WellCare Health Plans, Inc., a leading provider of managed care services for government-sponsored health care programs, announced today that JenCare Neighborhood Medical Centers, a subsidiary of Miami-based ChenMed, joined the health plan's provider network in Atlanta, effective Sept. 1, 2015, and Chicago, effective Oct. 30, 2015.

WellCare Medicare members in these markets now have access to JenCare's integrated, coordinated care model, which has achieved patient satisfaction levels among the highest in the industry. They join thousands of WellCare Medicare members in South Florida, where this ChenMed model has, for many years, been available through a dozen Chen Neighborhood Medical Centers serving seniors in Miami-Dade and Broward Counties.

Heralded in Medical Economics as what "may be the best primary care system in the U.S.," Chen and JenCare Neighborhood Medical Centers give Medicare-eligible seniors unrivaled access to primary care physicians (PCPs) and specialist doctors by maintaining patient panel sizes five times smaller than the national average of one doctor to 2,300 patients.

"We specialize in serving older adults living with multiple major and complex health challenges," says Christopher Chen, M.D., ChenMed CEO. "JenCare's integrated, coordinated care model is helping thousands of seniors live better and longer, and our physicians truly are blessed to be able to nurture amazing relationships with their patients, for whom they serve as champions for optimal care 24/7 and 360 degrees. In fact, our patients are spending nearly 40 percent fewer days in hospitals than the national average."

JenCare features extended office visits with PCPs who coordinate care to consistently achieve better health outcomes; smaller physician panel sizes of 350-450 patients; frequent meetings of PCPs and specialist doctors to discuss high-risk patients and to increase collaboration; hospitalists' assistance in coordinating inpatient care; onsite physician drug dispensing; referrals to community-based agencies; bilingual providers; and round-trip van transportation for its patients who live within a six-mile radius of its centers.

"We are pleased to have JenCare join our network of providers," said Roman Kulich, WellCare's region president, Georgia and South Carolina. "Their member-focused model of care with collaborative primary-care doctors and specialists aims to improve health outcomes particularly for those living with complex medical challenges."

"With our members' health being our first priority, we must ensure that they get the right care at the right time in the most appropriate setting," said Dr. Robert Hilliard, Jr., president of Harmony Health Plan. "JenCare is a strong addition to our network and we look forward to working with them to help our members live better, healthier lives."

"We encourage folks to stop by any of our ten convenient Atlanta and Chicago locations," adds Dr. Chen.  "Be sure to chat with one or more of our current patients about quality of care and the patient experience they enjoy every time they visit JenCare. You'll be glad you did. It is our patient's feedback that has earned us patient satisfaction levels up to three times better than comparable customer satisfaction levels achieved by other medical practices."