URAC announced today that Robert L. “Rocky” Crocker, MD, has been named chairman of the organization’s Board of Directors

 “Rocky’s dedicated service over the years on URAC’s Board of Directors and on a number of committees demonstrates his commitment to the organization and to our goals,” said Alan Spielman, URAC’s chief executive officer.

Crocker is a board-certified family practice physician and has more than 20 years’ experience as a senior level regional, national and corporate medical director. He has served as chairman of URAC’s Disease Management Standards Development Committee and the Patient Safety Advisory Committee, and on the rules governance and nomination committee. He was also founder and served eight years as president of Crosslink International, promoting health, education, research and humanitarian relief in former Soviet Central Asia.

“URAC is an organization with a strong and distinguished history of promoting quality in medical management programs and activities,” Crocker said. “URAC has a track record of providing value to multiple stakeholders, including employers, regulators, health plans, medical management companies and consumers. We are now at a point where URAC can really build on its successes and further its efforts toward improving the quality of the health care management experience. I anticipate the organization will continue to do great things.”

In his service with URAC, Crocker has played a key leadership role in the development of new core accreditation standards requiring ongoing Consumer Safety Quality Improvement Projects. Consumer safety has become a topic of increasing importance among both health care providers and for managed care organizations since President George Bush signed into law the “Patient Safety and Quality Improvement Act of 2005” (SB 544), requiring health care organizations to record medical errors in a nation-wide patient safety database.

“URAC recognizes how important it is to improve consumer safety and has taken a leadership role to encourage consumer safety initiatives through its revised Core Standards which were released in January 2006,” Spielman said. “Rocky was a driving force behind the creation of the URAC Patient Safety Advisory Committee, serving as chair, and the subsequent development of the groundbreaking URAC patient safety standards. His role as chairman will undoubtedly strengthen URAC’s efforts as we pursue greater consumer protection and empowerment through our accreditation programs.”

About URAC
URAC, an independent, nonprofit organization, is well-known as a leader in promoting health care quality through its accreditation and certification programs. URAC offers a wide range of quality benchmarking programs and services that keep pace with the rapid changes in the health care system, and provide a symbol of excellence for organizations to validate their commitment to quality and accountability. Through its broad-based governance structure and an inclusive standards development process, URAC ensures that all stakeholders are represented in establishing meaningful quality measures for the entire health care industry. For more information, visit www.urac.org

About AAPPO
The American Association of Preferred Provider Organizations (AAPPO) is the leading national association of Preferred Provider Organizations (PPOs) and affiliate organizations, and was established in 1983 to advance the awareness of the benefits – greater access, choice and flexibility – that PPOs bring to American healthcare. AAPPO is the only association advocating solely on behalf of PPOs and their high-quality, certified provider networks. PPOs put control for medical decisions in the hands of the physician and patient, resulting in easy access to the right care, provided by the right doctor, at the right time. AAPPO provides its members valuable benefits in the public policy, communications, education and marketing arenas. Visit www.aappo.org.