Milwaukee-based Independent Care Health Plan (iCare), a managed care organization offering both Medicare and Medicaid insurance benefits, has been selected as one of eight organizations in the United States to be included in a national research study.
The National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) selected iCare to participate in a research study to identify best practices in programs which integrate medical care and long-term services and supports for individuals with complex needs. NCQA has titled the study, “Case Studies on Best Practices: Goal Setting and Achievement and Sharing Assessment and Care Plan Information.”
“Wisconsin continues to be an innovator when it comes to adapting care services to the individual, rather than a one-size-fits-all model of care,” says Kitty Rhoades, Secretary of the Wisconsin Department of Health Services. “I think it’s great that the NCQA has chosen iCare to be included in its research, so that others might benefit from their approach.”
The study will focus on iCare’s Family Care Partnership program. Family Care Partnership is a managed care program that fully integrates Medicare and Medicaid services, including long term care services, and is designed to enable people with nursing home levels of needs to continue living in the community.
“iCare began originally as a CMS (Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services) research and demonstration program to test the value of managed care for vulnerable populations,” says iCare CEO, Dr. Thomas Lutzow. “Since that time, it has become one of Wisconsin’s premier Family Care Partnership programs for people with a nursing level of need. iCare has developed a unique expertise in assisting these members to achieve their health, life and other personal goals.”
The purpose of the case study is to improve the quality, integration and experience of care for those receiving long-term care or behavioral health services and supports. The case study will gain insight from iCare’s staff and supporting clinicians, on best practices for documenting and sharing member assessment, goal and care plan information with providers across care settings. If selected to participate in the second phase of the study, researchers will interview care managers and other clinicians, plan members and their families to identify best practices in assessing members’ goals and using those goals to plan care and services. NCQA will use this knowledge to disseminate recommendations for best practices in this field to other health care organizations.
