New Report Recognizes Minnesota Medical Groups for High Quality Performance

January 11, 2024

Several top performers on quality also achieve low costs 

A new report from MN Community Measurement (MNCM) combines data from multiple sources to determine which Minnesota medical groups consistently perform well on measures of health care quality. The report was released by MN Community Measurement (MNCM), an independent non-profit that serves as an objective, trusted source of information on Minnesota health care quality, cost, and equity.

The report, Minnesota Health Care Quality Report Part 3: Top Performing Medical Groups Across All Quality Measures , combines data from quality measures reported to MNCM throughout 2023 to identify top performing medical groups, defined as those with statistically better than average performance on at least half of the quality measures that were applicable to them.

New this year, the report also recognizes medical groups that are top quality performers and also achieve lower total cost of care for privately insured patients than the statewide average.

Top Performing Medical Groups

Seven medical groups in Minnesota achieved the designation as top performing groups for their overall quality performance in 2022. The seven top performing groups include:

  • Central Pediatrics
  • Essentia Health
  • HealthPartners Clinics
  • Mankato Clinic, Ltd.
  • Mayo Clinic
  • Park Nicollet Health Services
  • South Lake Pediatrics

Of the seven medical groups recognized for high quality, four also achieved lower than average total cost of care for their privately insured patients in 2022: Central Pediatrics, HealthPartners Clinics, Park Nicollet Health Services, and South Lake Pediatrics.

“It’s no small feat to achieve consistently high health care quality across a wide range of measures,” said Julie Sonier, MNCM President and CEO. “Recognition of these high performing medical groups is well deserved. In addition, the fact that several of them achieve lower than average costs is important – it demonstrates that high quality and low cost can go hand in hand.”

“Patients need health care quality and affordability to go hand in hand, and this report demonstrates that health systems can achieve both,” said Andrea Walsh, HealthPartners President and CEO. “Our team of 27,000 colleagues is focused on improving quality and access while lowering total cost of care. We remain committed as ever to making much more urgently needed progress.”

Importance of Measurement

Measuring and reporting on health care quality and cost helps consumers understand how care varies across providers, allows providers to identify improvement opportunities and how their measures compare to others, and helps health plans and other purchasers better understand and improve value for money that is spent on health care.

“Minnesota is unique in the capabilities that we’ve built to measure and report on health care outcomes,” said Sonier. “Having a common set of priorities and common set of data have been huge assets to our state in focusing efforts to drive improvement.”

About MN Community Measurement MN Community Measurement is a nonprofit organization dedicated to empowering health care decision makers with meaningful data to drive improvement. A trusted source of health care data since 2005, MNCM works with doctors, hospitals, clinics, insurance companies, and state agencies to collect, analyze, and report health care data related to quality, cost, and equity of health care.

Posted in Press Release

< Older Post

 Newer Post >

Recent Posts

New MNCM Reports Highlight Minnesota Health Care Trends and Recognize Quality Leaders

By Jessica Donovan • April 29, 2026
MN Community Measurement (MNCM) has released two new reports highlighting the state’s health care performance: Health Care in Minnesota: Summary Report on Quality, Disparities, and Cost and Health Care in Minnesota: Health Care Quality Leaders . Together, these reports provide a comprehensive analysis of 2024 data, examining trends in health care quality, disparities, and costs, while also recognizing medical group quality leaders and those demonstrating meaningful improvement. These reports, based on data submitted to MNCM in 2025 and reflecting care delivered in 2024, work in tandem with MNCM’s Performance Hub —an interactive platform providing statewide analyses of health care quality and cost measures. Collectively, these tools equip community partners, including medical groups, payers, policymakers, public health agencies, researchers, and community-based organizations, with actionable insights to drive improvements in care and advance health equity across Minnesota. Report highlights include: Health Care Quality Significant gaps remain in asthma control, with thousands of patients needing improved care to meet statewide benchmarks. Colorectal cancer screening rates for the newly eligible 45-49 age group continues to improve. While the 2024 rate for all age groups has significantly increased compared to 2023, it remains significantly lower than 2021. Childhood immunization continues to show a decrease in statewide rate from year to year. This measure has not shown improvement in rates following the COVID-19 pandemic. There were modest improvements in breast cancer screening, cervical cancer screening, controlling high blood pressure, diabetes eye exams, and immunizations for adolescents. Health Care Disparities Black, Indigenous, Multi-Race, and Hispanic/Latinx patients experienced the most disparities across multiple measures, particularly in Colorectal Cancer Screening. Patients speaking Somali and Spanish, as well as those from Laos, Mexico, and Somalia, had lower rates of preventive care and chronic disease management compared to statewide averages. Cost and Utilization The total cost of care increased by 7.3% in 2024, primarily driven by an 8.9% rise in pharmacy costs and an 8.3% rise in professional fees. All categories of medical services saw increased use, except for inpatient admissions. Women aged 36-64 had the highest number of claims, while men aged 18-35 had the lowest number of claims. Quality Leaders In 2024, 31 medical groups were recognized as quality leaders across the measures reported by medical groups. In 2024, 58 medical groups were recognized as quality leaders across the measures reported by payers. 

Advancing a Cooperative Vision for Minnesota's Health Data Future

By Elizabeth Cinqueonce • March 5, 2026
Aligning for Impact: Minnesota's Health Data Evolution A 2026 Leadership Series from the MNCM Board Chair & President

Connected Through Data: Uncovering Disparities in Cervical Cancer

By Jessica Donovan • January 21, 2026
CONNECTED THROUGH DATA: Uncovering Disparities in Cervical Cancer

Empowered by Data: Uncovering Screening Disparities and Reducing Breast Cancer Risk

By Jess Donovan, MPH, BSN • October 21, 2025
This October marks the 40th anniversary of Breast Cancer Awareness Month. According to the American Cancer Society, about 1 in 8 women will be diagnosed with invasive breast cancer in their lifetime. Fortunately, however, early detection through screening and advances in treatment have decreased mortality by 44% since 1989. Screening can catch cancer early, when it is… The post Empowered by Data: Uncovering Screening Disparities and Reducing Breast Cancer Risk appeared first on MN Community Measurement.

Empowered by Data: Spotlight on Screening for Sexual Health

By Jess Donovan, MPH, BSN • September 30, 2025
September is Sexual Health Awareness Month. As we close out September, we’re highlighting two of the measures we report on – Cervical Cancer Screening and Chlamydia Screening in Women.   Cervical cancer, once one of the most common cancers affecting women in the United States, has significantly decreased since the 1970s. The reason for the decline… The post Empowered by Data: Spotlight on Screening for Sexual Health appeared first on MN Community Measurement.

Recent Comments

Archives

Categories