Latest / Becker’s Payer Issues Podcast / Strategic Growth in Home-Based Care with Brendan Kerrigan
Transcript
- 0:00Evernorth brings the power of wonder and relentless
- 0:02innovation to create world class pharmacy care and
- 0:05benefit solutions. Our connected health services make the
- 0:09treatment, prediction, and prevention of health care's most
- 0:12complex conditions
- 0:13easier and more accessible as we drive organizations
- 0:16and people forward. Ever North Home Based Care
- 0:19provides value based care that helps patients with
- 0:22multiple chronic conditions
- 0:23and social determinant of health barriers get the
- 0:26care they need and the personalized experience they
- 0:28deserve. We serve patients who struggle to navigate
- 0:31the health care system by bringing high quality
- 0:34primary
- 0:35and preventative care services to the home. By
- 0:37providing clinical care and support services that provide
- 0:40whole person care, we improve health equity, access,
- 0:44and outcomes for the populations we serve.
- 0:47Hello, everyone, and thank you for tuning in
- 0:49to the Becker's Health Care podcast. Thrilled today
- 0:51to be joined by Brendan Kerrigan, senior director
- 0:53of business development at Evernorth Health Services Home
- 0:55Based Care. Brandon, thank you so much for
- 0:57joining us today. Thank you.
- 1:00Brandon, can you please share a little bit
- 1:01about yourself and your background with the audience?
- 1:03Sure. I'd be happy to. Thanks.
- 1:05So I lead business development for Evernorth Home
- 1:08Based Care.
- 1:09I've been in the, health care environment for
- 1:11a good 30 plus years. And I've been
- 1:13in the payer space as well as the
- 1:16payments and digital therapeutic space.
- 1:20What drew me to Evernorth and for the
- 1:23services that we provide is really around the
- 1:25why.
- 1:26And the why for me and for us
- 1:28is really focusing on those members and those
- 1:31patients that,
- 1:33are challenged with our current healthcare delivery system
- 1:35and how we can help improve their care
- 1:38journey by bringing care into the home.
- 1:41So from improving member experience to controlling costs,
- 1:44payer executives have ambitious goals for 2024 and
- 1:47beyond. Can you please tell us a little
- 1:48bit more about how Evernorth's HBC model can
- 1:50address these goals?
- 1:51Sure. I think there's really three things I'd
- 1:53like to focus on,
- 1:55as we think about the the opportunities for
- 1:58health plans
- 1:59as they address their their,
- 2:01strategic objectives for 2025 and beyond. And the
- 2:05first is the shift in demographics.
- 2:07And I think we can all see this
- 2:08in the data that plays out that we've
- 2:10got an aging population. And along with that
- 2:13comes, an increased prevalence in chronic conditions.
- 2:16So that's the first. The second one,
- 2:19and the data supports and bears this out
- 2:21is that there's a growing,
- 2:23preference for care to be delivered in the
- 2:25home. I think we can all appreciate,
- 2:28loved ones who,
- 2:29would really prefer to have care delivered in
- 2:32the home.
- 2:33We know that it optimizes,
- 2:34clinical outcomes,
- 2:36for the members for whom we serve. And
- 2:38I think the third is really around the
- 2:41the intersection of of quality and cost
- 2:44in that we know that by providing,
- 2:47care in the home,
- 2:48to the extent that it is going to
- 2:50be,
- 2:52clinically,
- 2:53validated,
- 2:54we know that there will be, improvements in
- 2:56clinical outcomes and member satisfactions and cost savings.
- 3:00So how does technology play a role in
- 3:02developing your growth strategies?
- 3:04So for us, we take a little bit
- 3:06of a different view on technology.
- 3:09We invest in a couple of different areas.
- 3:11The primary area that we invest in on
- 3:13technology is how do we help support our
- 3:16clinical care team that is going into the
- 3:18home
- 3:19so that their engagement with the member is
- 3:22really focused on the member and less so
- 3:24on any administrative
- 3:26tasks.
- 3:26So we really wanna make sure that they
- 3:28have the best tools and resources available to
- 3:31them as clinicians going into the home so
- 3:34that they can focus first and foremost on
- 3:36the needs of the member.
- 3:37The second area that we we do focus
- 3:40on is,
- 3:42to provide
- 3:43technology to our members and patients
- 3:46that can help them on their care journey.
- 3:48However, it is not, something that is always
- 3:51going to be adapted, especially if we're dealing
- 3:54with
- 3:55a a age member of the population
- 3:57who may not be as technologically savvy in
- 4:00terms of the services that we would provide.
- 4:03In closing on that statement, I would say
- 4:05that we we do use and will use
- 4:08virtual services,
- 4:10when the patient or member is comfortable with
- 4:12that to help advance the care journey.
- 4:15So 2025 is right around the corner.
- 4:18What are some of the top areas of
- 4:20focus for Evernorth home based care you head
- 4:21into the new year?
- 4:23So I think one of the one of
- 4:24the primary things that we're focused on with
- 4:27our health plan partners
- 4:28is how do we help them on their
- 4:31strategic journey to meet the needs of their
- 4:34members around health equity and social determinants of
- 4:37health? I know this is a topic that,
- 4:39has been getting a lot of, press lately
- 4:42and
- 4:43our view is that we think we can
- 4:45serve a critical role in doing that. As
- 4:48our clinicians go into the home,
- 4:50we're able
- 4:51to be what I call the eyes, ears,
- 4:53and hands on in the home to understand
- 4:56what are the SDOH factors that that member
- 4:59might be faced with. That's something that just
- 5:00simply can't be accomplished through a
- 5:03a telephone or other type of virtual interaction.
- 5:07However, with our clinicians in the home, we're
- 5:10able to look at those things that will
- 5:12impact,
- 5:13the journey around SDOH and health equity. And
- 5:16those examples would be,
- 5:18is there appropriate transportation? Are we dealing with
- 5:20any literacy issues? Do we have housing issues?
- 5:23Do we have activities of daily living issues?
- 5:25And so what are the things that we
- 5:27first and foremost must address before we can,
- 5:30begin helping that member on their care journey?
- 5:33Awesome. Well, thank you so much, Brandon, for
- 5:35joining us today on the show. But before
- 5:36I let you go, do you have any
- 5:38final thoughts you'd like to leave with our
- 5:39listeners? Sure. You know, one last thought I'd
- 5:41like to leave, especially as we partner with
- 5:43health plans, is it's really about alignment of
- 5:47the services that we can bring forth
- 5:50and integrating those with the existing programs that
- 5:53our health plan partners might have in place.
- 5:55We're not,
- 5:57here to replace what's working well. We're here
- 6:00to help supplement,
- 6:01what is already in place and to bring
- 6:04that, clinical care team into the home to
- 6:07help the members on their care journey.
- 6:10Awesome. Well, Brandon, I wanna thank you again
- 6:12for joining us today on the show. To
- 6:14our listeners, thank you for joining us, and
- 6:16please be sure to check out others back
- 6:17and please be sure to check out other
- 6:18Becker's health care podcasts.
- 6:20Have a wonderful rest of your day. Thank
- 6:22you.