91视频

Gov. John Kitzhaber鈥檚 vision of health care reform for Oregon took root during his first term in office, and over the years has involved myriad stakeholders and many work group meetings to draft the legislation behind the Coordinated Care Organization model. With the first wave of implementation beginning Aug. 1, CCOs are designed to integrate physical, mental and dental health care for patients covered by the Oregon Health Plan and Medicaid. The objective is to improve the quality of care and lower costs by emphasizing prevention, reducing waste, improving efficiencies, and eliminating disparities in quality of care and outcomes.

Jeremy Vandehey, an attorney with the Oregon Health Authority in Salem, which oversees the Oregon Health Plan, says the key piece of legislation behind the CCO model – HB 3650 – was crafted by a 44-member stakeholder group. The CCO model builds on the underlying fundamentals of Medicaid and managed care, but is unique to Oregon and positions the state as a pilot for similar models in other states.

Under the program, Oregon Health Plan benefits will remain the same and people covered under the plan will continue to see their same providers. As CCOs continue to form and gain certification, more patients will be enrolled between Sept. 1 and Nov. 1. The Oregon Health Authority notes that CCOs have the flexibility to accommodate their specific region and the cultural diversity of Oregon Health Plan members in various communities.聽 Gwen Dayton, general counsel and vice president of health policy for the Oregon Medical Association, was involved in crafting the CCO legislation and says there is a lot of pressure for the CCO model to succeed as the state attempts to do more with less.

鈥淲e鈥檇 all love to have a crystal ball and see where we are a year from now,鈥� Dayton says. 鈥淚t鈥檚 going to be a bumpy road and I鈥檓 sure there will be things we fix along the way, but one of the great things is that we were all willing to come together to create a better way of providing efficient, high-quality care to people.鈥�

According to the Oregon Health Authority, a third-party analysis found that CCOs could help Oregon save $1 billion in health costs over the next three years and more than $3.1 billion over the next five years. The state received $1.9 billion in federal funding earlier this year to implement the CCOs.