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Spring 2014 • Kentucky
Helping Kentuckians Live
Healthier Lives
By Stephen J. Houghland, MD
Vice President and Chief Medical Officer,
Passport Health Plan
As Chief Medical Officer for Passport
Health Plan, I have several responsibilities,
but two of the most important are to ensure
our members are receiving clinically appropriate care when needed, and to recruit and
support our providers as they render care to
our membership.
When providers consider what network
they will choose to contract with, we hope
they will select Passport Health Plan.
Passport has more than 16 years of experience focused exclusively on Kentucky
Medicaid. We have learned over the years
that being flexible is critical to Medicaid
providers, particularly given the unique
issues many of their patients face. That’s why
we have collaborated with the provider community, in a spirit of mission, to improve the
health and quality of life of our members
– and we are honored to now be an option
for Medicaid members and their health care
providers throughout the state. Passport
is a Kentucky-based, non-profit company
focused solely on the needs of Kentucky
Medicaid members and the providers who
care for them.
Passport was created by providers as a
solution for the rising costs in Medicaid.
Our continuous “Excellent” accreditation
rankings from the National Committee for
Quality Assurance (NCQA) validates to
our members and providers that we have
a philosophy for Kentucky Medicaid that
works, and works well. As a non-profit
organization, we reinvest in our providers
and in member services. This is a simple but
effective strategy that keeps us focused on
our mission.
Passport Health Plan aspires to be the leading model for collaboration and innovation
in health care, and we realize this begins
with our network of providers. In addition
to being a provider-sponsored organization,
we operate and have thrived by building real
relationships with our providers – urban and
rural, primary care and specialists, hospitals,
and other health care providers. Our providers are invited to participate on a var