Jefferson Accountable Care, LLC (JAC)
Previous Names: N/A
834 Sheridan Street
Port Townsend, WA 98368
Our ACO
Jefferson Healthcare is extremely proud to announce the creation of Jefferson Accountable Care, our very own Accountable Care Organization (ACO), to participate in the Medicare Shared Savings Program (MSSP). ACOs are groups of doctors, hospitals, and other healthcare providers who come together voluntarily to provide coordinated, high-quality care to the patients they serve. Coordinated care helps ensure that all patients, especially the chronically ill, get the right care at the right time, with the goal of avoiding unnecessary duplication of services and preventing medical errors. All Jefferson healthcare providers are participating in this ACO.
Alternative Payment Models, such as the Medicare Shared Savings Program, are the beginning of a shift away from the traditional fee-for-service healthcare model that historically incentivizes quantity over quality to a value-based care model, which promotes high-quality, lower-cost care. The value-based care model aligns with our organization’s values to deliver the highest level of compassion and quality while adapting healthcare to the needs of our community. As an ACO, we are striving to improve our patients’ health, improve the patient experience, and provide the resources for our providers to support the needs of the population. Jefferson Accountable Care is focused on the patient-centered approach to healthcare.
General Information
What is an Accountable Care Organization?
- Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs) are groups of doctors, hospitals, and other healthcare providers who come together voluntarily to provide coordinated, high-quality care to the Medicare patients they serve. Coordinated care helps ensure that patients, especially the chronically ill, get the right care at the right time, with the goal of avoiding unnecessary duplication of services and preventing medical errors. When an ACO succeeds in delivering high-quality care and spending healthcare dollars more wisely, it will share in any savings it achieves for the Medicare program.
What is Jefferson Accountable Care (JAC)?
- JAC is the name of the new Accountable Care Organization (ACO) created by Jefferson Healthcare, serving Medicare patients in Port Townsend and Eastern Jefferson County. All Jefferson healthcare providers are participating in this ACO.
Who governs Jefferson Accountable Care (JAC)?
- Jefferson Accountable Care (JAC) is wholly owned by Jefferson Healthcare (JH) and governed by a Board consisting of JH physicians, JH leadership, and a community representative (a Medicare beneficiary residing in Jefferson County).
- The current physician board members are Dr. Joseph Mattern and Dr. Steve Butterfield. JH leadership members are Mike Glenn, CEO, and Tyler Freeman, CFO. Our community representative is a retired family physician, Dr. Peter Geerlofs.
Why did JH create JAC?
- Although the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) plans to have every Medicare patient participate in an ACO by 2030, we have decided to organize early and voluntarily to gain experience in this new (and we believe better) approach to Medicare services.
- The value-based care model is in alignment with our organization’s values, we believe:
- Local healthcare is better healthcare.
- Healthcare should be governed by community representatives, informed by community needs and shaped by community voices and the values they represent.
- Healthcare should be accessible to all, easy to navigate and delivered with the highest level of compassion and quality.
- In the dignity and self-worth of everyone we serve and serve with.
How does JAC collaborate with Medicare to improve outcomes?
- JAC will receive additional patient information from CMS to help identify areas that need improvement (for example, doctor, hospital, and pharmacy visits that have happened in the past or occurred outside of Jefferson).
- JAC is accountable for measuring and reporting outcomes of care to Medicare each year, hopefully demonstrating that our population is getting healthier due to these efforts.
- The goal of the program is to improve the quality of care while reducing unnecessary expenses. In the future, JAC may share in the savings with Medicare.
How does JAC impact my Medicare benefits?
- JAC does not impact your benefits.
- JAC is not a Medicare Advantage Plan or an HMO plan. If you have traditional Medicare, you will continue to have the right to use any doctor or hospital that accepts Medicare and are still entitled to all the same Medicare services, benefits, and protections.
How does JAC impact which providers I see?
- JAC does not impact the providers you choose to see.
- The ACO recognizes and preserves the patient’s right to choose their own provider(s) based on what Medicare already allows under your coverage.
How does CMS decide which Medicare beneficiaries are assigned to Jefferson Healthcare’s ACO?
- The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) uses a complex process to determine which Medicare beneficiaries are assigned to an Accountable Care Organization (ACO) and to which one. This process is called a claims-based assignment. CMS outlines the full process in this document.
Can I choose who CMS thinks my primary provider is?
- Voluntary alignment is the process that lets Medicare fee-for-service (FFS) beneficiaries select (or “voluntarily align” with) a primary clinician. Medicare FFS beneficiaries log into MyMedicare.gov or call 1-800-MEDICARE and choose their primary clinician, the health care provider they believe is responsible for coordinating their overall care. Choosing a primary clinician doesn’t affect beneficiaries’ benefits or limit their ability to get care from any healthcare provider they choose. Their selection also doesn’t change Medicare Part A or Medicare Part B billing and payment policies.
Can I opt out of data sharing with the ACO?
- Yes. If you don’t want Medicare to share information with your healthcare providers for care coordination, please call 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227). Medicare may still share general information to measure provider quality. For more information on how Medicare may use and give out your information, visit Medicare.gov and search for “privacy.”
Previous Names: N/A
834 Sheridan Street
Port Townsend, WA 98368
Primary Contact Name | Albert Froling |
Primary Contact Phone Number | 360-385-2200 ext. 4958 |
Primary Contact Email Address | afroling@jeffersonhealthcare.org |
ORGANIZATIONAL INFORMATION
ACO Participants
ACO Participants | ACO Participant in Joint Venture |
Jefferson County Public Hospital District No. 2, dba Jefferson Healthcare | N |
ACO GOVERNING BODY
Member
Last Name | First Name | Title/Position | Voting Member’s Power | Membership Type | ACO Participant Legal Business Name |
Glenn | Mike | Board Chair and President | 20% | ACO Participant | Jefferson Public Hospital District No. 2 |
Freeman | Tyler | Treasurer | 20% | ACO Participant | Jefferson Public Hospital District No. 2 |
Mattern, MD | Joseph | Medical Director | 20% | ACO Participant | Jefferson Public Hospital District No. 2 |
Butterfield, MD | Steve | Practicing Physician | 20% | ACO Participant | Jefferson Public Hospital District No. 2 |
Geerlofs | Peter | Medicare Beneficiary | 20% | Medicare Beneficiary Representative |
KEY ACO CLINICAL & ADMINISTRATIVE LEADERSHIP
Tyler Freeman | ACO Executive |
Joseph Mattern, MD | Medical Director |
Brandie Manuel | Compliance Officer |
Brandie Manuel | Quality Assurance/Improvement Officer |
ASSOCIATED COMMITTEES AND LEADERS
Committee Name | Committee Leader Name and Position |
Executive Committee | Mike Glenn, CEO and Tyler Freeman, CFO |
Quality Improvement and Quality Assurance Committee | Brandie Manuel, Chief of Patient Safety and Quality |
Audit and Finance Committee | Tyler Freeman, CFO |
TYPES OF ACO PARTICIPANTS, OR COMBINATION OF PARTICIPANTS, THAT FORMED THE ACO:
- Hospital employing ACO Professionals
Shared Savings and Losses
None to date
QUALITY PERFORMANCE RESULTS
Our ACO did not participate in the Shared Savings Program in the 2022 performance year, therefore, this section is not applicable at this time.
- Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS): Home – Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services | CMS
- U.S. Department of Health and Human Services: Office of the Inspector General: About OIG | Office of Inspector General | Government Oversight | U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (hhs.gov)