Enabling Improved Patient Outcomes with Smith & Nephew's Pioneering Episode of Care Assurance Program (eCAP)

Smith & Nephew (NYSE:SNN; LSE:SN), the global medical technology business, announces that the U.S. health and wellness organization, Provider PPI LLC, has adopted its Episode of Care Assurance Program (eCAP), an innovation designed to mitigate risk associated with readmissions in value-based healthcare reimbursement models. Provider PPI LLC is a subsidiary of Highmark Health that provides group purchasing benefits to the hospitals of Allegheny Health Network and 60 additional healthcare providers in the western Pennsylvania region. 

Unplanned readmissions are costly to hospitals, surgeons and patients and can result in significant financial implications under the Comprehensive Care for Joint Replacement Model (CJR) and Bundled Payments for Care Improvement (BPCI) initiative. For patients, an unplanned readmission can turn an elective procedure into an emergent procedure, complicating and extending the 90-day episode of care. For hospitals and surgeons focused on value, as defined by quality outcomes achieved through efficiency, unplanned readmissions can negatively influence overall quality scores.

"We are excited about the significant value that Smith & Nephew's Episode of Care Assurance Program will bring to our member hospitals," said Paul Gallagher, VP, Provider PPI.  "Joint replacement and wound care are important, busy clinical service lines for most every hospital in our group and this unique program provides an added level of quality assurance and cost control to their associated bundled payment protocols."

The eCAP initiative pairs together Smith & Nephew’s entire line of primary total hip and knee reconstructive systems with two of its most innovative wound care products: PICO™ Single Use Negative Pressure Wound Therapy and ACTICOAT™ Flex 7 Silver-coated Antimicrobial Barrier Dressing. Smith & Nephew warrants the performance of its primary total knee systems, primary total hip systems, PICO Single Use Negative Pressure Wound Therapy System and ACTICOAT Flex 7 to perform as expected. If a patient is readmitted within 90 days following a procedure for a surgical site infection or to revise the implant due to a failure of a Smith & Nephew product, Smith & Nephew will pay a hospital's unreimbursed costs for the readmission up to the purchase prices of the implant, PICO and ACTICOAT Flex 7.

This pioneering program can provide value and help to improve quality associated with lower extremity joint reconstruction surgery (LEJR). Building strong partnerships with healthcare institutions and providers is the core of Smith & Nephew’s mission and has been a central pillar of the company for over 160 years. By providing viable solutions in healthcare, Smith & Nephew supports healthcare professionals in their daily efforts to improve the lives of patients. 

Enquiries         

About Smith & Nephew

Smith & Nephew is a global medical technology business dedicated to helping healthcare professionals improve people's lives. With leadership positions in Orthopaedic Reconstruction, Advanced Wound Management, Sports Medicine and Trauma & Extremities, Smith & Nephew has around 15,000 employees and a presence in more than 100 countries. Annual sales in 2015 were more than $4.6 billion. Smith & Nephew is a member of the FTSE100 (LSE:SN, NYSE:SNN).

For more information about Smith & Nephew, please visit our website www.smith-nephew.com, follow @SmithNephewplc on Twitter or visit SmithNephewplc on Facebook.com.

^{Forward-looking Statements}

^{This document may contain forward-looking statements that may or may not prove accurate. For example, statements regarding expected revenue growth and trading margins, market trends and our product pipeline are forward-looking statements. Phrases such as "aim", "plan", "intend", "anticipate", "well-placed", "believe", "estimate", "expect", "target", "consider" and similar expressions are generally intended to identify forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from what is expressed or implied by the statements. For Smith & Nephew, these factors include: economic and financial conditions in the markets we serve, especially those affecting health care providers, payers and customers; price levels for established and innovative medical devices; developments in medical technology; regulatory approvals, reimbursement decisions or other government actions; product defects or recalls or other problems with quality management systems or failure to comply with related regulations; litigation relating to patent or other claims; legal compliance risks and related investigative, remedial or enforcement actions; disruption to our supply chain or operations or those of our suppliers; competition for qualified personnel; strategic actions, including acquisitions and dispositions, our success in performing due diligence, valuing and integrating acquired businesses; disruption that may result from transactions or other changes we make in our business plans or organisation to adapt to market developments; and numerous other matters that affect us or our markets, including those of a political, economic, business, competitive or reputational nature. Please refer to the documents that Smith & Nephew has filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission under the U.S. Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, including Smith & Nephew's most recent annual report on Form 20-F, for a discussion of certain of these factors. Any forward-looking statement is based on information available to Smith & Nephew as of the date of the statement. All written or oral forward-looking statements attributable to Smith & Nephew are qualified by this caution. Smith & Nephew does not undertake any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statement to reflect any change in circumstances or in Smith & Nephew's expectations.}

^{◊ Trademark of Smith & Nephew.}