Quality and Cost Assessment
The Health Care Centers of Excellence (HCCOE) Program is a Texas designation program for the Blue Essentials network. This program identifies Texas hospitals that have demonstrated they deliver quality specialty care in a safe, effective and cost-efficient manner. This program is designed to guide consumers in finding quality and value for their specialty care needs. The program also allows employers a platform for designing benefits to meet their quality and cost objectives.
The Health Care Centers of Excellence Program currently designates facilities as Health Care Centers of Excellence in five high-impact areas of care, including:
- bariatric surgery
- knee and hip replacement
- maternity care
- spine surgery
- transplants
To receive the Health Care Center of Excellence designation, the facility must meet both quality standards and meet cost-efficiency standards.
Quality
Health Care Centers of Excellence are evaluated using industry standard quality metrics, specific to each clinical and/or surgical program. Specialty Care Facilities must achieve this Center of Excellence designation by first passing the rigorous, evidence-based selection criteria established in collaboration with leading medical specialists and societies, and consider those factors that impact care and cost, including:
- The expertise of the medical team
- The number of times the facility has performed the procedure
- The facility's track record on quality, safety, and efficiency
This approach incorporates quality measures with meaningful clinical impact that demonstrate favorable patient outcomes. The criteria below is used for each specific program: