Landmark Health is capping off 2021 with a new leader at its helm. The company named Chris Johnson CEO on Tuesday.
Founded in 2014, the Huntington Beach, California-based Landmark is a multidisciplinary mobile medical group that delivers comprehensive in-home medical care to “the sickest and frailest” patient populations. The company – whose physician-led teams work alongside patients’ existing health care providers, including home health agencies – currently operates across 18 states.
Johnson’s leadership as CEO will be integral to Landmark’s 2022 growth strategy, the company noted in a press release.
“Landmark’s value-based clinical model is actively transforming health care in America,” Johnson said in the release. “By extending primary and urgent care into the homes of patients with challenging illness, we’re helping seniors age in place, surrounded by family and friends. It’s life-changing and inspiring work, and I’m honored to lead the Landmark team through our next chapter of growth as we look to double the number of patients we serve and expand our footprint to 22 states in 2022.”
Home health operators have been following Landmark closely, as it offers a potential partner in value-based care relationships. Johnson recently discussed that exact topic at the Home Health Care News FUTURE conference, sharing the stage with LHC Group Inc. (Nasdaq: LHCG) executive Bruce Greenstein.
“We are an organization that partners with either payers or provider groups that have full-risk for their patients. Generally, that’s Medicare Advantage,” Johnson said in September. “Some of our customers are Humana Inc. (NYSE: HUM), UnitedHealth Group (NYSE: UNH), Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts, as well as provider groups that take full risk, like Southwestern Health Resources.”
Prior to his appointment as CEO, Johnson was vice president and head of corporate development at Landmark. As part of the role, he led the company’s growth strategy, strategic partnerships, M&A and public-policy efforts.
Johnson succeeds Nick Loporcaro, who held the role of CEO for the past three years. Landmark was originally founded by Rubicon Founders CEO Adam Boehler, who eventually left to head the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation (CMMI).
Contextually, Johnson takes over as CEO during a time of change for Landmark. In a move that went somewhat under the radar, the company became part of Optum earlier this year.
Strategically, joining Optum allows Landmark to maximize its reach into the home. Landmark projects to be caring for 300,000 patients by the end of next year, Johnson said at FUTURE.
“It has really helped us to expand the number of patients that have access to this type of service, and do so in a way that really creates density for our local medical groups, which just enhances the quality of care that we can provide,” he explained.
In addition to growing its patient base and geographic footprint, Landmark will likely continue to build relationships with home health agencies next year. Care coordination and seamless communication has been key to those partnerships, Johnson previously mentioned.
“Our best home health partners are really ‘care coordinating’ with us,” he said. “Our teams want to hear how Mrs. Smith is doing. We want to tell you the things that we did with Mrs. Smith recently. And I think there’s a real opportunity in the home as an ecosystem to make sure that different organizations are really seamlessly [caring for] these patients.”
*Editor’s note (Dec. 15, 2021): This story was updated to remove a reference about Landmark’s participation in direct contracting. Landmark was approved as one of 51 direct-contracting entities in 2020, but the company currently “does not participate in direct contracting,” a spokesperson told HHCN.
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