Bravo Health to open its first Advanced Care Center in Philadelphia

Bravo Health (www.bravohealth.com) today announced that the first Bravo Health Advanced Care Center (the Center) will open in Philadelphia in January 2010. The Center, an innovative, state-of-the-art outpatient physician practice designed to meet the health care needs of Bravo Health members, will be located in a new building being constructed at 1010 W. Lehigh Avenue in North Philadelphia.

An extension of the member's primary care provider (PCP), the Center is intended to complement the PCP's care in two important ways:

-- To provide immediate care when a patient has a non-emergent condition and the PCP is not available because it's after hours or the appointment schedule is full -- To provide care and physician-directed case management for a complex condition that requires significant time or resources that the patient's PCP can't easily offer

"This new innovative model of care signifies Bravo Health's deep commitment to its members in the Philadelphia area," said Andrew Aronson, MD, Vice President of Physician Practice Operations for the Center. "Our goal in establishing the Center is consistent with the health care agenda across the country: to achieve better quality and value for patients through the appropriate and efficient delivery of care."

The Center will be staffed by board certified or board eligible physicians who will work hand-in-hand with the member's PCP to assure immediate and complex health needs are met in the most effective way.

"The Bravo Health Advanced Care Center will change the way health care is delivered," said Jason Feuerman, Senior Vice President and Executive Director, Bravo Health Pennsylvania. "By assisting PCPs in closing some of the gaps to health care access, the Center is part of a well-planned continuum of health care delivery. The Center is a proactive, forward-thinking and responsive solution to our members' need for accessible, efficient health care."

Today, Bravo Health Pennsylvania serves more than 40,000 members in the Philadelphia area. The Center, which will be located in an area where a high concentration of Bravo Health's membership lives, will offer convenient hours of operation:

-- Immediate care services are available 365 days of the year from 9 am to 9 pm -- Complex care services are available Monday through Friday from 7 am to 4 pm

There will be no co-pay, in accordance with the Bravo Health member's benefit plan, and no appointment will be necessary for immediate care services. Transportation arrangements will be available.