cares for more than 3,000 baby deliveries each year. The Longview hospital has received national recognition for providing quality healthcare from HealthGrades, CareChex, Texas Medical Foundation and Blue Cross Blue Shield. The Marshall hospital is a 149-bed facility that joined Good Shepherd Health System in 2007 and is a Level III Trauma Center. The Linden hospital is a 25-bed critical access hospital that is designated a Level IV Trauma Center. As not-for-profit community hospitals, Good Shepherd’s mission is to impact and improve the health of the communities served providing healthcare services to all who seek it regardless of their ability to pay.

CIGNAGwyn Dilday, 818-500-6370
[email protected]

Source: CIGNA