How you benefit from value-based care

Value-based care encourages teamwork and integration between doctors and hospitals, because instead of being paid by every service they perform, they receive a single, bundled fee.

Under this fixed payment system, doctors and hospitals are motivated to keep patients well and out of the hospital, and to keep costs under control. When they do a good job of caring for patients and keeping them healthy, they benefit by keeping more of the single, bundled payment. If they don’t do a good job, they may lose some of their payment. 

With value-based care, primary care doctors are often the front line of the healthcare system, responsible for preventing or finding health issues early and acting quickly to address them. This creates a greater need for teamwork with other doctors when it comes to care coordination and integration.

At Carelon Health, our Primary Care puts primary care doctors at the center. They’re supported by a local team of advanced practice providers, nurse practitioners, nurses, specialists, pharmacists, behavioral health clinicians, social workers, and community health workers. The entire team is committed to a patient’s whole health.

If you’re a patient seeing a primary care doctor, nurse practitioner, or specialist who’s part of a value-based care model, you’re not just seeing one person. Most often, you’re working with a team. Even if they aren’t in the room, your care team is working together to understand your health, share information and expertise, review options, and recommend the best care for you. 

When you see a Carelon Health care team member, you may notice that:

• You’re not rushed during your appointment.
• You have time to ask questions and get clear answers.
• Your doctor learns about your health history and current health.
• There’s care coordination and integration.
• Your treatment plan only includes what’s truly needed and is based on the best available evidence.

Traditionally, the United States has used a fee-for-service model. With this model, doctors are paid based on the number of healthcare services they perform, no matter the result. Like an auto mechanic, they’re paid for each thing they do, such as changing the oil, rotating the tires, and replacing spark plugs.   

With fee-for-service, doctors may not be paid for talking about the patient’s case with a specialist, or for following up with a specialist after providing a referral. In addition, a specialist may have little motivation to talk about their findings with the primary care doctor.    

These gaps in communication can cause information that should be shared, to be lost. That can lead to care that’s incomplete, which means a poor result for the patient.