Advocate Aurora Health and Oak Street Health are partnering to open a new primary care health center for adults on Medicare with a shared vision to transform the health care experience.
The center, which will be located in Chicago’s northwest suburb of Elgin, brings the two health systems together in a new way to serve the area’s more than 25,000 Medicare eligible seniors.
Oak Street Health operates 40 primary care centers in Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio and Pennsylvania specializing in providing personal, equitable and accountable care for adults on Medicare. Advocate Aurora Health operates a vast network of hospitals, specialists, and ambulatory care sites across Illinois and Wisconsin with a focus on high quality, highly coordinated, cost effective care.
“By shifting focus towards quality of care instead of volume of services, there has been a meaningful improvement in reducing hospital admissions and emergency room visits,” said Mike Pykosz, CEO and co-founder of Oak Street Health. “We know Advocate Aurora Health shares that vision, and as a national leader in population health, is the right partner to expand our services in the northwest suburbs of Chicago.”
Oak Street Health’s community-based care model features comprehensive primary care services, flexible scheduling, more face time with doctors, transportation to office visits, insurance education, community health/wellness events and a dedicated care team to coordinate all health needs.
“Our aligned approach to population health and shared vision for transforming the health care experience will benefit patients and communities,” said Scott Powder, Advocate Aurora Health’s Chief Strategy Officer. “We’re excited to see what we can do together to enhance outcomes and manage costs across the health care continuum.”
This partnership is unique for both organizations; it is Oak Street Health’s first partnership with a large integrated health system and it is Advocate Aurora Health’s first partnership with a health care company focused solely on the Medicare population.
The new health center is planned to open in April 2019.
About Advocate Aurora Health
Advocate Aurora Health is the 10th largest not-for-profit, integrated health system in the United States and a leading employer in the Midwest with more than 70,000 employees, including more than 22,000 nurses and the region’s largest employed medical staff and home health organization. A national leader in clinical innovation, health outcomes, consumer experience, and value-based care, the system serves nearly 3 million patients annually in Illinois and Wisconsin across more than 500 sites of care. Advocate Aurora is engaged in hundreds of clinical trials and research studies and is nationally recognized for its expertise in cardiology, neurosciences, oncology, and pediatrics. The organization also contributed $2 billion in charitable care and services to its communities in 2016.
About Oak Street Health
Oak Street Health is a fast-growing and innovative network of primary care centers for adults on Medicare designed to make healthcare more personal, equitable and accountable for all. Oak Street Health centers offer much more than a standard visit with a doctor. From providing transportation to and from appointments, insurance education, and supplemental services such as podiatry, behavioral health, and in-center pharmacies, the organization is closing critical gaps in the traditional healthcare experience. To encourage social wellness, each center hosts hundreds of social, fitness, and learning activities throughout the year. These services, coupled with Oak Street Health’s focus on quality of care instead of volume of services, has led to a 44 percent reduction in patient hospital admissions and a 46 percent reduction in patient emergency room visits. Today, the organization serves more than 200 communities across the United States with one mission at its core - to rebuild healthcare as it should be.