Statin Therapy, CME Opportunity, and Immunization Awareness Month

Welcome to the August issue of the Summit Health Newsletter. As a valued Summit Health partner, we appreciate your commitment to providing the highest quality care to our members.

Below is a preview of the articles you will find in this month's issue:

• Member Experience Survey for Your Patients
• Helping Your Patients Get the Most from Their Statin Therapy
• 11th Annual EOCCO Summit
• August is Immunization Awareness Month

Visit archived newsletters here.

Your voice matters

To ensure we are providing the information you need to deliver better care to your patients, we would love to hear from you. Please let us know if you have any questions, concerns or recommendations on topics that we can include in future issues.

Thank you,

Your Summit Health Team

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Member Experience Survey for Your Patients

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has made member and patient experience a top priority with Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (CAHPS) survey measures now making up 33% of the Star Ratings calculations for Medicare Advantage. These Star Measures include rating the experience with the health and drug plan, health care quality, access to care, and care coordination between providers.

Summit Health is committed to providing great member experience and continual improvement. One of the ways we are doing this is by partnering with Press Ganey to conduct an off-cycle CAHPS survey with a sample of our Summit Health members in August and September to help us collect feedback to inform future improvements in serving your patients.

We ask that you support us in encouraging your patients to respond to the survey if they are selected in the sample. This way, we can share de-identified aggregate feedback to you at the end of this outreach. Many of your patients may receive the 2024 Medicare CAHPS, and the interactions you have with your patients and their perception will directly impact CAHPS Star Measure Ratings.

Helping Your Patients Get the Most from Their Statin Therapy

Thank you for supporting your patients in their health management. Below, we’ve provided a brief Q&A on the significance of performance measures in statin therapy. Also included are some resources to help make sure your patients with cardiovascular disease and diabetes are getting the full health benefits from their statin medications.

What are the Healthcare Effectiveness Data and Information Set (HEDIS) statin measures?

• There are two HEDIS statin measures: Statin Therapy for Patients with Cardiovascular Disease (SPC) and Statin Use in Persons with Diabetes (SPC or also known as SUPD for Medicare)
• The National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) measure description for SPC is: “The percentage of males 21-75 and females 40-75 years of age with ASCVD who: 1) receive statin therapy of at least one high-intensity or moderate-intensity statin medication and 2) remain on their high-intensity or moderate-intensity statin medication for at least 80% of the treatment period.”
• The NCQA measure description for SUPD is: “The percentage of patients 40-75 years of age with diabetes who do not have ASCVD who: 1) receive statin therapy of at least one high-intensity or moderate-intensity statin medication and 2) remain on their high-intensity or moderate-intensity statin medication for at least 80% of the treatment period.” Two rates are reported: “Received Statin Therapy” and “Statin Adherence 80%”

Why are SPC and SUPD important?

• Cardiovascular diseases are the leading cause of death globally, leading to around 32% of all global deaths annually¹.
• Atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) occurs when plaque builds up in the arterial walls. It includes the following conditions: coronary heart disease (CHD), cerebrovascular disease, peripheral artery disease, and aortic atherosclerotic disease^2.
• Statin medications work in the liver to prevent cholesterol from forming. They help to lower LDL cholesterol and triglycerides while raising HDL cholesterol. They are recommended for many patients who have been patients with increased risk of heart attack or stroke².
• Diabetes, dyslipidemia, hypertension, and history of smoking are considered CVD risk factors, which may increase the risk of one having a cardiovascular event³.

How can you help close these gaps?

• Prescribe a high or moderate-intensity statin medication to patients diagnosed with ASCVD or diabetes.
• Help ensure patients are dispensing their medication timely and are confident in their treatment regimen.
• Follow up with patients on statin medications to answer any questions and help resolve any prescription refill issues.

Which statin medications fulfill the NCQA measure requirements?

• High-intensity statin therapy
  • Atorvastatin 40-80 mg
  • Amlodipine-atorvastatin 40-8mg
  • Rosuvastatin 20-40 mg
  • Simvastatin 80 mg
  • Ezetimibe-simvastatin 80 mg
    
     
• Moderate-intensity statin therapy
  • Atorvastatin 10-20 mg
  • Amlodipine-atorvastatin 10-20 mg
  • Rosuvastatin 5-10 mg
  • Simvastatin 20-40 mg
  • Ezetimibe-simvastatin 20-40 mg
  • Pravastatin 40-80 mg
  • Lovastatin 40 mg
  • Fluvastatin 40-80 mg

Are there resources for my Summit Health patients?

• Summit Health offers health coaching services to all Summit Health members to help improve self-management, understand health, and set sustainable goals. Refer your patients to our health coaching team at 833-460-0442 or careprograms@yoursummithealth.com
• Engage your patients in decisions about their cardiovascular care. Evidence shows that including patients in decision making related to their CVD may improve the patient experience, patient satisfaction, reduce patient decisional regret, and even decrease CVD risk^4,5.

Sources:

1. https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/cardiovascular-diseases-(cvds)
2. https://www.heart.org/en/professional/quality-improvement/ascvd
3. https://www.uspreventiveservicestaskforce.org/uspstf/recommendation/statin-use-in-adults-preventive-medication
4. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2384995/
5. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3534845/

11th Annual EOCCO Summit

Join Eastern Oregon Coordinated Care Organization (EOCCO) for the 11th Annual EOCCO Summit on September 21st at the Wildhorse Resort and Casino in Pendleton, Oregon!

This event is approved for 5.25 CME credits and is free and open to all professionals serving EOCCO members, including clinicians, office staff, and community-based organizations. Topics include telehealth utilization, acute psychiatric care, quality measures and so much more.

This year, there will not be a virtual attendance option. So, make sure to reserve your spot by September 1, 2023, to ensure your participation in this event.

Register for the 11th Annual EOCCO Summit today!

We look forward to seeing you on September 21st.

August is Immunization Awareness Month

Vaccines are safe and effective at preventing serious disease. As trusted providers of the Summit Health community, you play a key role in educating patients about the importance of adult vaccinations. Help us improve vaccination rates in your community by providing education around vaccine safety and dispelling misinformation with your patients.

• Assess immunization status of your patients at every visit
• Strongly recommend vaccines they may be due for
• Speak with patients that may be hesitant to answer questions about vaccine safety, risk, or other concerns to reassure them that vaccines are safe and effective at preventing serious diseases
• Administer recommended vaccines or refer to a vaccination provider

Encourage your patients to schedule appointments to ensure they are up to date on annual exams and recommended vaccines. Your Summit Health patients have a covered Annual Wellness Visit (once every calendar year), an Annual Physical Exam (once every calendar year), and certain vaccines covered at no cost including pneumonia, influenza, Hepatitis B vaccine, COVID-19, and other vaccines if they are at risk and meet Medicare Part B coverage rues.

Visit the CDC for the Adult Immunization Schedule and other educational resources and Continuing Medical Education (CMEs) for healthcare professionals .

Upcoming Events & Training

Summit Health Spring Clinic Trainings

Our EOCCO and Summit Health Quality Improvement (QI) team provides concierge support through dedicated QI staff, clinic trainings, and regular touchpoints.

Please contact EOCCOmetrics@modahealth.com to schedule a meeting, if interested.

Questions?

Questions related to EOCCO & Summit Health Quality Measures?
Please email EOCCOmetrics@modahealth.com

Questions related to Risk Adjustment?
Please email risk@yoursummithealth.com

Questions related to HEDIS Chart Collection?
Please email HEDIS@modahealth.com

If you would like to be added or removed from this email list, please let us know at ProviderInquiry@yoursummithealth.com