Bowling Green, Ky. (November 18, 2016) — The Southern Kentucky Health Care Alliance was named in the national top 1 percent of Accountable Care Organizations (ACO) for quality care, receiving a 100 percent quality score. Of the nearly 400 Medicare ACOs in the country, the Federal Government rated four organizations with a 100 percent quality score. Currently, Graves Gilbert Clinic is partners with 122 of the 151 physicians comprising the Southern Kentucky Health Care Alliance, and serves as the driving force of the organization’s success.

“We have always provided excellent care to our patients and community,” Graves Gilbert Clinic Inpatient Specialist and Internal Medicine Physician, Dr. Kamal Singh said. “This score only serves to confirm that fact. [This] ACO has positioned the Clinic to successfully navigate the changes in healthcare, and to continue to deliver the top quality, low-cost care that our patients and their families have come to know and expect.”

Medicare annually evaluates the performance of ACOs across the nation.

Congress created the ACO Program to encourage collaboration among physicians and hospitals to improve the quality of care while reducing costs for Medicare patients.  Physicians, hospitals and suppliers may participate in our ACO.

“We have achieved this (score) with a combination of diligent attention to detail and very careful management of complex clinical care,” Graves Gilbert Clinic Internal Medicine Physician and President of the ACO, Dr. Pravin N. Avula said. “Our ACO administrative staff have implemented a team approach to coordinating care, and our success is largely due to the use of analytic and population management data with good old fashioned, hands-on patient care by our physicians and nurses. We hope to continue this trend for the future.”

Mr. Thorn, CEO of Graves Gilbert Clinic indicated that in addition to providing top quality care to Medicare patients, we were able to save the government over $12,000,000.

“Our goal is to apply the Medicare lessons learned to our commercially insured patients.  This will result in high quality, cost effective care that the employers and employees expect and deserve.”