Wellvana

What a whirlwind! We’re officially wrapped on Symposium 2026. We talked about big, heady issues, and went deep and long on the common roadblocks we all face no matter our organization, size, or role. But more than the knowledge dispensed was the generous spirit with which it was shared. Symposium simply wouldn’t be what it is without partners willing to share their stories—stories that inspire and instruct. This year’s theme was “Win as One,” and from where we’re sitting, we absolutely did. Let’s do it again next year.

We're here. Hundreds of partners from across the country have come together in Denver for the 2026 Accountable Care Symposium. Last night, we kicked things off—high desert style—at Camp Wellvana. Today, we get down to work. Leaders from health systems, community hospitals, and independent practices will share how they're moving value-based care forward—not in theory, but in practice—in their organizations, and for their patients. This is what community looks like. Thank you to our sponsors Ursa Health, Navina, Ceresti Health, Arcadia, 10BRIDGE, Esperta Health, and Survey Health for helping make it possible. And to all our attending partners: let's get ready to Win as One.

Introducing our new Chief Medical Officer: David Rankey, MD, MPH (David R.). David started in the ER. He moved into value-based care because he believed the biggest impact on patient health wasn't happening in the exam room — it was happening in the systems around it. Fifteen years later, he still leads like a clinician: get the diagnosis right before you prescribe the treatment. We're glad to have him leading that work from the inside. Read our full announcement and join us in welcoming David to Wellvana.  https://lnkd.in/eh2iaCWJ

We’re less than a month out! If the Accountable Care Symposium is on your radar, now's the time to lock it in. This year's agenda is the strongest we've put together in 11 years. You'll hear from World Champion Adventure Racer and NYT Bestselling Author Robyn Benincasa, AI expert Jeremy Utley of Stanford, healthcare innovator Elizabeth Markle, and CMMI Director Abe Sutton on where value-based care policy is headed. Symposium is where those doing the hard work of moving value-based care forward come to get smarter, get energized, and get aligned. Join us. https://lnkd.in/gnnTwnhH 

Twenty hospitals. Thousands of contenders. Every year, the National Rural Health Association goes searching for the highest-ranking rural prospective payment hospitals in the country. Working with the Chartis Center for Rural Health, hospitals are graded on eight indices: inpatient and outpatient market share, quality, outcomes, patient perspective, cost, charge, and finance—making it one of the most rigorous, comprehensive performance rankings in rural healthcare. At the end of the day, twenty organizations are singled out. This year, we’re proud to call two of them our partners. Congratulations to UCHealth - Yampa Valley Medical Center (part of Trinsic Clinically Integrated Network) and Avera Sacred Heart Hospital (part of Avera Health) on being named to the 2026 Top 20 Rural and Community Hospitals. This recognition doesn’t just signal your organizational excellence—it represents real lives being changed in places where medical help can sometimes be hard to come by. https://lnkd.in/gc43cbnN

Most people take time off from work to relax and rejuvenate. Wellvana’s Jay Hazelrigs is not most people.    Jay recently returned from a 10-day cycling trip to Chile as part of a volunteer mission with Fireflies Patagonia, an offshoot of the international Fireflies movement that’s dedicated to uniting creativity, endurance and purpose in support of children with cancer.    With a Garmin that was constantly telling him to take a recovery day, Jay and his fellow cyclists pedaled to bring awareness and raise funds for the Troi Pediatric Oncology Center in Temuco, Chile, which is a new center treating cancer in rural Patagonia, logging 1,000 kilometers at a cumulative elevation of 60,000 feet over the course of 8 days of riding.   Together, the group delivered children helmets, computers, books, bike lessons, and teacher supplies to local schools along the way.    “I was initially drawn to the challenge, but the mission is what really sets it apart. No one deserves to have cancer—especially not kids,” says Jay, an avid cyclist based in Colorado. “But also, cancer has become much more prevalent in my life lately, impacting the lives of my inner circle.”   We couldn’t be prouder of Jay’s heart for others. If you'd like to support Jay and the kids at the Troi Oncology Center, please visit his donation link: https://lnkd.in/eTB7fxnS And for further information on the ride and foundation, visit: https://lnkd.in/e-z7x4ZQ https://lnkd.in/e_zi7cUw

Our newest series, Profiles in Partnership, takes a closer look at how we’re helping health systems, community hospitals, and independent providers win at value-based care.     Thank you to the team at Trinsic Clinically Integrated Network (Elisa Wetherbee, Amy Scanlan, MD, and Dawn Morrissey, MBA-HCM, BSN,RN) for sharing your perspective on what makes our partnership work so well. We’re honored to be in this work together. (And tip of the hat to David Latzer, who puts our partners first and is always camera-ready.) 

The movement toward smarter, more sustainable care is growing—and so are we. Wellvana is proud to announce 190,000 new Medicare beneficiaries joining our network in 2026 through new and expanding MSSP ACO partnerships, bringing our total reach to more than 850,000 patients across 40 states. As proud as we are of this tangible growth, it reflects something bigger than numbers. Providers across the country—from health systems and clinically integrated networks to community hospitals, rurals, and independent practices—are no longer asking whether value-based care works. They're asking how to make it work for more of their patients. As the largest and top-performing hospital-led enabler in the MSSP space, Wellvana ACO partners saved Medicare $337 million in 2024—proof that value-based care, when done right, delivers for patients and the larger healthcare landscape. Cibolo Health Cook County Health Mercy https://lnkd.in/gEGe-N-f

Leadership matters—especially in rural America, where local hospitals are often the front line of care for entire communities. We’re proud to celebrate this recognition from Becker's Healthcare for nearly two dozen leaders within our larger ACO network, which represents 25% of the nation’s community and rural providers participating in the Medicare Shared Savings Program (MSSP). Your work strengthens not only your hospitals, but the small towns and patients who rely on them every day. Congratulations from all of us at Wellvana. Steve Barnett, DHA, FACHE, CRNA-R, Kym Clift, MBA, FACHE, RHCEOC, Margaret (Meg) Hickey-Boynton, Darlene Rodowicz, Cynthia K. McGuire (Monadnock), Taylor Rose (Barrett), Liz Sellers, CEO, Ben Bucher, Mike Delfs, Lukas Fischer, Amy Hart, FACHE, Curtis Hawkinson, Arlan Johnson, Michelle Majerus, MBA, FACHE, Cory Nelson, Matt Sells, George Von Mock, David Walz MBA, RN, BSN, FACHE, Lynda Stanley, Meagan Weber, and Kristi Barnd. https://lnkd.in/eEkVYupz

CMS’s latest performance year data for the ACO REACH model show that the program has been an unequivocal net-positive for patients and providers — improving outcomes and reducing total cost of care over time. That’s why we’re concerned about a new Retrospective Trend Adjustment (RTA) risk corridor policy that threatens to undermine those gains and weaken momentum heading into the Innovation Center’s next model, LEAD.  Wellvana CEO Susan Diamond joined other value-based care leaders to advocate against this change in an article published today by National Association of ACOs and featured in AJMC - The American Journal of Managed Care. As the leading ACO enabler for hospital-led and rural participants, Wellvana will continue working to ensure that the trust providers place in CMS is returned to them with consistent, predictable policies — policies that reward their considerable investments in value-based care and the meaningful patient outcomes and savings they deliver.