APS Healthcare Receives National DMAA Award for Outstanding Provider Engagement.

SILVER SPRING, Md. -- APS Healthcare, one of the country's leading specialty healthcare companies, today announced that it received the national disease management leadership award from the Disease Management Association of America for Outstanding Provider Engagement Initiative. This award recognizes APS' Georgia Enhanced Care program, a comprehensive disease management program that serves more than 48,000 aged, blind and disabled members in Northern Georgia.

"Georgia's Department of Community Health Disease Management Program, 'Georgia Enhanced Care,' will make a difference in the lives of the populations served," said Dr. Rhonda Medows, commissioner of the Georgia Department of Community Health. "APS has been a key contributor to this success through its application of innovative strategies targeted at Georgia's most vulnerable Medicaid members."

APS' innovative community-based care management model, which places health coaches and nurse care managers in community health centers and local healthcare facilities, has improved the effectiveness of disease management. APS uses a decentralized, collaborative care model to improve Medicaid beneficiary and provider engagement in care management programs, increase compliance with recommended care plans and improve care coordination.

"APS' partnerships with the Morehouse School of Medicine's National Center for Primary Care, as well as other providers in Georgia, underscores the benefits of working with physicians in a team environment to achieve better outcomes for people with chronic disease," DMAA Executive Director Tracey Moorhead said. "Provider engagement is critical to realizing disease management's full potential, and we applaud APS for its initiative in this area."

"We are delighted to partner with APS in its grassroots engagement approach, bringing Georgia's most vulnerable Medicaid members together with providers and community supports to achieve better health practices and improved outcomes in quality and costs," said George Rust M.D., director of the National Center for Primary Care at Morehouse School of Medicine.

The DMAA leadership award recognizes APS for its contributions and outstanding achievements in the science and practice of chronic disease care. The DMAA Awards Subcommittee, which includes individuals not affiliated with DMAA, selected APS based on seven core criteria focusing on commitment, program design, implementation, innovation, outcomes-based orientation, scope and potential impact and vision/leadership.

"We are very pleased to win the 'Outstanding Provider Engagement' award," said David Hunsaker, president, APS Public Programs. "We believe that leveraging the knowledge and commitment of the provider community is the key to effective chronic care improvement, and we are very gratified to play a key role in helping build healthier systems of care in Georgia and other states throughout the country."

APS is one of the country's leaders in providing services to Medicaid programs and serves clients representing more than 40 percent of the nation's Medicaid population.

About APS

APS Healthcare, headquartered in Silver Spring, Md., is a leading provider of specialty healthcare solutions that cover more than 20 million members in the United States and Puerto Rico. APS offers customized, integrated healthcare solutions across two major healthcare product lines - care management and behavioral health services. APS operates under the belief that managing healthcare for the mind and body improves overall health and reduces total healthcare spending. For more information, visit www.apshealthcare.com.