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engagement and outcomes rather than financial returns, defining value based on enhanced operational excellence, expanded services, improved member and provider experience, increased patient access for the most complex and vulnerable populations and enhanced status as an employer of choice.“ Long-term value, in our model, is measured by what we return to our member hospitals and their communities, not by margin extracted from them,” Jeni observes.
At NELC, financial performance is structured to support member hospitals rather than external stakeholders.“ In our cooperative, surplus stays with our members, giving us the capacity to grow alongside them rather than at their expense,” Jeni notes.
The reinvestment model is most visible in one commitment: charitable care, which is central to how NELC delivers on its purpose. Catherine affirms,“ Our charitable care commitment is one of the most direct expressions of who we are as a cooperative.”
Behind that commitment sits a structured process that prioritizes clinical need and access gaps; decisions focus on sustaining therapy where coverage falls short.“ We deploy charitable care where it most directly preserves access to lifesustaining therapy: patients who are uninsured or underinsured, those who fall into coverage gaps, and complex cases where reimbursement falls short of the true cost of care,” Catherine explains.
The effect of that support is most evident in-patient outcomes, ensuring continuity of care that might otherwise be disrupted.“ The impact is most visible at the patient level, individuals who can remain on therapy, recover at home, and avoid readmission because cost did not become the barrier,” Catherine highlights. The continuity strengthens the role of member hospitals by supporting discharge and ongoing care beyond acute settings.“ That is the cooperative model working as it was designed: hospitals pooling resources to extend care into communities where investorowned infusion providers often will not go,” Catherine adds.
The same coordinated model extends into relationships where clinical integration and patient support intersect.“ For manufacturing and supplier partners, NELC offers established
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