MedImpact Helps Improve Denver Health Medical Plan’s DHMP 2015 CMS Star Ratings; DHMP Earns “Most Improved” Award

By a News Reporter-Staff News Editor at Insurance Weekly News -- MedImpact Healthcare Systems, Inc., an independent, trend-focused Pharmacy Benefit Manager, helped Denver Health Medical Plan, Inc. (DHMP) improve its Centers for Medicare & Medicaid (CMS) Star Ratings performance, earning the plan Pharmacy Quality Alliance's (PQA) new Quality Improvement Award for the largest increase in stars based on the five PQA medication measures from 2014 to 2015.

"Our partnership with MedImpact is collaborative," said Michelle Beozzo, Pharm.D., Director of Pharmacy for Denver Health Medical Plan. "The implementation of specialized programs for the Medicare population not only improves the quality of care, but more importantly, improves the health of our members. Our Star Ratings are evidence of the plan's continued commitment to the underserved population for whom we provide care."

Denver Health Medical Plan worked closely with MedImpact to identify key Star Ratings measures with the greatest opportunities for improvement and implement programs to address the underperforming measures. Using advanced analytics, segmentation and population health strategies, Denver Health Medical Plan and MedImpact identified members to improve their medication regimen and adherence levels. The focus for improvements was on five measures: High-risk medication: increased from 1 to 5 stars in 2015; diabetes treatment: remained a 5-Star rating in 2015; medication adherence for diabetes medications: increased from 1 to 2 stars in 2015; medication adherence for hypertension (RAS antagonists): increased from 1 to 3 stars in 2015; and medication adherence for cholesterol (statins): increased from 2 to 3 stars in 2015.

These measures are among the highest weighted measures by CMS, and together account for approximately 50% of a plan's Part D Star Rating score and 19% of a plan's overall Star Ratings score.

Program results: High-risk medication use fell nearly 70%; 90-day fill rates doubled; adherence to diabetes, hypertension and statin medications jumped 8 to 9 percentage points; and Part D Summary Rating improved from 2.5 stars in 2014 to 4 in 2015.

"We are pleased that Denver Health Medical Plan is receiving this award," said Marty Mattei, Pharm.D., Vice President, Clinical Product Innovation & Strategy. "It recognizes the importance of quality healthcare, which is a primary focus for our health services team and evident in our client-specific strategies." About MedImpact Healthcare Systems, Inc. MedImpact Healthcare Systems, Inc. is the nation's largest privately held pharmacy benefit management (PBM) company, serving health plans, self-funded employers and government entities. Our business model is unique: avoiding conflicts of interest by not dispensing drugs. MedImpact is focused on effectively managing client pharmacy benefits, which results in better trend management and improved outcomes. We work with clients to promote prescribing to the lowest-net-cost, medically appropriate drug. Our number one goal is client satisfaction by providing flexible solutions and consumer-driven products with a focus on lowest net cost and quality outcomes.

Founded in 1989, MedImpact manages pharmacy benefits for more than 50 million lives in the U.S. and abroad. For more information, go to http://www.medimpact.com. About Denver Health Medical Plan, Inc. Denver Health Medical Plan is a nonprofit health plan created in 1997 to provide quality, accessible and affordable health care services in the Denver area. In partnership with the DHMP provider network, Denver Health Medical Plan continually seeks to improve the health and wellbeing of its members by promoting wellness and disease prevention, providing access to culturally diverse comprehensive health services and enabling members to play an active role in their health care. Denver Health Medical plan provides health insurance for 20,000 members in the Denver area and administers benefits for a 65,000-member Medicaid Managed Care organization.

For more information, go to www.DenverHealthMedicalPlan.org.

Keywords for this news article include: Diabetes, Medicaid, Medicare, Legal Issues, Health Policy, MedImpact Healthcare Systems Inc..

Our reports deliver fact-based news of research and discoveries from around the world. Copyright 2015, NewsRx LLC