Martin’s Point CEO Would Welcome Nomination of Dr. Don Berwick as CMS Administrator
March 29, 2010
Martin’s Point has worked closely with Dr. Berwick’s organization over the past year, and CEO, David Howes and other Martin’s Point employees have been invited to speak at a number of IHI events.
Portland, Maine – Dr. David Howes, President and CEO of Martin’s Point Health Care, said he would welcome the nomination of pediatrician and Institute for Health Care Improvement (IHI) President, Dr. Donald Berwick, to lead the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. It has been widely reported in the past few days that President Obama plans to nominate Berwick for the post.
“Don Berwick is one of our nation’s foremost advocates for improving our health care system. He and his organization have been great supporters of Martin’s Point. They are also engaged in many of the strategies we have begun implementing in our own system, such as building a primary care-based integrated care model, reforming our payment system to incentivize delivery of comprehensive, coordinated and higher quality care, and finding ways to lower health care costs without compromising the health of the patient or their satisfaction with their care experience,” said Dr. Howes.
Last summer, Martin’s Point announced in its quarterly customer newsletter that the organization had been invited by Dr. Berwick and the Institute for Healthcare Improvement to be part of an international health care improvement initiative called the Triple Aim. Martin’s Point is one of only 36 organizations, in the United States currently participating in the project, which will devise and test strategies to simultaneously improve population health, enhance patients’ experience of care and control health care costs. “I’m a big fan of Dr. Berwick and his organization,” said Dr. Howes. “I have appreciated Don’s vision and our organization has greatly benefited from his knowledge and leadership in the Triple Aim project.”
Also last year, David Howes and a small number of other Maine health leaders, were invited to share their thoughts on health reform at an event hosted by the Institute for Health Care Improvement in Washington, DC. The event brought together health care leaders from ten low-cost, high-quality communities across the United States, including Portland, Maine. Other Martin’s Point employees, including Dr. Douglas Couper and Clinical Analyst and Licensed Practical Nurse, Jackie Brooks, have served as faculty at IHI conferences and forums.
“The American health care system must go through significant transformation if it is going to be effective and sustainable. Dr. Berwick has a keen understanding of the issues and strategies we must employ to be successful in this transformation. As a family physician myself and the leader of a health system serving over 125,000 people, I fully support his nomination for this important post and look forward to continuing to work with him in this new capacity.”
Martin’s Point Health Care is a not-for-profit regional health care provider operating nine health centers in Maine and New Hampshire. All are open to the community. Martin’s Point also administers the US Family Health Plan in Northern New England, New York, and Pennsylvania, as well as Medicare Advantage health plans and employer wellness and health management services in Maine.
