Affiliation With A Hospital Partner: Northpoint Health and Wellness Center and Hennepin Health

This case study examines the participation of Northpoint Health and Wellness Center in the Hennepin Health ACO. Northpoint is a prominent example of a health center collaborating with key stakeholders to form a social ACO, a model which integrates health and social services to address social determinants of health in a Medicaid population. Northpoint’s ability to collaborate with diverse healthcare and non-healthcare system partners in the ACO, and the state’s recognition of a need for an integrated delivery system to manage complex patients allowed the health center to provide “whole-person care” under a capitated system, while maintaining an important voice in the decision-making processes of the ACO. Northpoint’s story offers lessons for other health centers interested in participating actively in an ACO, or providing more comprehensive, integrated care through creating partnerships and leveraging their experience as valuable primary care providers.