This Healthcare CEO Has a New Prescription for Pediatric Care

In a healthcare landscape often dominated by discussions of senior care and chronic disease management, innovation is increasingly turning the spotlight to an often overlooked yet critical population: children.

“In major metro areas, if you actually map the 50% highest income zip codes and 50% lowest income zip codes, we often see that there’s like a two-to-one difference in pediatricians per capita,” Chris Johnson, CEO of Bluebird Kids Health, told PYMNTS’ Karen Webster.

Bluebird, which recently raised $31.5 million to expand its innovative pediatric healthcare platform, aims to bridge gaps in access to primary care for children, particularly those on Medicaid.

Johnson said that he aims to apply an accessibility mindset to pediatric care, not by entering homes but by establishing high-quality clinics in what he calls “pediatric deserts.”

A pediatric desert isn’t necessarily a remote area. Instead, it can exist just a few miles from bustling, well-resourced communities. This discrepancy leaves children in lower-income areas with limited access to basic healthcare.

“I believe that primary care is not appropriately leveraged in this country,” Johnson said. “Value-based care actually allows you to return the right primary care models that are going to do optimal care for patients and allows those providers to get properly compensated for the care they’re delivering.”

A Value-Based Care Model for Kids

Over 50% of children in the U.S. are covered by Medicaid, yet according to Johnson, many pediatricians either cap the number of Medicaid patients they see or avoid accepting them altogether due to lower reimbursement rates.

“It’s not for a nefarious purpose,” Johnson said. “Many pediatricians are small, medium businesses, and you can only support so much of a Medicaid fee-for-service reimbursement rate before you’re unprofitable.”

The impact of this gap in care is significant. According to Johnson, healthcare utilization patterns for children on Medicaid resemble those of Medicare populations, with high emergency department visits and inpatient admissions.

“That shouldn’t be,” he said. “It’s not because they are dramatically sicker than other children. It’s because we actually have, as a health system, evolved such that they don’t have access to primary care.”

Bluebird operates under a value-based care model, where the focus is on comprehensive care that integrates physical, behavioral and social health services. The platform is designed to reduce the reliance on emergency services by offering proactive and preventive care.

“It’s really a win for the patients, a win for the physicians who practice in our model, and a win for the overall health system,” Johnson said.

“One of the first things we’re focused on is making sure that we return the joy and the pleasure of medicine to the docs that join our team,” he added, noting that the model is also attractive to pediatricians themselves, particularly those disillusioned by the constraints of fee-for-service medicine.

Navigating Healthcare’s Headwinds

Still, the broader healthcare industry continues to face significant challenges, including a looming doctor shortage and potential cuts to Medicaid.

For his part, Johnson believes that as long as Bluebird demonstrates measurable improvements in patient outcomes and cost reductions, the business model will remain viable even amid policy shifts.

“We continue to remain incredibly focused on delivering great clinical outcomes for the children we have the privilege to serve,” he said.

Bluebird Kids Health uses a robust set of Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) to measure its impact. These include patient growth, quality of care metrics, emergency and inpatient utilization rates, and satisfaction scores from both patients and staff.

“We are like a two-sided platform,” Johnson said. “We need the patients to be super excited and we need our team to be super excited.”

As Bluebird Kids Health grows, the company aims to build a sustainable, scalable model that can be replicated across the country. While the immediate focus remains on Florida, Johnson envisions a future where Bluebird clinics serve children in communities nationwide.

He is also exploring how artificial intelligence (AI) and GenAI could enhance service delivery. From reducing the administrative burden on providers to offering educational tools for caregivers, technology will play a critical role in Bluebird’s strategy.

“We see a tremendous opportunity for AI to help with things like asthma education and management of allergies and other conditions,” Johnson said.