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We are the Beneficiary and Family Centered Care Quality Improvement Organization, working to improve the quality of care for Medicare beneficiaries. Our site offers beneficiary and family-centered care information for providers, patients, and families. Welcome!
Acentra Health's Work As A BFCC-QIO
As the Beneficiary and Family Centered Care Quality Improvement Organization (BFCC-QIO) for 29 states, Acentra Health provides free services to people with Medicare, as well as their families and representatives regarding:
- Hospital discharge and skilled service termination appeals
- Quality of care complaints
- Immediate Advocacy services
Appeals
Medicare patients - or their representatives or families - can file appeals with Acentra Health if they feel as though they are not ready for discharge (discharge appeal relating to hospital inpatients) or skilled services are ending too soon (skilled service termination appeals).
Quality of Care Complaints
Medicare patients - or their representatives or families - can file quality of care complaints with Acentra Health when they are not satisfied with the healthcare received from a healthcare provider or practitioner.
Immediate Advocacy Services
Immediate Advocacy is an informal process in which the BFCC-QIO acts as a liaison for people with Medicare to quickly resolve an oral complaint, usually within 1-2 days.
Sometimes Medicare patients find themselves in situations such as difficulty scheduling an appointment or concerns about not receiving critical medical equipment. Using Immediate Advocacy services, Acentra Health can help Medicare patients and their families (or representatives) to resolve these situations.
Acentra Health History
Acentra Health has been a Quality Improvement Organization (QIO) since 1985. Before 2014, when QIO work became regional, Acentra Health was the QIO for the state of Ohio. In 2014, Acentra Health became the regional Beneficiary and Family Centered Care QIO (BFCC-QIO) for Areas 2,3, and 4, which included 33 states as well as the District of Columbia.
In 2019, Acentra Health received a new BFCC-QIO award and is now the BFCC-QIO for 29 states.
More information about Acentra Health's role as a BFCC-QIO can be found in our Annual Reports.
Related Links
Public Service Announcements
We have two different public service announcements (PSAs) for you to use to provide information about Medicare rights to your community.
PSAs are available in English and Spanish.