YMCA and athenahealth Partner on Community Integrated Health
Organizations Will Work Together To Extend Historic National Diabetes Prevention Program In Massive Effort to Curtail Chronic Disease
YMCA of the USA (Y-USA), a leading community-based nonprofit committed to improving the nation’s health, and athenahealth, Inc. (NASDAQ:ATHN), a leading provider of network-enabled services and mobile applications for healthcare providers nationwide, today announced the organizations will work together to support and strengthen the role of the community-based organization in the delivery of preventive services, including the YMCA’s Diabetes Prevention Program (YMCA’s DPP). Together, Y-USA and athenahealth will support local Ys and their healthcare partners as they manage and refer patients with prediabetes to the YMCA’s DPP. The YMCA’s DPP is a twelve-month behavioral and lifestyle intervention initiative targeting adults at risk of developing type 2 diabetes. athenahealth’s health information network and services will allow the Y to connect its programs to over 78,000 clinical providers and expand the services and support it provides to health-seekers in thousands of communities across the U.S.
News of athenahealth and Y-USA’s partnership follows a roundtable event held at a YMCA in Cleveland, OH yesterday by U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Sylvia M. Burwell, where she discussed the DPP. Following the event, the Obama Administration issued a proposed rule that would expand the DPP within Medicare and would allow DPPs recognized by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to submit claims to Medicare for providing diabetes prevention services. The proposed rule follows a recently released Certification of Cost Savings issued by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services for the YMCA’s DPP. Both announcements represent historic “firsts,” as the YMCA’s DPP is the first community-based preventive service proven to reduce healthcare costs and improve health outcomes for people with diabetes.
“The YMCA’s DPP is one of the most tangible examples of how community integrated health may help reduce healthcare costs and prevent chronic diseases like diabetes,” said Dr. Matt Longjohn, national health officer, Y-USA. “Today, in preparation for the YMCA’s DPP’s coverage by Medicare, the Y is proud to announce that we will be partnering with athenahealth to further increase the clinical integration of evidence-based Y programs. By integrating program data with athenahealth’s network-enabled EHR and patient engagement services, our programs will become more accessible to healthcare providers and better able to coordinate care at the community level with data-backed, targeted precision. Yesterday’s announcement from HHS demonstrates that we must continue to build the infrastructure for Ys to become stronger parts of a community integrated healthcare system. athenahealth is the natural, most future-proof partner for the job. This new collaboration will help the Y advance its nearly 170-year-old mission in an era of healthcare transformation.
“Y-USA’s work in community integrated health is indicative of a trend we’ve seen across the healthcare continuum,” said Jonathan Bush, CEO, athenahealth. “Care is moving out of the hospital and into more accessible, convenient, and cost effective venues. The YMCA’s DPP is proof that community integrated health, delivered outside of traditional clinical settings, is highly effective in delivering strong health outcomes. We believe the Y is a disruptive force shaking up the way that we treat the most insidious chronic diseases. We look forward to working in the community with this venerable institution to manage chronic disease natively with the most forward-looking technology, and we are committed to generating results. The Y’s mission to address gaps in care, in order to improve outcomes while lowering cost, is shared by athenahealth and is essential to unbreak healthcare.”
About the Y
The Y is one of the nation’s leading nonprofits strengthening communities through youth development, healthy living and social responsibility. Across the U.S., 2,700 Ys engage 22 million men, women and children – regardless of age, income or background – to nurture the potential of children and teens, improve the nation’s health and well-being and provide opportunities to give back and support neighbors. Anchored in more than 10,000 communities, the Y has the long-standing relationships and physical presence not just to promise, but to deliver, lasting personal and social change. ymca.net.
