University Hospitals (UH), one of the nation’s leading healthcare systems based in Cleveland, Ohio, has joined forces with Luna, the leading provider of in-home, in-person outpatient physical therapy, to expand access to services.
Patients seeking care will have safe, high-quality physical therapy conveniently delivered to them at home. The service, a first for Cleveland, will be available to all residents without a referral required to start.
The new collaboration, known as University Hospitals Physical Therapy At Home, will start taking appointments in Q4, 2023.
According to a national report from Luna, health systems lose $3.1 billion revenue from physical therapy referral leakage, equating to an average loss of $2,500 per patient.
Unlike remote or virtual care, Luna’s licensed physical therapists provide 1:1 hands-on care in the convenience of the patient’s home. With Luna, patients can request in-home physical therapy via the Luna app. A licensed physical therapist is then scheduled to arrive at the patient’s home for a 45-55 minute appointment, and continues the in-person treatment at home for the duration of the care plan.
The University Hospitals Physical Therapy At Home service will be covered by most major insurances with the same co-pay cost as facility-based care.
“By partnering with Luna, we are reducing barriers to access high quality, convenient physical therapy direct to a patient’s home,” said Bill Benoit, MOT, MBA, FACHE, Chief Operating Officer, UH South Market. “Patients appreciate flexibility when it comes to scheduling appointments, and we look forward to meeting patients where they are in their care journey through this innovative collaboration.”
“Health systems are turning to Luna to expand access to physical therapy beyond the geographic limits of their facilities,” said Palak Shah, Co-Founder and Head of Clinical Operations at Luna. “By partnering with Luna, health systems enable their patients to complete treatment at a convenient place and time, which leads to improved outcomes and patient satisfaction. We’re excited to be partnering with UH to roll out in-home, in-person outpatient physical therapy to their community.”
As part of the partnership, UH patients will be matched with a local Luna therapist at the time and location of their choosing, based on specialty, geography, schedule, and other factors. For consistency of care, the same therapist will treat patients for the entirety of the treatment plan, and patients and therapists will be able to communicate with each other and discuss care needs between visits.
Leading health systems such as Providence, Emory Healthcare, Intermountain Healthcare, and Scripps Health have partnered with Luna to offer outpatient physical therapy in the convenience of a patient’s home.
Luna currently operates across 56 markets in 28 states, has treated almost 50,000 patients in their homes, and performs an in-person visit every 25 seconds in the home.
According to a McKinsey report, up to $265 billion worth of care services, representing up to 25 percent of the total cost of care, is expected to shift to the home by 2025.