In a time when the future of healthcare coverage may seem uncertain, what is certain is that our community can be proud of the quality of healthcare experienced by CenCal Health’s nearly 180,000 members.

CenCal Health was recently rated in the top five percent of Medicaid plans nationally for two important areas of care, and in the top 10 percent for an additional 12 areas of care out of a total of 18, according to the most updated state quality measurement ratings. These exceptional results also placed CenCal Health’s Santa Barbara County managed care product fourth statewide among Medi-Cal health plans.

The Healthcare Effectiveness Data and Information Set (HEDIS) is a tool used by the California Department of Health Care Services, CenCal Health, and more than 90 percent of America’s health plans to measure performance on important dimensions of care and service. These measures allow health plans like CenCal Health to not only assess plan effectiveness internally, but to compare performance against other health plans nationally.

This year marks CenCal Health’s best overall performance to date in the 18 years since the State of California began evaluating industry-standard quality indicators.

High performance levels were achieved in Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties in diabetes care, prenatal care, and nutritional and physical activity counseling among children and adolescents. Additionally, in Santa Barbara County, excellent results were achieved in asthma treatment. This means healthier pregnancies, healthier children in school, and better management of diseases like diabetes and asthma. That is important for our entire community’s health, and aligns closely with a number of the priority objectives of Santa Barbara County’s Community Health Improvement Plan.

CenCal Health would like to thank our healthcare providers, hospitals, our staff and our partners for helping us support the best care possible for our members. This achievement would not be possible without the support of our stakeholders. We take pride in the care of our local physicians and hospitals provide to each and every patient.

About CenCal Health

CenCal Health provides health insurance for approximately 20 percent of residents in Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties, or nearly 180,000 members.  CenCal Health coverage is accepted by the vast majority of local health care providers. CenCal Health has served the community for 34 years, and provides education and assistance to its members in order to reduce potential health problems from chronic illness such as diabetes and asthma. For more information, visit www.cencalhealth.org or find CenCal Health on Facebook.

About Central Coast Physicians Magazine

Central Coast Physicians is the only magazine focused on medical doctors in San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara counties. As the official publication of the Central Coast Medical Association, Central Coast Physicians is a quarterly full-color magazine with a circulation of 2,500 per issue.