National ACO Summit Features Healthcare Leader Dr. Richard Merkin

MARINA DEL REY, Calif., June 4, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- The third National Accountable Care Organization (ACO) Summit in Washington, DC, will feature healthcare leader Dr. Richard Merkin, President and CEO of Heritage California ACO, discussing Early Experiences in Medicare: Pioneer ACOs and the Medicare Shared Savings Program on June 7, 2012 at 10:30 am est.

Heritage California ACO is the largest of the 32 Pioneer ACO's in the country selected by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Innovation Center to participate in the new ACO transformative initiative to provide Medicare beneficiaries with higher quality care, while reducing growth in Medicare expenditures through enhanced care coordination. (www.heritagecaliforniaaco.com)

"For over 30 years, we at Heritage have encouraged and supported an accountable care model of healthcare- a model predicated on providing care that is of the highest quality, that improves the health of our members, and that lowers their healthcare costs," said Dr. Merkin. "We are committed to leading the ACO journey, implementing and passing these important savings opportunities on to the consumer."

Dr. Merkin has been at the forefront of a number of leading healthcare initiatives including the Richard Merkin Initiative on Payment Reform and Clinical Leadership at the Engelberg Center for Health Care Reform at The Brookings Institution in Washington, DC. The initiative will support two full time scholars who will study ways we can reform the health care payment system, as well as how to increase the leadership skills of clinicians.

Sponsored by The Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Practice and the Engelberg Center for Healthcare Reform at The Brookings Institution in Washington DC, the ACO Summit will focus on will explore how organizations can align public and private sector ACO initiatives, align quality improvement and cost reduction efforts, effectively participate in the Medicare Shared Savings Program, and learn from the experiences of organizations in the Pioneer ACO Model.

About HPN:

Heritage California ACO is operated by the Heritage Provider Network (HPN) family of organizations which was founded in 1979 by Dr. Richard Merkin, President and CEO. The HPN Network is comprised of Heritage Provider Network, Inc. and its ten affiliated Medical Groups and Independent Physician Associations (IPA) which operate throughout eight counties in Southern, Central and Coastal California, spanning San Luis Obispo and Tulare Counties to the North, Orange County to the South, Riverside and San Bernardino Counties to the East, and the entire Los Angeles basin. HPN is on the cutting edge of the accountable care model of health care delivery: coordinated, patient-doctor centric, integrated health care systems that represent the future of health care in the United States.

HPN has been voted a top 10 provider delivery network by the California Association of Physician Groups and is one of the largest multi-specialty medical groups in California. This system represents a workable, successful business model that has been duplicated with medical groups, IPAs and medical facilities throughout California. HPN delivers high quality, patient centered health care to over 700,000 individuals and through its provider network contracts with 2,300 primary care physicians, 30,000 specialist physicians and over 100 hospitals. HPN is dedicated to quality, affordable health care and putting patients' wellness first. (www.heritageprovidernetwork.com)

SOURCE Heritage Provider Network, Inc.