The Common Ground Healthcare Cooperative has signed agreements with Aurora Health Care and Trilogy Health Networks.
Common Ground Healthcare Cooperative, a nonprofit health insurance carrier formed under terms of the Affordable Care Act, announced the two critical partnerships that it says will allow for expansive, affordable individual and small group health insurance programs for customers throughout eastern Wisconsin.
The member-governed cooperative is based in Brookfield and its products will be available to individuals, nonprofits and small businesses for enrollment in October 2013 with coverage that will go into effect Jan. 1, 2014.
Common Ground Healthcare Cooperative formed a partnership with Milwaukee-based Aurora Health Care to provide an integrated care approach to services offered to patients and will allow members to choose from a variety of Aurora providers throughout eastern Wisconsin.
“Our focus is to put our member’s health first, and we believe it’s critical to provide an integrated system where physicians and hospitals work together to coordinate our member’s care,” said Bob De Vita, chief executive officer at Common Ground Healthcare Cooperative. “We chose Aurora Health Care as our partner because they have developed a model of care that improves quality and efficiency and enhances the patient’s health care experience.”
Rick Klein, executive vice president of growth and market development at Aurora, said, “This collaborative effort between Aurora and Common Ground Healthcare Cooperative gives Wisconsin residents the opportunity to not only access quality health care, but care that is coordinated to improve outcomes, eliminate waste and curb costs.”
In addition to the Aurora provider network offering, Common Ground Healthcare announced an agreement with Trilogy Health Network, which will allow members to choose health insurance products that allow for a broader choice of health care providers.
Common Ground Healthcare has applied to participate on the Health Insurance Exchange Marketplace and to expand its service area.
Beginning Oct. 1, residents and employers across 19 counties throughout eastern Wisconsin will be able to choose Common Ground Healthcare Cooperative as their insurance carrier, effective Jan. 1, 2014.
Joining the original seven counties of Milwaukee, Racine, Kenosha, Waukesha, Walworth, Washington and Ozaukee are the 12 new counties of Brown, Calumet, Door, Fond du Lac, Kewaunee, Manitowoc, Marinette, Oconto, Outagamie, Shawano, Sheboygan and Winnebago in the service area.
“As we have evolved as an organization over the past year and a half, we’ve worked to find the right partners that can help us bring affordable, quality healthcare services to our members,” said Bob Connolly, chairman of the board of directors and a small business owner. “Being able to have partnerships with Aurora and Trilogy, and to be able to nearly triple the service area to allow more people to join Common Ground Healthcare Cooperative is just tremendous. We can’t wait to roll out our new products later this year.”
In February 2012, Common Ground Healthcare Cooperative was awarded a $56.4 million loan from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to build the new nonprofit organization and bring affordable health care to the region. The loan was made available under the federal Affordable Care Act to fund the start-up of insurance companies that would be a cooperative health care model to provide more affordable health insurance to small businesses, nonprofits and individuals.
