26 THE QUEENS COURIER • HEALTH • JANUARY 21, 2021 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM
health
MetroPlus Health ranked New York City’s highest-rated health plan
MetroPlus Health Plan announced
today that it has been ranked New York
City’s highest-rated health plan, according
to the New York State Department
of Health’s 2020 Consumer’s Guide to
Medicaid and Child Health Plus Managed
Care Plans in New York City, the annual
rating of managed care plans on quality of
care delivered and members’ satisfaction
with the care and services they receive.
In New York City, MetroPlusHealth
earned 5 stars in a number of categories
and an overall rating of 5 stars, the highest
possible score. More stars mean better
healthcare.
“Th is outstanding result is another proof
of the superior healthcare and coverage
that over 600,000 MetroPlusHealth members
receive and is refl ective of the excellent
MetroPlusHealth provider network
that puts quality healthcare - and our
members - fi rst,” said Talya Schwartz, MD,
President and CEO of MetroPlusHealth.
Th e health plan’s 2020 5-star Overall
Rating included 5 stars in the clinical
areas of Cardiovascular Care, Diabetes
Care, Child and Adolescent Care, and
Adult Care.
Th e 2020 Consumer’s Guide rates plans
on 10 distinct measures across three categories
– Preventive and Well-Care for
Adults and Children, Quality of Care
Provided to members with Illnesses,
and Patient Satisfaction with Access
and Services – ultimately resulting in an
Overall Rating of 0 to 5 stars.
Ratings are based on a comparison of
plan rates to statewide averages. Quality
ratings are from information submitted
by health plans. Patient satisfaction ratings
are from a member survey conducted
for the Department of Health.
Results for measures involving children
and adolescents are based on members
of both Medicaid and Child Health Plus.
MetroPlusHealth attributes its 5-star
rating, a feat shared by only one other
plan in New York City, to a number of factors,
including:
Hyperfocusing on
Quality Management
The MetroPlusHealth Quality
Management (QM) Department has been
at the forefront of the health plan’s continuously
improving quality measure
scores. Providing convenient access to
care through community events hosted
by the QM team, for example, helped the
Plan close gaps in care for measures such
as dental and diabetic eye screenings, as
well as critical completion of fl u shots.
MetroPlusHealth also increased member
and provider education and participation
in closing gaps in care by modernizing
outreach through texting programs and
ongoing social media postings. Yet the
Plan strategically retained some traditional
methods that work well with their population,
such as mailings and personalized
Photo via Getty Images
telephonic outreach.
Rewarding Members for
Completing Healthy Activities
Another factor in increased member
satisfaction and quality of care was
the Plan’s Member Rewards Program,
launched in 2017. Th e Member Rewards
Program enables members to earn points,
redeemable for premium items, by completing
essential healthcare services such
as well-visits, colonoscopies, medication
adherence, and more, and healthy activities
such as the STEP-UP CHALLENGE,
where members track and work to
increase their physical activity. Signifi cant
improvement in member completion of
required health screenings made a substantial
impact on the HEDIS/QARR
measure rates which directly aff ects the
overall rating.
Improving Communications
Between Departments
Enhanced communications between
departments was also key to the Plan’s
highest-rated plan ranking. This
includes sharing responsibilities for
improvement
interventions between Quality
Management, Integrated Care
Management, Partnership in Care (for
HIV-positive and transgender members),
Behavioral Health, and Pharmacy
to name some of the essential Medical
Management departments.
“Credit must go to the entire team
at MetroPlusHealth,” Dr. Schwartz said.
“Without the dedication and hard work
done by each and every one of our staff ,
as well as our partners at NYC Health +
Hospitals, we would not have topped the
rankings this way,” she added. “Our team
is the reason we earned our stars.”
About MetroPlus Health Plan
Since 1985, MetroPlus Health Plan has
built a reputation for providing access to
aff ordable, quality health care to residents
across New York City.
A wholly-owned subsidiary of NYC
Health + Hospitals, the nation’s largest
public health system, MetroPlusHealth is
the plan of choice for over 600,000 New
Yorkers and has a fi ve-star rating based
on the State’s 2020 Consumer’s Guide to
Medicaid and Child Health Plus Managed
Care Plans in New York City.
Th e plan’s robust network of primary
care doctors and specialists includes
many independent community providers.
Culturally sensitive, and fl uent in more
than 40 languages, MetroPlusHealth staff
is as diverse as the great city it serves.
For more information about
MetroPlusHealth plans, benefi ts, and
services, visit www.metroplus.org and
join the conversation at facebook.com/
MetroPlusHealth/and twitter.com/ @
metroplushealth.
COVID-19 vaccinations administered to QCP residents
BY BILL PARRY
bparry@schnepsmedia.com
@QNS
Residents and staff of the Queens
Centers for Progress residential
program were among the fi rst people
in the New York state intellectual
disabilities community to
receive a COVID-19 vaccination
on the QCP’s Bellerose Campus
on Jan. 7.
Queens Centers for Progress
provides person-centered services
and supports to children and
adults who have developmental
disabilities and many individuals
in its residential program have
been shut in since last March due
to underlying health issues and
fears of spreading the virus further
inside the agency’s group homes.
Th e fi rst round of Moderna
vaccinations were delivered successfully,
according to Dr. Frank
Pantina, the pharmacy supervisor
of Total Care Rx, which administered
the inoculations.
“Beyond successful,” he said.
“We were booked for 43 immunizations,
but were able to vaccinate
67 individuals at the inaugural
clinic.”
Queens Centers for Progress
helped to spearhead the campaign
to make access to the vaccine for
people with intellectual disabilities
a priority. Ed Weiss, QCP’s director
of Adult Services, said QCP
and Cerebral Palsy NY State advocated
strongly for the residents and
staff to be prioritized in the distribution.
As a result, the state
announced that all individuals
with intellectual or developmental
disabilities living in certifi ed residential
settings, and the staff who
support them, would be included
in phase 1A of the state’s COVID-
19 vaccination plan.
Th e fi rst people to receive the
vaccine were QCP’s Executive
Director Terri Ross, direct support
professional Nicole Majett and
QCP resident Robert Dempsey.
“Far too many people have
become sick and many have passed
on from COVID-19,” Ross said.
“Our QCP family has lost some
very dear people. Getting vaccinated
is the best way to protect yourself,
your family and our community.”
Many programs switched to
online delivery, and continue to
be presented that way. Now, with
the vaccinations becoming available,
more individuals will be able
to return to the in-person activities
they have missed. Families will
be able to visit their relatives soon
and slowly, life for the more than
1,200 people QCP serves daily will
return to something approaching
normal.
Queens Centers for Progress,
now in its 70th year, operates
group homes in Jackson Heights,
Jamaica Estates, New Hyde Park
and there are fi ve such homes on
its Bellerose campus. Photo courtesy of QCP
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