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Emory Healthcare and Walmart collaborate on employee health, spine surgery and joint replacement surgery

Media Contact

Janet Christenbury
Emory Healthcare
Kory Lundberg
Walmart

Under the new ACP, Walmart associates at 55 Walmart, Sam’s Club and Walmart Distribution Center locations throughout metro-Atlanta will have the opportunity to select Emory Accountable Care Plan as their primary health care plan.

Emory Accountable Care Plan will serve Walmart associates in the Atlanta metropolitan area; Walmart names Emory as national Center of Excellence for spine surgery and joint replacement surgery

ATLANTA - With a combined goal of improving the quality of patient care while lowering health care costs, Emory Healthcare and Walmart announced today the rollout of a new Accountable Care Plan (ACP) for Walmart associates in metro-Atlanta.
 
The companies also announced that Emory University Orthopaedics & Spine Hospital (EUOSH) and Emory Orthopaedics & Spine Center will be included in Walmart’s National spine surgery and joint replacement surgery Centers of Excellence (COE) programs for Walmart associates in need of spine or joint care throughout the U.S. Both the ACP and the COE were effective Jan. 1, 2018.
 
“When Walmart approached Emory about these opportunities, we were excited to partner with Walmart, a progressive company dedicated to transforming health care and its delivery process,” says Patrick Hammond, CEO of Emory Healthcare Network. “More and more large, self-insured employers like Walmart are looking for new and creative solutions as a potential way to decrease costs of health care plans for employees, while improving the overall quality of the care. This partnership is a win-win for everyone involved.”
 
“We are excited to add Emory to our Centers of Excellence Network and to partner with them on our new Accountable Care Plan,” says Lisa Woods, Sr. Director of Healthcare Benefits for Walmart U.S. “We continue looking for innovative ways to support our associates and ensure they receive the best and most appropriate care. Not only does Emory offer a quality provider network, but Emory has also been a great partner in supporting payment reform initiatives. We appreciate Emory’s willingness to innovate with us as we evolve our programs.”
 
Under the new ACP, Walmart associates at 55 Walmart, Sam’s Club and Walmart Distribution Center locations throughout metro-Atlanta will have the opportunity to select Emory Accountable Care Plan as their primary health care plan.
 
Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs) are collaborations among physicians, hospitals and payers or employers that work together to align care for their patients. The ACO’s clinically integrated network of providers is instrumental in providing the most appropriate care to members enrolled in the Accountable Care Plan. The participating providers assume the accountability for improving the quality of patient care and lowering costs through better coordination and preventive care, with more proactive outreach to members.
 
Local Walmart associates can access care through the Emory Healthcare Network of more than 2,000 physicians geographically dispersed throughout the metro-Atlanta area. The employees will pay standard co-pays for their primary care, specialist and urgent care visits, and have access to services provided in the Centers of Excellence program. Preventive visits will be free of charge.
 
As part of their Centers of Excellence benefits, Walmart associates in certain locations will have access to Emory spine and joint services and its physician experts. Centers of Excellence accept a fixed bundled payment for specific procedures such as clinical evaluations and surgical procedures. Patients receive high-quality care from skilled physician experts at COEs and employers appreciate cost predictability for the care of their employees.
 
Under the COE program, Walmart associates enrolled in a Walmart sponsored plan will pay no out-of-pocket costs for certain spine and joint replacement surgeries at EUOSH or Emory Orthopaedics & Spine Center. Travel-related costs to Emory will be covered by Walmart. Members enrolled in the Emory ACP will also have access to certain weight loss and cardiac surgeries at Emory under the COE benefit.
 
“We are excited that Walmart has chosen EUOSH and the Emory Orthopaedics & Spine Center as part of its Centers of Excellence program,” says Scott Boden, MD, director of the Emory Orthopaedics & Spine Center and chairman of the board of directors of the Emory Healthcare Network. “Walmart’s decision recognizes that having a group of physicians, nurses and staff dedicated solely to joint replacement and spine surgery translates directly into better outcomes for their employees and families. When you have people and a facility that focus on performing just one or two areas of surgery, it allows you to achieve efficiencies and results that are difficult to achieve in a conventional hospital setting.”
 
“We welcome this partnership with Walmart and are proud to extend our comprehensive services throughout metro Atlanta to its associates,” says Jonathan S. Lewin, MD, president, CEO and chairman of the board of Emory Healthcare.


About Emory Healthcare Network
Established in 2011, the Emory Healthcare Network (EHN) is a network of Emory faculty, private practice physicians and hospitals formed to improve care coordination and quality outcomes, as well as control costs for patients and the community. EHN members collaborate around a common set of quality measures and goals. With seven hospitals, 200 provider locations, and 2,000 physicians in more than 70 specialties, including 240 primary care physicians, EHN is one of the largest clinically integrated networks in Georgia.

About Emory University Orthopaedics & Spine Hospital
Established in 2007, Emory Orthopaedics & Spine Hospital (EUOSH) was designed as a patient- and family-centered facility focused on providing the best hospital environment and experience for total joint replacement and spinal surgery. The hospital consistently ranks amongst the highest in the country in patient satisfaction and quality scores. In 2016, EUOSH was awarded Magnet designation from the American Nurses Credentialing Center for nursing excellence.

About Emory Orthopaedics & Spine Center
The Emory Orthopaedics & Spine Center, one of the largest academic and integrated outpatient spine and orthopaedics centers, has 24 physicians across nine locations specializing in orthopaedic spine surgery, neurological spine surgery, physical medicine & rehabilitation, and occupational medicine. Evaluations before surgery/procedures and follow-up care after surgery/procedures are conducted at these outpatient centers located throughout metro Atlanta.

About Walmart
Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE: WMT) helps people around the world save money and live better - anytime and anywhere - in retail stores, online, and through their mobile devices. The company’s legal name will become Walmart Inc., effective on Feb. 1, 2018, to reflect its growing status as an omni-channel retailer. Each week, over 260 million customers and members visit our more than 11,600 stores under nearly 60 banners in 28 countries and eCommerce websites. With fiscal year 2017 revenue of $485.9 billion, Walmart employs approximately 2.3 million associates worldwide. Walmart continues to be a leader in sustainability, corporate philanthropy and employment opportunity. Additional information about Walmart can be found by visiting corporate.walmart.com, on Facebook at facebook.com/walmart and on Twitter at @walmart.


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