Champions of Change: Primary Care Caring for Older Adults

Based in Chicago, Oak Street Health provides value-based primary care exclusively to older adults in underserved urban neighborhoods, driving industry-leading patient satisfaction scores, quality metrics, and a reduction in hospitalizations.

The Challenge

The average older adult is 73 years old and has significant health concerns: 24% have diabetes, 17% have congestive heart failure, and 12% have major depression. Yet she (55% are female) is also ill-equipped to manage her health: 56% have a high school education or less, 45% live under 200% of the federal poverty line, and 29% live alone. The average older adult makes just three visits to a primary care physician/provider per year, each lasting a mere 17 minutes. The mismatch is even worse for older low-income adults and for those in underserved urban neighborhoods where access to healthcare services is often poor.

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