November 30, 2016

 Hi Team –

As November comes to a close – a month that brought an unprecedented presidential campaign to a dramatic end – I felt it was important to devote this update to addressing what has, no doubt, been on your mind and what many of our team members have been asking about. Namely, what will a Trump Administration mean for national and state health care policy, and what are the implications for TriHealth and our newly adopted strategic plan?

President-elect Trump has made clear and consistent statements throughout the campaign, and since being elected, that he will seek to repeal and replace core elements of the Affordable Care Act (“Obamacare”) as one of his first priorities in office. While achieving congressional support for this will take time, we expect there is a high likelihood that key elements of the Affordable Care Act will be overhauled, including health insurance exchanges, individual and employer health care mandates, and federally-funded Medicaid insurance expansion.

These likely changes have implications for TriHealth –and all health care providers – that we will be actively exploring in the weeks to come, in order to anticipate and prepare for new risks and to capitalize on emerging opportunities, all while we work to further advance our mission. Regardless of the outcomes of these anticipated national health care policy changes though, three things remain clear:

1. The economic pressures in U.S. health care will continue. Healthcare is too expensive for households, employers and the government alike. This reality further reinforces the importance of TriHealth’s system-wide Operational Excellence initiative and our dedicated focus on delivering greater value through improved quality and efficiency, which is a topic I have been discussing in a number of my Updates this year. Now more than ever, our environment requires that we manage our operations with greater discipline around quality, patient safety, access and efficiency in order to maintain our position of strength during this time of new and growing industry challenges. Our proactive efforts to-date in these areas are already paying off. At a time when health systems locally and nationally are experiencing significant financial hardships, TriHealth has never been stronger or performed more effectively. Staying on-track with our Operational Excellence initiatives and our journey to operate as one integrated system of care will position us for continued success during the uncertain times ahead.

2. The movement toward “value-based payment and care models” (designed to achieve the triple aim of improved care, improved health and reduced costs) is a priority of both political parties and a market-driven requirement that will likely only accelerate over the next four years. Our strategic plan anticipated these forces and sets TriHealth on a bold path to lead the southwest Ohio region in adopting innovative payment models and delivery system changes that are designed to improve the health of our community, while moderating and better controlling health care spending. Our journey remains vital and is well aligned with the goals of a new Trump administration and Republican-controlled Congress.

3. And most important, the work underway at TriHealth remains the right work to position us to thrive in an environment of change and new challenges. Today’s times call for both a forward-looking strategic plan and a strong and engaged culture that can understand, anticipate and adapt to the new realities ahead. Our TriHealth leaders, physicians and team members have been hard at work, and making encouraging progress, on both fronts! The efforts underway throughout the system to implement a patient-centered and integrated system strategy, build the TriHealth Way of Leading & Serving, strengthen team member and physician engagement, and improve communications are an unbeatable combination for long-term success! And our recently launched “New Realities Conversations” – which will include every TriHealth team member over the next couple of months – provides an important opportunity to openly discuss why we’re on this journey, what realities we face, how we’re responding at TriHealth and what each of you can do to make a real difference in this essential work. I encourage you to make the most of these honest, “adult-to-adult” interactive communication sessions!

While I recognize that times of dramatic change can be unsettling, I want to reassure you that TriHealth is strong and well positioned for continued growth and long-term success. And one thing that’s been reinforced for me throughout this historical campaign and election is that our ministry of healing and our noble work to serve ALL with great dignity, compassion and respect is an invaluable contribution to our community and our society as a whole – and remains our most important priority.

Thank you for all you do to live our values as you SERVE our patients, family members and each other, every day.

NOVEMBER TRIHEALTH HIGHLIGHTS

• 37 TriHealth Physician Partners primary care practices selected to participate in Comprehensive Primary Care Plus (CPC+), a national advanced primary care medical home model that aims to strengthen primary care through a regionally-based multi-payer reform and care delivery transformation.
• The national Comprehensive Primary Care (CPC) initiative invited TriHealth Physician Partners’ Physician Associates of Good Samaritan Hospital – Northwest to participate in their new national CPC case study.  The practice was one of only 15 out of 400 CPC practices invited to participate due to the outstanding outcomes and top national performance achieved by Aparna Ambe, MD, Joyce Phillip, MD and Uma Santhanam, MD and their teams.
• TriHealth sponsored the 2016 Fall Feast for the underserved in our community which provided more than 7,000 dinners on Thanksgiving Day.  Over 300 books were also given away at the event that were collected during TriHealth fall book drives.