UnitedHealthcare and Saint Luke's Health System in Kansas City, Mo., have announced a partnership to provide UnitedHealthcare's commercial and Medicare health plan customers with access to care provided by St. Luke's.
"By (reaching a fair and mutually beneficial agreement with UnitedHealthcare), we are ensuring that more residents have access to the finest healthcare services in the region," said G. Richard Hastings, president and CEO of Saint Luke's.
As part of the new agreement, UnitedHealthcare, Saint Luke's and their physicians will collaborate on innovative programs designed to promote quality care including performance-based payments and the adoption of health information technology. For example, making digital patient records accessible to improve the quality of care and patient safety while helping reduce administrative costs.
Saint Luke's Health System has been recognized for its quality performance. Saint Luke's Hospital, the health system's flagship facility, was among the first hospitals in the country to receive the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award.
UnitedHealthcare, a UnitedHealth Group company, serves more than 469,000 residents in the Kansas City region with a healthcare provider network of more than 8,000 physicians and 159 hospitals.
"UnitedHealthcare and Saint Luke's Health System look forward to strengthening our shared commitment to deliver broad access to quality, affordable healthcare for our customers in the Kansas City area," said William Tracy, CEO, UnitedHealthcare of Heartland States. "Saint Luke's is an important provider of healthcare services, and we know our customers will appreciate having new, local access to Saint Luke's Health System's outstanding service."