TARRYTOWN, NY - Beacon Health Strategies (Beacon) and Hudson Health Plan (Hudson) proudly announce a recent contract award from the New York State Department of Health. With this award, Beacon and Hudson will jointly develop and implement the Westchester Cares Action Program (WCAP).

WCAP, a demonstration project, will provide integrated medical, behavioral and social health care coordination for Westchester County Medicaid fee-for-service recipients who have chronic medical and behavioral health conditions. The WCAP Project offers a comprehensive care coordination program targeting high-risk, high-needs individuals. Project goals include reducing unnecessary services, improving individual health outcomes, and containing system-wide costs. Beacon and Hudson will achieve these goals by ensuring timely medical, behavioral and social support interventions.

The innovative, WCAP care coordination model will be staffed by a multidisciplinary team of nurses, social workers , care coordinators and peer specialists who will coordinate patients’ access to medical care, mental health and substance abuse treatment, and related social support services. The team will be jointly overseen by and have full access to, the supervisory, management, medical and behavioral health expertise and QA/QI capacity of Hudson and Beacon. WCAP will be supported by Beacon’s proprietary FlexCare Behavioral Health Management System.

The WCAP team will meet with each enrollee to conduct a comprehensive health assessment including a biopsychosocial analysis of the member’s conditions. The team will also coordinate with the enrollee’s providers, evaluate available resources, and identify any barriers to accessing care. Based on the findings, an individualized, patient-centered care plan will be formulated to remedy any medical, behavioral or social care gaps in the member’s treatment plan. The team will then work to mobilize appropriate resources, including family, social supports, community agencies, county case management services and peer support specialists, to help the member adhere to his or her care plan.

The Westchester Cares Action Project began on April 1, 2009 and represents an exciting extension of the longstanding Beacon-Hudson partnership in which the two organizations jointly serve Hudson’s Medicaid, CHP and FHP members.

Founded in 1996, Beacon Health Strategies is a recognized leader in behavioral health care management. Beacon currently serves 2 million members in the Northeast and the District of Columbia, and is growing rapidly. Accredited by both URAC and NCQA, Beacon’s success derives from its unrivaled clinical and administrative expertise, innovative programming and delivery of customized solutions meeting the unique and complex needs of each health plan partner.

In 1985, a group of Community Health Centers (CHC’s) in Westchester County, New York came together to form a managed care organization that would provide excellent, coordinated health services to people who were receiving New York State Medicaid. This organization later changed its name to HealthSource/Hudson Health Plan. Today, Hudson serves more than 80,000 people in its coverage area in New York's Hudson Valley, and three State-sponsored programs are offered: Medicaid Managed Care; Child Health Plus; and Family Health Plus. Hudson reflects the philosophy of its founders; Hudson believes that everyone is entitled to be healthy and to receive the services that can help maintain good health and the highest quality of life possible. Hudson’s mission is “to promote and provide access to excellent health services for all people.”