Azara Healthcare and Equality Health, two companies focused on helping community health centers (CHCs) thrive in risk-based arrangements, have created a joint solution.
Together, the companies say they are providing a value-based care (VBC) solution that augments the capabilities of CHC staff and supports the shift to this growing care delivery model.
Azara won Best in KLAS in 2023 and 2024 for its population health management and value-based care solution. Its solutions serve more than 1,000 community health centers, physician practices, primary care associations, Health Center Controlled Networks, and clinically integrated networks in 42 states.
Equality Health is a technology-enabled primary care platform that leverages value-based payment models to transform healthcare for diverse and often marginalized populations. Its care model is Medicaid-first in design, partnering with over 3,200 PCPs and 700,000 lives across Arizona, Texas, Tennessee, Louisiana and Virginia.
In a 2023 study of CHCs transition to value-based care, participants named data sharing and care coordination as two of their biggest challenges in collaborating with health plans, and noted that negotiating and adopting the new payment structures associated with VBC is burdensome for staff who are already stretched thin.
Azara and Equality Health say that through their combined offering, CHCs will be able to access population-level analytics and improve health outcomes through patient-specific, prioritized work lists that tie back to value-based contract goals. They will also have access to field-based support from CHC-specific practice teams to carry out customized care plans, allowing them to close gaps in care and address social drivers of health head-on.
"Community health centers require VBC solutions designed with their unique needs in mind," said Jeff Brandes, president and CEO of Azara, in a statement. "They are on the front lines, often caring for underserved populations, and this complete solution makes it much easier to improve community health while helping ensure that CHCs are operating in a financially sustainable manner."
"CHCs have been long committed to the underlying principles of value-based care going all the way back to the 1960's," said Brandon Clark, executive vice president of Growth and Strategy at Equality Health, in a statement. "Our partnership with Azara is intended to finally help these critical safety net providers unlock the financial potential of their deep and integrated care model, without unnecessary fragmentation of their preferred population health workflows."
