Feb. 26—An emphasis on improved care coordination could save the state of California $110 billion in healthcare costs over the next decade, according to a report from a year-long collaboration of healthcare leaders. The report details ways to improve care coordination and outcomes.

Members of the Berkeley Forum for Improving California’s Healthcare Delivery System—who include executives for health systems and healthcare purchasers, academic policy experts, and state officials—have agreed to support a risk-adjusted global budget model of paying for coordinated care.

The report proposes the use of global budgets, adjusted for the underlying health of patient populations, as opposed to fee-for-service payment structures, as well as increased emphasis on providing more integrated care by better coordinating care for patients across conditions, providers, settings, and time.

The group’s goal is to reduce the share of healthcare expenditures under fee-for-service systems from 78 percent to 50 percent by 2022. Another goal is to have 60 percent of California’s population—equivalent to about 23 million people today—be enrolled in fully or highly integrated care systems by 2022, a doubling of the current figure.

Publication Date: Tuesday, February 26, 2013