Alliance Blog

I am writing this message as I wind down my time at the Alliance in anticipation of taking on a new opportunity and returning to Kansas City, the place I called home for more than 30 years before joining the Alliance. As I reflect on what has been a shorter than expected, but very important ...

Washington Health Alliance Executive Director Nancy Giunto has served on the board of the Network for Regional Health Improvement for several years. On October 1st, NRHI became affiliated with SHEIC, Strategic Health Information Exchange Collaborative, to create Civitas Networks for Health, a national collaborative representing 95% of the United States and comprised of member organizations ...

Washington state is the first in the nation to implement a publicly-funded long-term care support and services program. The law, passed in 2019, was designed to help address the significant need of the aging population and to reduce the financial burden on the state’s Medicaid program. Starting January 1st, employers are required to collect payments ...

It is hard to acknowledge that as far as we have come with the pandemic, we still find ourselves in rough and uncharted waters. When the CDC first announced that those who were vaccinated could unmask, I was among the many who breathed a sigh of relief, believing there was hope that it was just ...

One of the great privileges we have at the Washington Health Alliance (Alliance) is setting the table for meaningful conversation between colleagues and key stakeholders who share a common interest in delivering the best health care possible to residents of Washington state. We are fortunate to have physician leaders focused on ensuring patient safety, delivering ...

Letter from the Director of Performance Improvement & Innovation Approximately half of all Americans get their health insurance coverage as an employee or union member. That number is even higher in Washington state with 52.9% of us covered through employer-sponsored health insurance – whether provided directly to employees or through a union agreement. Spending for ...

Unite Us connects health and social care. Their team standardizes how health and social care providers communicate and track outcomes together. They align all stakeholders from healthcare, government, and the community around a shared goal to improve health. Their proven infrastructure provides both a person-centered care coordination platform and a hands-on community engagement process; they ...

From Director of Performance Improvement and Innovation Karen Johnson As the future brightens and our lives start to look and feel “normal” again, it seems fitting to reflect on all that has transpired over the last year and a half. We have been tested and challenged in ways few of us could have imagined. As ...

Cambia Grove’s spring 2020 Paying for Health series brought global, national, and community thought leaders to the virtual stage to discuss how to improve health outcomes and how to align stakeholder incentives with those outcomes. During its Incentivizing Health Hackathon, a wide variety of stakeholders came together to develop care and payment models that align ...

The Washington State Health Care Cost Transparency Board (HCCTB), created by House Bill 2457, is charged with reducing health care growth and increasing price transparency in Washington state. To help conduct its work, the HCCTB has an Advisory Committee on Health Care Providers and Carriers and an Advisory Committee on Data Issues. The Data Advisory ...

I’m pleased to share with you some great news. The Washington Health Alliance was recently recognized as a national leader by the American Board of Internal Medicine (ABIM) Foundation (best known for its Choosing Wisely® program) in the launch of its new initiative, Building Trust, focused on improving relationships within the health care system. It ...

On May 25, 2020, George Floyd died in police custody. The video of his death and the death of Manuel Ellis, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, and countless others spurred protests across the nation dramatically increased our awareness about the devastating effects of police violence and structural and systemic racism. At the unveiling of a new ...