BACON from the MaineHealth ACO

Marin Johnson, Dr. Katie Sharp and Dr. Renee Wolf join us to discuss the role community health workers are playing in preventive medicine. Also, co-host Julie Grosvenor, MD, reflects on the role of the ACO and the podcast as she prepares to leave the show.

Rob Chamberlin, MD, the CMO of the MaineHealth ACO, introduces new tools available to MaineHealth providers and practices to help plan and complete Medicare annual wellness visits. Plus, Carrie Gordon, MD, updates us on the Let's Go childhood obesity prevention program.

As the ACO prepares to enter into two-sided risk contracts with Medicare Advantage (MA) plans, we bring you two relevant interviews from previous episodes. The first features the ACO's Lauren Purcell on the intricacies of MA plan star ratings; the second features Brett Loffredo, MD on improving the precision of clinical documentation.

MMP's Caitlin Costigan on using annual synchronized prescribing to improve med adherence; Plus, tips on caring for transgender youth and LGBTQ+ patients.

MaineHealth ACO President Jen Moore provides highlights from the organization's recently released annual report, showing strong performance in 2021. Plus, Carol Zechman, Kimberly Beaudoin and Kate Herrick join Julie and Mike to celebrate 20 years of MaineHealth Access to Care's service to Maine's most vulnerable populations.

Primary care provider Samuel Ferguson, DO, discusses the importance of accurate HCC coding and shares some tips for making improvements. Robert Bing You, MD, and Leah Mallory, MD, introduce Maine Medical Center's Department of Medical Education, which offers innovative training to providers inside and outside the MaineHealth system.

MaineHealth ACO Chief Medical Officer Rob Chamberlin, MD, discusses the experiences of Maine practices taking part in the inaugural year of Medicare's Primary Care First value-based reimbursement model.

MaineHealth ACO Chief Operating Officer Shannon Banks shares new performance results and introduces a sophisticated new data analysis report. Also, Ansar Hassan, MD, on MMC's Mitral Center of Excellence. 

Physicians from across Maine report how they're dealing with the ongoing and intensifying pandemic, both professionally and personally. Listen for diverse insights from Franklin's Ross Isacke, DO; MaineHealth Medical Group's Donald Medd, MD; self-employed provider Kathryn Galbraith, MD; and Waldo's Heather Ward, MD.

Over the past six months, Aileen Mickey, MD, MHA, has been leading the development of the MaineHealth Medical Group, Northern New England's largest multi-specialty medical group. Aileen joins us to discuss her vision for the group and priorities for the year to come.

MMP orthopedic surgeons George Babikian, MD , and Adam Rana, MD , discuss the remarkable success they've had whittling down joint replacement recovery times. Plus, how to help patients enroll in the ACA marketplace health insurance plans.

Accurate and precise clinical documentation matters now more than ever. Brett Loffredo, MD , tells us why. Plus, Amy Mayhew, MD and Melissa Keeport, MD on a training and consultation project to help PCPs better address pediatric behavioral health.

Participants in the ACO will receive millions of dollars in shared savings this year. That's thanks to excellent performance in the Medicare Shared Savings Program. The ACO's chief operating officer, Shannon Banks , provides the details. Also, Ross Feller, MD , is generating savings of his own by moving hand surgery out of the operating room. We learn how.

Our summer vacation episode features two popular stories from the past. First, we offer a reminder of what accountable care organizations do and why they do it. Second, we explore the advantages of telescribes with PenBay's Brad Samojla, DPM.

New MaineHealth CEO Andy Mueller, MD, shares his first impressions of the organization and his priorities going forward. Plus, Peggy Pennoyer, MD, and Don Endrizzi, MD, reflect on their experiences as volunteer COVID vaccinators.

MaineHealth ACO President Jen Moore talks to federal policy expert Blair Childs about the Biden Administration's healthcare policy priorities, including telehealth and value-based care. Also, Memorial Hospital CMO Matt Dunn, MD, reports on a successful effort to increase primary care access in the North Conway area.

MaineHealth ACO Chief Medical Officer Rob Chamberlin, MD, joins us to reveal some of the fresh data readers will find in the ACO's newly released annual report. Also, we talk to Andy Russ, MD, LincolnHealth's VP for Medical Affairs, about his success keeping his regional medical community informed and connected during the pandemic.

On the surface, Medicare Advantage Star Ratings simply allow consumers to compare the quality of Medicare Advantage insurance plans. But deeper down, Star Ratings also drive a complex financial system that includes incentives for providers. The ACO's Lauren Purcell explains. Also, Maine Behavioral Healthcare's Ted Logan, MD, on adapting substance use treatment to the new pandemic-driven reality.

MaineHealth ACO President Jennifer Moore reports on final cost, quality and utilization results from value-based contracts that settled in 2020. Also, LincolnHealth's Timothy Goltz, MD, on the power of poetry to improve meetings.

Dora Anne Mills, MD, MaineHealth's chief health improvement officer and former director of the Maine CDC, answers providers' questions about vaccine availability and distribution in Maine (interview recorded on 1/25/21). Also, we explore a successful effort to establish "age-friendly care" at Maine Medical Center.

The ACO has released Basics and Beyond, a series of clinical documentation guides that provide condition-specific advice on precision coding. In this episode, the ACO's Eiren Menhennitt introduces the guides. Also, Dr. Scot Remick discusses new opportunities for Maine patients to participate in clinical trials.

Next month, more than two dozen primary care practices participating in the ACO will join Primary Care First, a new Medicare program that uses a population-based payment model. Amol Navathe , MD , PhD, a health policy researcher and expert in the model, joins us to discuss. Also, MMC's Gary Hochheiser , MD, introduces the MATRIx program, an effort to streamline the evaluation and care of patients...

MaineHealth ACO Chief Medical Officer Rob Chamberlin, MD, joins Julie and Mike to explore financial and quality results just in from the 2019 performance year of the Medicare Shared Savings Program. Plus, Maine Behavioral Healthcare's Mary Jean Mork discusses an innovative partnership between psychiatry and primary care. 

With MaineHealth ACO President Jen Moore, Julie and Mike discuss the link between ACO participants' performance in the Medicare Incentive-based Payment System (MIPS) and a bump in Medicare reimbursement. Also, Julie talks with Rob Doiron, MD, a Sanford native who has returned to his hometown to begin his general surgery career.

We announce the projects that won innovation grants from the MaineHealth ACO this year and take a close look at one of them, an effort led by Maine Medical Partners dermatologist Elizabeth Seiverling, MD, to train and engage primary care providers in early detection of skin cancers.