Landmark Health, based in California, is planning its entrance into the North Carolina market through a new partnership with Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina. The news came Thursday from Jessica Diaz, senior director of brand and marketing at Landmark.
“We’re a risk-based provider group that cares for chronic, complex populations,” she said. “We partner with health plans and identify subsets of their population that really needs more care.”
In partnership with BCBSNC, Landmark will launch in the Triangle and Triad regions of North Carolina, as well as in Charlotte and Fayetteville, beginning service to patients in June, said Diaz.
The move will result in a substantial number of new hires, including physicians, nurses, social workers and other positions. Currently, Landmark employs about 600 people companywide.
Landmark will “build up providers in the community that can then call on members in their homes,” said Diaz. “We’ve been actively hiring [and] that continues.”
BCBSNC and Landmark are not disclosing the financial terms of the partnership, but Diaz says Landmark shares the burden of risk with its partners, adding that BCBSNC plan members will incur no cost for the service. Cost savings are high on the priority list, and the goal is to keep populations healthy and reduce hospital visits and readmissions.
The new partnership should result in Landmark servicing 6,500 patients in North Carolina. Landmark currently serves more than 80,000 patients companywide.
“Our members would rather be at home instead of in the emergency room,” said Dr. Patrick Conway, president and CEO of BCBSNC, in an email after the announcement. “Through this partnership, we are now able to offer an added level of care to help members manage their conditions at home, and stay ahead of a crisis that would otherwise put them in the hospital.”
Read the full reporting of the new partnership in the Triangle Business Journal.