The Preferred Senior Care Advantage program is not a new Medicare Advantage plan but a new approach to care delivery. Under this program, which began January 1, 2020, all Preferred Primary Care Physicians (PPCP) patients who are enrolled in a Medicare Advantage plan with Aetna, Highmark, Humana, UnitedHealthcare or UPMC and who have designated a Preferred Primary Care Physicians primary care doctor as their primary care physician are automatically enrolled in the program at no additional cost and still have access to the same innovative care programs Preferred Primary Care Physicians (PPCP) has designed to enhance your access to wellness and health education services, as well as care coordination resources when you need them.
Our Medicare Advantage patients will work closely with their primary care physicians, care team and specialist physicians to prevent, anticipate and manage health issues to maintain their best health in the most convenient and cost-effective manner. We want our Preferred Senior Care Advantage patients’ healthcare experience to be the best it can be whether it is being cared for by our primary care physician and care teams in one of our medical offices, or seeing one of our network providers.
Our Preferred Senior Care Advantage patients will be encouraged to complete an annual wellness visit with their PPCP primary care physician. This comprehensive, individualized assessment will provide an annual roadmap to improved health and wellness. It is the gateway for our patients to access our specialized care coordination programs.
Why did we create the Preferred Senior Care Advantage program?
The Preferred Senior Care Advantage program was envisioned and created by the PPCP team. It is our belief that working closely with participating Medicare Advantage health plans advances our population health model to provide higher quality and more personalized and efficient care for our Medicare Advantage patients. It allows us to closely coordinate with the services traditionally performed by health plans and places those services in the hands of the PPCP primary care physicians, where healthcare decisions reflect a lifelong commitment to the highest quality medical care. It is one of a limited number of programs in the Pittsburgh area that provides this level of service for seniors.
Who is PPCP?
PPCP stands for Preferred Primary Care Physicians; an independently-owned physician group founded in 1995 by ten primary care physicians in the South Hills of Pittsburgh. These physicians shared a common commitment to provide the highest quality care to the patients that it served. To that end, the group initiated quality improvement programs, participated in research studies to advance primary care practice, and implemented electronic medical records well before most other practices.
Today, Preferred Primary Care Physicians consists of 37 board-certified physicians specializing in internal medicine and family practice. PPCP has 13 practice locations in the South Hills and 3 locations in Uniontown in Fayette County. In addition, PPCP offers state-of-the-art outpatient centers for cardiac testing, sleep disorders, and physical therapy.
The Preferred Senior Care Advantage program, designed exclusively for PPCP patients with Medicare Advantage coverage from our partner health plans, offers an array of clinical and education services to help you stay healthy and active.
Several of these programs have been developed to offer additional services for patients with chronic illness. Other programs focus on post-acute care transitions and coordination services for patients who have recently been hospitalized in order to make a safe and comfortable transition back home.
Benefits of Preferred Senior Care Advantage
PPCP’s vision to provide a responsive, seamless model of care for their senior patients is supported by the Preferred Senior Care Advantage program and includes the following benefits:
- Comprehensive wellness exam is performed annually for all Preferred Senior Care Advantage patients to ensure a complete, accurate and updated assessment of the patient’s medical conditions and social support needs.
- Transitions of Care: Access to Transitions of Care nurses for patients who need post-acute care and those that have been or will be hospitalized and need a well-planned and comfortable transition back home.
- Advanced, Team-Based Care Coordination: Access to a team of social workers and care coordinators who will assist your PPCP primary care doctor in providing you with the best care to keep you living as healthy, safe and independent life as possible. Patients needing extra assistance with newly diagnosed or complex medical conditions, recent hospitalizations, concerns with balance or recent falls, multiple medications, or challenges with increased fatigue, memory loss, bathing, shopping, or nutrition may benefit from these services.
Informed and Shared Decision Making: PPCP physicians have access to the costs and outcomes for all of your health care needs, not just the care provided by your PPCP physicians. This allows your PPCP primary care physician to help you make more informed decisions about the specialists, tests and procedures you choose and identify the best location for the healthcare services you need.