PinnacleCare Offers Advisory and Support Services that Help Consumers Avoid the Healthcare Credit Crunch
PinnacleCare Offers Advisory and Support Services that Help Consumers Avoid the Healthcare Credit Crunch
In a Nutshell: PinnacleCare isn’t a healthcare provider or an insurance agency. Instead, PinnacleCare health advisors and support staff work with those entities to help individuals weigh all of their available options. That expert advice can help patients choose the best strategy for a positive outcome. As the U.S. healthcare system grows increasingly tech-centered and complex, more employers, employees, and families turn to PinnacleCare for consultative services that generate better results and lead to fewer credit catastrophes.
The U.S. healthcare system is complex and filled with competing interests. Many people question whether health care decisions they make will result in the best outcome.
The healthcare system has become a realm of technology and specialization making consumer decisions on the right course of action increasingly complex.
Not only do the right health choices access some of the best care available, but the wrong moves can consign consumers to uncertainty, undesired outcomes, and even credit-busting financial disaster.
That’s why PinnacleCare, a concierge health advisory firm, aims to bring the system’s positive benefits to more people. The organization helps its clients navigate the healthcare system and insurance companies. PinnacleCare works with individuals, families, and employers to help people get the care they need while managing the cost of that care and maintaining their financial standing, including their credit scores.
PinnacleCare, led by CEO Miles Varn, MD, accomplishes that by building carefully vetted and lasting relationships with top specialists.
“We have what I would call side-door access to the top health systems,” Varn said. “We’re not pushing anyone out of the way or jumping the line, but because we help our clients organize and educate themselves, we make their appointments much more efficient for the physicians we work with.”
Dedicated case managers and support staff conduct the important coordination work that makes those efficiencies possible.
“Our goal is always what’s best for the patient,” Varn said. “Better care, fewer unnecessary procedures, and more volume and experience lead to lower costs.”
Plans Designed to Improve Access and Engagement
PinnacleCare was founded in 2001 to fill a market gap so evident it was surprising no one had filled it before, said Varn.
“People have financial advisors and legal advisors they can trust to take care of their real estate and other assets,” he said. “But they don’t have healthcare advisors.”
Almost 20 years later, PinnacleCare individual and family memberships continue to provide professional guidance and support for managing client health care needs. Its staff of former health care administrators, nurses, and social workers, among others, draw on their institutional knowledge and provider relationships to generate the best possible outcomes.
Soon after its founding, the company incorporated services for organizations and employers. PinnacleCare group memberships integrate with existing company insurance plans to help employers achieve better ROI based on improved employee engagement and better managed treatment plans.
“When we first started working our way into the employer world, we’d hand our prospective partners a book of anecdotal stories about the lives we’d saved,” Varn said. “They’d read that and ask, ‘OK, but where’s your data?’”
Today, more than two dozen academic institutions and private providers contract with PinnacleCare to perform remote second opinion work.
“Companies want to make sure that when they’re spending $2 million a year to treat hemophilia or some other high-cost condition, they’re spending those resources wisely,” Varn said.
PinnacleCare shares that expertise with local practitioners to optimize diagnoses and treatments throughout their systems.
“It ensures that decisions are thoughtful and in the best interests of the patient,” Varn said. “We’ve grown over time, but the cultural backbone of the company is still that service to individuals and families.”
Cost Transparency Fosters Balanced Decision-Making
PinnacleCare’s broader view helps patients avoid unnecessary procedures and ineffective treatments — and provides transparency in the cost of health care. Getting the big picture on provider costs can mean the difference between a manageable health care outcome and one that — from a credit or financial perspective — can be detrimentally life-changing.
“For most of us, and I include myself in this, you have to think about staying in-network and then staying either local or regional,” Varn said.
PinnacleCare can deliver elite-level resources and expertise in cost-sensitive environments. That might mean facilitating a remote second opinion with a top specialist and bringing that expertise to a local practitioner. That strategy may save someone from undergoing an expensive but unnecessary procedure.
“Having the information necessary to make those financial decisions is important for most people, especially because of increasing out-of-pocket costs and deductibles,” Varn said. “We’ve got to be thoughtful.”
PinnacleCare offers expertise and access to high-quality health professionals.
A routine colonoscopy performed by a gastroenterologist in a hospital setting may be billed at $4,000, for example. The same procedure, performed by the same gastroenterologist in an outpatient setting, could be billed at $800.
Even if the cost were somewhere in the middle, many patients , would need to put an expense that large on their credit cards
“We’re increasingly going to find businesses to facilitate that type of transparency for consumers in terms of costs,” Varn said. “In New York, you can do your MRI at an academic medical center and spend $2,000 or go to a center in midtown with the same type of machine and spend $750.”
PinnacleCare Promotes Positive Plan Management
PinnacleCare health advisors coordinate client appointments and facilitate access to emergency resources when needed. Health advisors will even accompany clients to their medical appointments.
“The health advisor maintains the relationship with the patient or family, but in the background, we have six medical directors who work with them to ensure their intelligence is broader,” Varn said.
The health advisor also spearheads 24/7 access to universal care records created and maintained by PinnacleCare.
“We collect those records from all over, review them, and organize them, and then recommend different ways to improve health or comply with treatment strategies,” Varn said.
Its research team produces content about disease and treatment options and risk benefits, also addressing a wide range of other health-related topics.
PinnacleCare produces content that helps people make more informed healthcare decisions.
“The research team performs the objective function of assessing providers. Finding out who’s the best based on credentials, training, and experience,” Varn said.
When emotions run high in dealing with real-life health situations, PinnacleCare knows how to engender confidence.
“With a breast cancer called DCIS, we know there’s a 30% misdiagnosis rate,” Varn said. “So for every DCIS case, wherever it comes from, we do a second opinion, usually at Johns Hopkins. We’ve now had three women who were initially diagnosed with DCIS who didn’t have it.”
All three women had been scheduled to have surgery, radiation, or chemotherapy. The misdiagnoses had the women contemplating unnecessary treatment and worrying that the cancer could return — emotional suffering they should never have experienced.
“That’s where a company like ours can help people,” Varn said. “We’re connected to all the U.S. health system has to offer, and you will have the best opportunity for a great outcome.”
Princeton Longevity Center and PinnacleCare Announce Alliance to Provide Healthcare Advocacy Support for Patients with Life-Changing Diagnoses
Princeton Longevity Center and PinnacleCare Announce Alliance to Provide Healthcare Advocacy Support for Patients with Life-Changing Diagnoses
Experts in Preventive Medicine/Executive Health and Concierge Health Advisory Firm Join Forces for Better Patient Access to Specialists, Improved Outcomes
October 5, 2020
View Original Article: Here
BALTIMORE, MD – October 5, 2020 – Princeton Longevity Center (PLC), the leading experts in preventive medicine and executive health, and PinnacleCare, the premier concierge health advisory firm, today announced that they are partnering so patients will have access to renowned specialists nationwide and facilitated appointments for clinically significant findings requiring quick and expert follow-up.
When a patient receives a life-changing diagnosis, a professional health advisory firm can make all the difference in ensuring the best outcomes by expertly navigating the complexities of the healthcare system. PinnacleCare identifies the best specialists in the country, expedites all appointment0s, and seamlessly manages all details.
“For most PLC patients, findings tend to be more minor and can be corrected with simple intervention,” said Dr. David Fein, medical director at PLC. “But for some, a day at PLC will be life-changing. For those patients—who may have traveled from all over the country—having an alliance with just one hospital system doesn’t make sense. Partnering with the experts at PinnacleCare means our patients have access to the best doctors and the best institutions in the entire country to address their health findings and get them on the path to treatment quickly.”
“A thorough, comprehensive evaluation is an important first step in identifying health problems that can be addressed at the earliest stage,” said Dr. Miles Varn, chief executive officer of PinnacleCare. “Equally important is access to the right specialist with the right expertise to treat an identified issue. Navigating the healthcare system can be an overwhelming burden for the patient without the help of a PinnacleCare health advisor.”
A PLC comprehensive exam is the region’s most extensive and effective program for early detection of many diseases including the leading silent killers—like heart disease and cancer. Most patients seek the peace of mind that comes with PLC’s medically advanced testing and the time and attention from leading preventive medicine experts who take the time to explain their risks and test results.
With the PinnacleCare alliance, PLC offers additional support if a complex or life-changing diagnosis is found. PinnacleCare will offer its services to PLC members who need critical follow up resources (such as a top cardiologist or oncologist). Its experts will then identify leading specialists, facilitate appointments, or provide a more comprehensive approach.
PinnacleCare services are available immediately to PLC patients with qualifying conditions at three centers: Princeton, NJ; Shelton, CT; and Fairfax, VA; and PLC is now booking appointments at its newest location, 1 World Trade Center in Manhattan, opening November 16th, 2020.
For more information about this new service, interested parties should contact PLC and PinnacleCare.
About Princeton Longevity Center
Founded by Dr. David Fein in 2002, Princeton Longevity Center is a leading preventive medicine center headquartered in Princeton, New Jersey. Princeton Longevity Center specializes in Preventive and Personalized Medicine and Executive Health Exams with locations throughout the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast regions. For more information, visit www.PrincetonLongevityCenter.com or call (888) 800-0752.
About PinnacleCare
PinnacleCare is a leading health advisory firm, founded in 2001, that connects individuals to the world’s most advanced healthcare and facilitates access to top specialists for personalized care. We provide a broad range of support to families and organizations—helping our members to avoid unnecessary medical procedures and access the optimal care they deserve.
Contact:
Maggie Davis (for Princeton Longevity Center)
The S3 Agency
973.352.7491
mdavis@thes3agency.com
OR
George Cohen (for PinnacleCare)
GCC, Inc.
617-435-7208
George@gccpr.com
Citi Analyzes How Best to Navigate Healthcare
Citi Analyzes How Best to Navigate Healthcare
Navigating healthcare for principals and families
AUTHORS -
Ajay Kamath, Chief Operating Officer – Citi Private Capital Group, Citi Private Bank
Ray Maas, Senior Executive, Special Initiatives and Services – Pivotal Ventures
Bruce Spector, Chairman and Co-Founder – PinnacleCare
© 2020 Citigroup Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Among their many responsibilities, family office executives are increasingly called upon to address the healthcare management of the families they serve. The COVID-19 pandemic has only served to heighten awareness of the need to have comprehensive family health and wellness strategies in place. While many family office executives are conversant with a broad range of investment, legal and financial matters, healthcare management can be new or unfamiliar territory. As such, executives may be challenged to navigate the healthcare system on behalf of the family office principal, immediate family or extended family that they serve.
This paper is intended to provide a framework of best practices for a family office to evaluate and develop a proactive healthcare strategy for principals and families.
Advising at the Intersection of Wealth and Health
Advising at the Intersection of Wealth and Health
When a client confronts a medical crisis, some advisors offer more than just sympathy.
John Kador | Jul 30, 2019
As portfolio management moves to the background of a financial advisor’s value proposition, they face a crisis of differentiation. How do advisors continue to justify their fees? Some advisors to high-net-worth clients have found that helping their clients with their health issues is inextricably linked to securing their wealth.
Given that virtually every client will face a health crisis at some point, these wealth managers established connections to health specialists that clients can draw on.
To be sure, advisors are drawn by the desire to help their clients confront challenging health issues. It’s also true that advisors see an opportunity to set their practices apart when the value proposition of financial investment advice is under threat. For example, Schwab’s Intelligent Portfolios Premium basically revalues financial planning at, effectively, $30 per month plus $90 per quarter for unlimited access to a certified financial planner.
But there are things Schwab’s planners probably can’t do for clients, and that includes navigating a complex health care bureaucracy. The need does not come out of a vacuum. The U.S. is aging dramatically. People 85 or older are the fastest-growing segment of the population, according to the Census Bureau. Living to 100 is increasingly commonplace. Centenarians represent the second-largest-growing cohort of Americans. The challenge for 21st-century financial advisors will be to reckon with the trend and help clients make these added years as healthy and productive as possible.
There’s also evidence that wealthy Americans are so worried about their finances, it’s affecting their mental and physical health. A Bank of America survey of more than 1,000 people in the U.S. who have enough investable money to qualify as “mass affluent” found that financial concerns negatively affected the mental health of 59% of respondents, while 56% said their physical health had suffered. Younger people, in the millennial and Generation Z age brackets, reported a bigger impact on health from money worries than their Generation X and baby boomer counterparts.
Cultivate Creative Connections
Insofar as they are able, some advisors take the position they can be part of the solution when clients or their family members experience health emergencies. They establish connections with health professionals in their communities and beyond, partnering with concierge health services and finding other beneficial resources, so when a client faces an emergency, the advisor can offer more than just sympathy.
Often these advisors tweak the traditional client seminar program. In addition to trotting out experts on annuities or estates, advisors invite gerontologists, memory experts or aging-in-place specialists to educate their clients.
Catherine L. Guidera, a financial advisor and manager with UBS in New York City, made these health connections a focus of her practice. “All of my clients seek advice not only about investing their assets, but beyond that the situations are particular to each family,” she says. “For example, I have found that children are often forced to make financial and health care decisions for their parents that they are not qualified to make.”
Guidera says that UBS’ partnership with a concierge medical service is helpful when clients have problems managing the medical care of their parents. “I’m convinced that being able to assist clients on such a deep level just makes the relationship with the wealth manager that much stronger,” Guidera says.
Even issues with substance abuse can plague a client or the client’s family, and here too an advisor, prepared with the right connections in the health care industry, can help. One advisor at a national brokerage firm, who did not want to be identified, recalled a client whose son had an addiction. The advisor recognized that his client, with all good intentions, was in fact enabling the abuse.
The advisor watched in distress as the enabling behavior went on; when the client finally expressed frustration, the advisor, with permission, was able to quickly introduce a specialist in addiction and recovery who reframed the problem; the needed intervention was not with the son but with the client. The sooner the client ceased enabling his son’s behavior, the sooner the son could get real help.
Centers of Excellence
By making these kinds of introductions, advisors can streamline client access to health professionals and specialists. The confidence clients have in the advisor’s ability to take care of their finances translates to confidence the advisor can also effectively help in nonfinancial parts of their lives.
The periodic investment review is an ideal place to start the conversations required to identify the need for third-party services, says Jerry Garner, Senior Lifestyle Advisory Specialist with Signature Access for Morgan Stanley. This is the time to ask, “What’s changed?”
Most clients will readily share details about new jobs, marriages, births, deaths, shifting insurance needs, inheritances. This is when advisors need to slow down and listen. If they do, clients will also share details about illnesses, diagnoses, apprehensions about elder care and other health-related concerns.
Would It Be Helpful If?
It’s at this point that advisors can respond with five of the most powerful words he or she can offer: “Would it be helpful if …?” That phrase may be the most powerful catalyst for the conversations that identify solutions to problems and build relationships that stick.
For instance, Garner said, the client of a Morgan Stanley advisor whose husband was being treated for early onset dementia found out through these conversations that he was being treated by no less than five doctors, none of whom were talking to the other. The advisor asked if it would be helpful to have a health advocate who could coordinate the health care plan. The client agreed. The husband had an elder care assessment that revealed adverse interactions in the medications that the various doctors were prescribing, interactions that contributed to cognitive difficulties. When the prescriptions were adjusted, the husband regained much of the cognitive functioning thought to be lost.
Holistic Solutions
Some advisors are partnering with concierge health services, like PinnacleCare in Baltimore, that “prestage” health care providers in anticipation of clients’ medical needs, whether that be health crises, bad diagnoses, desire for second opinions, elder care or behavioral health typically centered on addiction treatment and recovery.
Advisors receive no fees or commissions from PinnacleCare for referring potential clients. Nor do clients pay advisors any fees for the referral. Both parties believe that it’s valuable to solidify relationships with their clients in need. Of course, PinnacleCare charges clients for health services rendered.
Concierge medical care, sometimes referred to as direct primary care (DPC) or private physician practice, is also a form of health care delivery growing markedly. One principle linking these practices is that by bypassing the complexity of insurance, health professionals can frequently see patients sooner, in an unhurried environment, and follow up on treatment plans personally.
“Issues of health are becoming paramount,” says Bob Seaberg, formerly Managing Director and Head of Wealth Advisory Solutions at Morgan Stanley and founder of Baltimore-based Intersect Consulting. “When events are important to the life of a client, the advisor should be part of the solution.” For wealth advisors, providing value and experiencing real growth may be found through focusing on the intersection of wealth and health.
If advisors limit themselves to just financial issues, they are limiting their opportunities. “I suggest that advisors get better at what I call the ‘relational arts,’” Seaberg says. “That means being able to tell clients that, insofar as we are able, there are things we can do when you or a family member faces a medical crisis.”
Where does it say that advisors are restricted only to managing their clients’ financial lives? If financial advisors want to remain relevant, they need to position themselves as a toolbox for the various challenges their clients face, whether that be changing transportation needs, managing lifestyle transitions or, in this case, finding a better tool for managing the quality and cost of health care.
PinnacleCare Receives HiTrust Security Certification
PinnacleCare Receives HiTrust Security Certification
>By: Daily Record Staff | July 8, 2019
PinnacleCare LLC announced Monday that its general control system for membership services and group benefits services was certified under the HiTrust common security framework.
Allstate Benefits Launches Critical Illness Insurance with Medical Support Services
Allstate Benefits Launches Critical Illness Insurance with Medical Support Services
By The IJ Staff | February 13 2019 09:30AM
U.S.-based Allstate Benefits entered the Canadian critical illness insurance market in 2015, offering a voluntary CI benefits product which employers can offer to their employees that they pay for themselves. In addition to a cash payment if diagnosed with a covered condition, the new enhanced offering provides access to medical support services through partners Medisys Corporate Health in Canada and PinnacleCare in the United States.
Conditions covered
Critical illnesses covered by the product include: heart attack, stroke, major organ failure, kidney failure, carcinoma in situ, invasive cancer, advanced Alzheimer’s disease, advanced Parkinson’s disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and more – depending on which coverage is selected, says product information provided on the company’s website.
Insured diagnosed with a covered illness would have access to a dedicated Medisys Nurse Navigator team to discuss the diagnosis, concerns, treatment options and second opinion services, says Allstate Benefits. If a consultation in the U.S. is desired, Medisys will partner with PinnacleCare to provide expert medical opinion services, treatment options, access to medical Centers of Excellence in the U.S. and facilitated physician appointments.
CEO Connection and PinnacleCare Enter Partnership Agreement
CEO Connection and PinnacleCare Enter Partnership Agreement
NEWS PROVIDED BY
CEO Connection | Jan 30, 2019, 08:35 ET
View Source Article
SYOSSET, N.Y., Jan. 30, 2019 /PRNewswire/ — CEO Connection® announced a partnership agreement with PinnacleCare to provide CEO Connection mid-market member companies ($100 million to $3 billion in annual revenue) with preferred rates and access to PinnacleCare’s healthcare advisory services.
When CEO Connection member employees are faced with a serious health challenge, experts from CEO Connection’s Healthcare Management Program powered by PinnacleCare will help them confidently navigate the complexity of the healthcare system and obtain the world’s most advanced care. This is important, because knowing where to go for healthcare, how to get in fast, and understanding all treatment options can reduce costs and save lives.
“I wholeheartedly stand behind the recommendation to offer this service to CEO Connection member companies,” said Doug Robinson, Chair, CEO Connection Healthcare Committee. “Done right, the ROI will be significant on both the claims expense front, as well as the employee/dependent’s peace of mind front.”
Jim Mead, CEO of PinnacleCare, said: “PinnacleCare’s extensive experience providing concierge health advisory services to companies helps produce better outcomes driven by expert medical intelligence and provider access.That’s why this is valuable to CEO Connection and its members.”
To learn more, visit: https://www.ceoconnection.com/healthcare-management
About PinnacleCare
PinnacleCare is a private health advisory organization with a mission to ensure that all members realize their highest expectations for health and wellness. PinnacleCare’s personalized approach to health care is a unique combination of exceptional medical resources, an unmatched range of services, and outstanding care. This allows members efficient access to the finest health care experiences, expert guidance through the complex healthcare system by expert health advisors, and assurance to lead the healthiest lives possible, at home and abroad.
www.PinnacleCare.com
Twitter: @PinnacleCare
Blog: www.PinnacleCare.com/blog
About CEO Connection
CEO Connection is the only membership organization in the world exclusively for CEOs of mid-market companies (with between $100 million and $3 billion in annual revenue). Our mission is to help mid-market CEOs and their companies succeed. We accomplish this by connecting members with one another and with the people, information, opportunities, and resources they could not otherwise access. Collectively, we promote the interests, welfare, and perspectives of the mid-market. For more information, visit CEO Connection, and stay connected on Twitter @CEOConnection, LinkedIn, and Facebook.
Media Contact:
Kimberly Wilcox (for CEO Connection)
208532@email4pr.com | 800-244-4719
George Cohen (for PinnacleCare)
GCC, Inc.
208532@email4pr.com | 617-435-7208
SOURCE CEO Connection
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New Partnership will enable Atlantic’s Executive Health Program to serve International Clientele
New Partnership will enable Atlantic’s Executive Health Program to serve International Clientele
By ROI-NJ Staff
Nov 20, 2018 at 7:21AM
View Original Article
At least, that will be one of the results from its new partnership with PinnacleCare, a national health advisory firm based in Baltimore.
For many individuals around the world, accessing high-quality medical expertise and state-of-the-art facilities means having to travel from their home country. For these “medical tourists,” the challenge of finding the right care quickly — before a visa or permit expires — can be difficult.
Pinnacle has partnered with Atlantic Health to ensure its Chinese clients have easier access to such care.
“PinnacleCare provides our members with highly personalized care and guidance for all of their medical needs,” PinnacleCare Chief Medical Officer Miles Varn said.
“This partnership enables PinnacleCare to offer the same high-quality experience, with high-touch services such as customized executive physicals, through vetted providers, such as Atlantic Health System, for these select clients when they visit the United States.”
Under the partnership, PinnacleCare will provide select Chinese banks and their clients with access to Atlantic Health’s Executive Health Program. That access gives those patients entrance into Atlantic Health’s entire continuum of care, including world-leading clinical expertise in areas such as cardiology, neurology and oncology.
Atlantic Health said its Executive Health Program provides clients with a customized “smart” physical that results in a personalized wellness plan developed by a team of specialists.
Atlantic officials say the aim of the exam is to evaluate and minimize health risks, promote wellness and discover potential health problems at the earliest stage when treatment is easier, more effective and less costly. The plan addresses nutrition, fitness, stress management and other indicators of disease risk.
Atlantic officials say the program enables health care professionals to act quickly to address emergent concerns and give patients a complete baseline of knowledge from which to work to improve their health. In addition, patients can receive preventative screening tests for early detection of cancer, heart disease, osteoporosis and other conditions.
Executive Health Program Director Dr. Damion Martins said the program is able to adjust as needed.
“The strength of our program is our ability to modify and adjust it to meet the needs of any patient,” he said. “We have put a tremendous amount of work into researching and customizing our screening to best suit the health care challenges that exist in any part of the world.”
Martins said each patient will leave at the end of the day with a wellness plan to follow.
“Our goal is to promote wellness by identifying risks and discovering potential health problems at the earliest stage,” he said.
Second Opinion Option for IPF and Other Rare Disease Patients Now Part of Express Scripts and PinnacleCare Services
Second Opinion Option for IPF and Other Rare Disease Patients Now Part of Express Scripts and PinnacleCare Services
PATRICIA SILVA, PHD
June 5, 2018
View Original Article
A Rare Conditions Care Value (RCCV) program providing access to “second opinions” for patients with rare diseases like idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) was recently launched by two U.S. health management companies, Express Scripts and Pinnacle Care.
Second Opinion, as the service is called, offers precisely that— another opinion regarding diagnosis and disease treatment from a specialist in the field, so that patients can assess their disease, and recommendations on most effective treatment protocols and symptom management strategies. This could be especially important in rare diseases, where a particular physician’s knowledge and experience can be limited.
Express Scripts provides pharmacy benefit management services. PinnacleCare is a private health advisory firm that offers personalized guidance and expert case review. Members whose plan enrolls in the RCCV program will have free access to the Second Opinion service. It is available through the company’s SafeGuardRx suite of solutions, a press release states.
People with rare diseases, according to estimates, wait an average of up to 7.6 years and visit seven different doctors before receiving a confirmed diagnosis.
“The years spent going to different doctors, getting myriad medical tests, managing paperwork and experimenting with numerous treatments is an ordeal for patients and their health, as well as for those who love and care for them,” Glen Stettin, MD, senior vice president of clinical, research and new solutions at Express Scripts, said in the release.
Often, a second opinion from an expert can help resolve clinical questions and bring emotional reassurance to patients struggling with a rare condition and its symptoms.
The Second Opinion service through the RCCV program is expected to help reduce the emotional, physical, and financial burden on patients. It addresses rare diseases like IPF, hemophilia, alpha-1 deficiency, acromegaly, Gaucher’s disease, Huntington’s disease, and hereditary angioedema.
Among Express Script’s clients, the proportion of patients with one of the rare conditions covered in the RCCV program have grown from 29 percent in 2014, to 41 percent in 2017.
“Rare disease trends are growing on all fronts – more patients, new drugs and higher costs,” said Miles J. Varn, MD, chief medical officer of PinnacleCare. “In order to provide affordable access to these newer therapies, we need to make sure that the diagnosis is correct, and that the pharmaceutical treatment plan is based upon expert best practices.”
More than 7,000 different rare diseases have been identified so far, and the number of Americans with a rare condition today is nearly the same as that of Americans with diabetes.
Of note, the price of medications for rare diseases has increased 54 percent in the last four years, and patient out-of-pocket costs for rare conditions averaged an annual $1,790 in 2017.
The RCCV program, apart from the Second Opinion service, also offers patient support by specialized clinical pharmacists and nurses, including one-to-one counseling and in-home nursing services, the release states.
PinnacleCare to Offer Concierge Health Advisory Services to Raymond James Financial Advisors, Clients
PinnacleCare to Offer Concierge Health Advisory Services to Raymond James Financial Advisors, Clients
Agreement Marks First Move by PinnacleCare to Bring Advisory Benefits to Broader Mass Affluent Consumer Market
February 07, 2018 08:02 AM Eastern Standard Time
View Source Article
BALTIMORE–(BUSINESS WIRE)–PinnacleCare, a private health advisory firm today announced a strategic agreement under which Raymond James’ 7,500 financial advisors will have access to PinnacleCare’s Connection services to offer their clients.
Until now, Connection services, which help clients navigate healthcare challenges and facilitate access to top doctors and hospitals for serious medical conditions, have only been available on an episodic basis to employer, association and other group markets.
For high net worth individuals and their families, Pinnacle has offered its flagship Comprehensive services, which provide ongoing in-depth support and dedicated healthcare advisors 24/7.
As such, this agreement marks PinnacleCare’s first foray into the much broader mass affluent consumer market with its Connection services.
“We have been looking to bring the benefits of health advisory services to many more individuals and families and believe that Raymond James and their financial advisors are perfectly suited to help us take this on,” said PinnacleCare’s chief sales and marketing officer, Todd Martin. “Clients working with Raymond James advisors can now have confidence in their critical healthcare decisions and peace of mind knowing that they are doing the right thing. It has a positive impact on their entire family, beginning at only a few hundred dollars per year. This means that concierge healthcare services are no longer only for the highly affluent.”
“Raymond James, in keeping with our underlying mission of ‘life well planned,’ is dedicated to offering our advisors and clients innovative resources to address challenges in every stage of life,” said Frank McAleer, senior vice president of Wealth, Retirement and Portfolio Solutions at Raymond James. “PinnacleCare’s concierge services are another way our advisors can help clients plan for potentially unexpected challenges and protect their most valuable asset — their health.”
PinnacleCare’s Connection offering helps individuals get answers to questions such as whether the diagnosis is correct, who the best doctor is for a given condition, which facility has the best outcomes and whether surgery is necessary. Its health advisors:
- Help individuals better understand their diagnosis and treatment options
- Collect, organize and review medical records
- Identify top medical experts to confirm the details of a diagnosis and appropriate treatment options
- Facilitate and schedule appointments in an expedited manner
- Coordinate transfer of medical records for review prior to scheduled appointments
- Follow up to ensure individuals are on the right path
In addition to individual coverage, Connection services for families are also available to cover spouses/partners and their dependents.
About Raymond James Financial, Inc.
Raymond James Financial, Inc. (NYSE: RJF) is a leading diversified financial services company providing private client group, capital markets, asset management, banking and other services to individuals, corporations and municipalities. The company has approximately 7,500 financial advisors in 3,000 locations throughout the United States, Canada and overseas. Total client assets are $727 billion. Public since 1983, the firm is listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol RJF. Additional information is available at www.raymondjames.com.
About PinnacleCare
PinnacleCare is a personal health advisory firm that connects individuals and organizations to the world’s most advanced healthcare and facilitates access to top specialists for a more streamlined and personalized healthcare experience. Through relationships with world-class physicians and top medical centers, PinnacleCare extends a broad range of healthcare support and more efficient access to top quality care for improved outcomes and reduced waste. For more information, visit http://pinnaclecare.com.
www.PinnacleCare.com
Twitter: @PinnacleCare
Blog: www.PinnacleCare.com/blog
Contacts
GCC, Inc.
George Cohen, 617-435-7208
George@gccpr.com