Purchasers Name Blue Ribbon Physician Groups
8 California Physician Groups Receive Award for Excellence

San Francisco, CA, January 12, 1999 - January is typically the period when consumers think about choosing a primary care physician from among the doctors affiliated with their health plan(s). As consumers begin making these selections, the Pacific Business Group on Health (PBGH) is pleased to announce the selection of winners of the first annual Physician Group Blue Ribbon Awards. More than 150 physician groups (including both medical groups and IPAs), were evaluated on criteria that represent PBGH's four strategic initiatives: Quality, Cost, Partnering, and Data Management. The awardees and their headquarters are:

• Alta Bates Medical Group, Emeryville
• Bristol Park Medical Group, Irvine
• Brown and Toland Medical Group, San Francisco
• Hill Physicians, San Ramon
• Huntington Provider Group, Pasadena
• Palo Alto Medical Foundation, Palo Alto
• The Permanente Medical Group, Oakland
• The Southern California Permanente Medical Group, Pasadena

Overall, the eight groups have demonstrated a commitment to participate in statewide quality of care projects, to pursue in-house quality improvement activities, and in the case of several of the groups, demonstrated high performance on the PBGH Physician Value Check Survey that measures patient satisfaction and quality at the group level.

"PBGH applauds the leadership of these eight groups for stepping out in front on provider-level quality measurement and accountability," said Tom Davies of GTE and Chair of PBGH's Quality Committee. "Many of them participate in numerous efforts to measure their own performance, and continually strive to advance quality of care. Employers and employees want this information to factor into their own health care decisions."

The PBGH Blue Ribbon Awards are designed to recognize and reward those organizations that stand out relative to their peers. In 1997, PBGH's first HMO Blue Ribbon was awarded to Kaiser Foundation Health Plan; PacifiCare received the Blue Ribbon in 1998. In addition to awarding Blue Ribbons to physician groups beginning this year, PBGH also considered designation of Blue Ribbon Hospitals for 1999. "Unfortunately, no hospitals stood out across multiple performance dimensions once PBGH aggregated the available data," noted Patricia E. Powers, executive director of PBGH. "We have high hopes that the hospital community will begin to participate and distinguish themselves through more of these collaborative quality initiatives."

PBGH will continue to inform all Californians about Blue Ribbon winners on an ongoing basis through its free consumer Website: www.healthscope.org. The site also contains more detailed information about quality of care for plans, physician groups, and hospitals in a variety of areas.

Contact:
Clark Miller
Senior Communications Manager
Pacific Business Group on Health
Telephone: (415) 615–6302
E–mail: cmiller@pbgh.org

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