Heart disease is the leading cause of death for both men and women, as well as most racial and ethnic groups, but its even worse for older people: those aged 65 and older are much more likely than younger people to suffer a heart attack, to have a stroke, or to develop coronary heart disease and heart failure.
At the same time, there’s a shift toward value-based care, which are programs that give clinicians incentive payments for the quality of care they provide, rather than just for performing a service. These types of program are particularly popular among Medicare plans.
Now, two companies are coming together to provide specialty cardiac care to Medicare beneficiaries: Story Health, a company that uses virtual care and AI technology to bring high acuity cardiac care into the patient’s home, has partnered with Pearl Health, a company focused on physician enablement and risk bearing in value-based care.
Pearl Health’s mission is enables providers to take advantage of new payment models that transition away from fee-for-service and provide compensation for keeping patients healthy, while also allowing them to proactively manage Medicare patient panels.
Through the Pearl Platform, providers and clinical staff can more easily identify the patients most likely to need attention across a patient panel. They can also explore detailed patient-level information with data across providers and facilities, such as hospital admissions, new diagnoses, and new medications.
For example, the Pearl Platform gives providers and clinical staff admit, discharge, and transfer alerts, so they have the information they need to effectively coordinate care following acute or post-acute events and prevent costly, avoidable hospital readmissions. The company also provides turnkey reporting, giving primary care organizations visibility into the most important determinants of success in value-based models so they can identify where they could deliver better care at a lower cost.
Founded in 2020, Story Health works with health systems so that clinicians can introduce Story Health to their patients, either during a visit or virtually between visits. The clinician explains how it works, and the fact that it allows them to optimize their care between clinic visits, after which the patient goes home with a welcome kit including medication organization tools, remote monitoring devices, and a connection to their care team via SMS on their phone.
The company’s health coaching team schedules an initial phone call with the patient to walk them through the process and then the patient starts their care plan. They’re guided through escalating therapies, taking readings at home, and getting lab work done.
If the patient experiences challenges with symptoms or some other social barrier gets in the way, Story Health’s system will help with clinical escalations and/or logistical solutions.
Through this partnership, Story Health will deliver cardiology care with a focus on chronic cardiovascular conditions such as heart failure, coronary artery disease, and, arrhythmia. The partnership will give primary care providers access to Story Health’s specialty care model, through which patients receive treatment at home with continuous support. For patients, this means less burden from frequent clinic visits, more convenient medical testing, and seamless medication access with Story Health.
“Primary Care Providers in the Pearl Community are passionate about delivering proactive patient care aligned with value. As more of primary care makes the transition from fee-for-service to value, it’s becoming increasingly important to give PCPs access to mission-driven specialty care partners,” Gabriel Drapos, Chief Operating Officer at Pearl Health, said in a statement.
“We’re thrilled to be partnering with Story Health, who we believe has developed a novel approach to better manage patients with cardiovascular disease burdens. We’re excited to work together to deliver better outcomes for patients and providers alike.”
