A Rising Star in the Accreditation Industry

Everybody who’s anybody in the managed care business these days seems to crave legitimacy.

And that provides growth opportunities for a tidy little industry of outfits that accredit insurers, hospitals and medical groups.

Consider the Medical Quality Commission, a Seal Beach nonprofit organization that started nine years ago by awarding a star of approval for medical groups doing business with health maintenance organizations.

Now it’s branching into accrediting independent practice associations--loose-knit networks of individual doctors who band together to contract with HMOs.

The commission, an offshoot of a Seal Beach trade group, the Unified Medical Group Assn., puts applicants through a rigorous three-day evaluation. Applicants are rated on 152 items, including their methods for checking physician credentials, plans for improving patient care and whether fire extinguishers are up to date.

James Hillman, the trade group’s executive director, says that only a third of its 90 member groups have passed. “Some groups thought it wasn’t going to be difficult and failed,” he says.

It’s unclear, however, whether the commission’s star means much in the marketplace.

Albert Barnett, the chief executive of Friendly Hills HealthCare Network, says that his La Habra-based medical group has been accredited for eight years. While the recognition builds esprit de corps inside the organization, Barnett says, it doesn’t seem to matter much to HMOs it contracts with, or even patients.

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Barbara Marsh covers health care for The Times. She can be reached at (714) 966-7762 and at barbara.marsh@latimes.com.