Health Care Innovation Awards: Wyoming
Notes and Disclaimers:
- Projects shown may also be operating in other states (see the Geographic Reach)
- Descriptions and project data (e.g. gross savings estimates, population served, etc.) are 3 year estimates provided by each organization and are based on budget submissions required by the Health Care Innovation Awards application process.
- While all projects are expected to produce cost savings beyond the 3 year grant award, some may not achieve net cost savings until after the initial 3-year period due to start-up-costs, change in care patterns and intervention effect on health status.
HEALTHLINKNOW, INC.
Project Title: "Patient-centered medical home for mental health services in Wyoming and Montana"
Geographic Reach: Montana, Wyoming
Funding Amount: $7,718,636
Estimated 3-Year Savings: $8,100,000
Summary: HealthLinkNow Inc, partnering with a number of local provider groups and health networks in Montana and Wyoming, is receiving an award to provide a Patient Centered Medical Home Program (PCMH) with mental health and substance abuse services in areas where geography and lack of psychiatrists and psychologists complicate access. This model will offer videoconferencing between local patients and HealthLinkNow psychiatrists; instant messaging, email, and telephone calls via HealthLinkNow between providers and patients; and a HealthLinkNow IT platform that allows billing, e-prescribing, and practice management. The program will improve access to psychiatric consultations, therapy, and long-term mental health case management. Lower cost through reduced hospital admissions and emergency room visits are anticipated.
Over a three-year period, HealthLinkNow will hire 24 health care providers, including both psychiatrists and therapists.
MEMORIAL HOSPITAL OF LARAMIE COUNTY DBA CHEYENNE REGIONAL
Project Title: “Wyoming: a frontier state's strategic partnership for transforming care delivery”
Geographic Reach: Wyoming
Funding Amount: $14,246,153
Estimated 3-Year Savings: $33,227,238
Summary: Memorial Hospital of Laramie County (the Cheyenne Regional Medical Center) is receiving an award to transform primary care delivery across Wyoming, a State which faces special challenges because of its low population density and limited health care resources. Cheyenne Regional and its partners will retool primary care education, enhance connectivity between hospitals and primary care providers, improve pharmaceutical management of high cost populations, increase medication availability and provider access for vulnerable patients, and address the complex social issues affecting the health of vulnerable populations. Through care redesign, care coordination, and the creation of a referral database to track community-based services for patients, the project will reduce dependency on hospitals for primary care, increase access to primary care, improve care transitions, and enhance community-based, health-related social service delivery for the comprehensive care of vulnerable populations. The result will be better and more cost-effective use of health care resources and better quality health care.
Over a three-year period, the Cheyenne Regional Medical Center’s program will train an estimated 90 workers and create an estimated 33 jobs. The new workforce will include a strategic initiatives director, a strategic performance manager, a financial analyst, support staff, 28 RN care transition coaches, and a technical support coordinator.