Expert Spotlight: Kevin Dotson

Kevin Dotson brings value-based care expertise to Terry Group’s health practice

Kevin Dotson, an experienced value-based care (VBC) and health planning leader, joins Terry Health to oversee our rapidly expanding VBC initiatives. With 25 years of experience encompassing healthcare strategy, operations, and financial leadership, Kevin most recently held significant leadership positions at Signify Health, Lee Health and Optum. As a fully credentialed actuary, Kevin assists clients with strategy and financial analysis and guides provider and payer organizations in the evaluation of emerging VBC models.

What do you do at Terry Health?

I work with providers, payers and innovators to help them understand where their focus in value-based care should be, how to manage the inherent risk, and how to use data to inform their strategy. Having worked for a provider system, including their Medicaid plan and ACO, as well as a major health plan, my role with Terry Health couldn’t be a better fit!

What attracted you to Terry Health?

Terry Health embodies a unique blend of seasoned industry experts with clinical, operations, and financial backgrounds that are all eager to understand client issues and then drive creative solutions. What the healthcare system needs right now is stronger partnership and understanding between key stakeholders in the value-based space, and this team is a powerful convener through the work we do. I am looking forward to pushing that agenda forward.

What aspects do you find most challenging about this transition to VBC?

We have made some progress in the collaboration between payers and providers, but we have a long way to go in driving down cost and improving quality. There will have to be changes in how providers are paid. We rely on a fee-for-service chassis today, but we will likely need to see a shift in payment arrangements that enable providers to make the care transformation needed.

What have you seen in the shift to VBC that inspires hope?

I have had the opportunity to work across the spectrum from the basic shared savings ACO models to provider-owned health plans. I am most excited when we see providers and payers partner to make difficult decisions together, drive significant waste out of the system, and significantly improve the quality of care.