From a Whiteboard to a Lasting Legacy: Honoring Joel Port’s Enduring Impact on DVACO

“It all started as a whiteboard exercise in 2013,” Joel Port reflected during his last Operations meeting as Senior Vice President, Business and Network Development at Delaware Valley Accountable Care Organization (DVACO). “We were just trying to figure out—could we bring together enough practices to reach 5,000 beneficiaries?”

DVACO has since evolved into one of the largest accountable care organizations in the country —an organization that continues to transform the delivery of value-based care across the Philadelphia region. At the center of that journey—from the very beginning—was Joel Port, DVACO’s first employee, whose leadership and unwavering commitment helped shape not only what DVACO would become, but how it would grow.

After a long successful healthcare career in southeast Pennsylvania with Main Line Health and DVACO, Joel retired in March 2026; we look back on his contribution to accountable care.   

A Leader Who Built Community

In the earliest days, DVACO was a concept in motion—requiring insight, resilience, and a deep understanding of healthcare systems to bring it to life. With extensive knowledge of the Philadelphia healthcare landscape and longstanding relationships across the provider network, Joel served as a critical architect of DVACO’s foundation.

Former CEO Dr. Katherine Schneider reflected, “Joel’s understanding extended far beyond names and systems—he saw the people behind the work: physicians, nurses, office staff, and the communities they served”. That perspective shaped not only how DVACO was built, but how it grew—bringing together a network of providers grounded in trust, shared purpose, and a commitment to better care.

Those who worked closely alongside him recall the early celebration of DVACO’s first shared savings achievement under the Medicare Shared Savings Program. The pride Joel took in delivering those first shared savings checks directly to providers spoke volumes—he was, as he's been described, a provider advocate through and through.

This influence extended beyond DVACO’s internal growth to the broader healthcare landscape. Former CEO Dr. Mark Angelo shared, “A defining moment was speaking alongside Joel at the ACHE National Congress, reflecting on 15 years of the Affordable Care Act—an experience that highlighted Joel’s credibility, thought leadership, and deep commitment to advancing accountable care.”

DVACO’s executive leadership noted Joel’s ability to build meaningful relationships and foster a strong sense of community among colleagues. He has a unique way of making people feel welcome, supported, and connected—not only through thoughtful conversations, sound advice, and steady encouragement during challenges, but also through relationships that extend beyond the workplace. Whether opening his home to colleagues, creating space for connection outside of the office, or simply crossing paths at events like the annual ACS Philly-to-Shore Bike-A-Thon. These moments speak to a broader truth: Joel understands that strong organizations are built not only through strategy, but through relationships.

Joel is committed to shaping the next generation of healthcare leaders through his mentorship and dedication to professional growth. Those who worked under his leadership recall the consistent guidance and support that helped them navigate complex challenges and seize new opportunities. He invested in their long-term success, offering constructive feedback and encouragement that shaped their professional development over several years. Joel encouraged pursuit of higher education and advancement opportunities, celebrated accomplishments, and pushed team members toward realizing their full potential.

The same dedication carried through to the Administrative Fellowship program he established and championed. Fellows consistently describe how Joel created space for learning, empowered them to take on meaningful projects, and offered guidance that balanced constructive feedback with empathy. Whether it was exploring new areas of healthcare or building confidence in leadership, Joel’s mentorship instilled skills, curiosity, and resilience that continue to guide his mentees’ careers today.

An Enduring Legacy
As the current Administrative Fellow, I want to take a moment for a personal reflection:

Joel, as colleagues have shared, your legacy will outlive the organization itself; you will be remembered as the original guiding force behind DVACO, as an experienced source of stability—a leader whose impact is measured not only by what you built, but by the people you supported, the providers you championed, the leaders you developed, and the careers you helped take flight.

Your commitment to family—always evident in the way you balanced devotion to your loved ones with dedication to your work—has inspired those around you to bring the same care and humanity to both their professional and personal lives. The lessons you imparted, the generous mentorship you offered, and the thoughtful guidance you shared will continue to ripple outward, shaping the culture of DVACO and inspiring professionals to pay it forward, mentoring others with the same generous, willing, dedicated, and empathetic leadership you demonstrated every day.

By Zori Castaneda, 2025-2026 Administrative Fellow, honoring Joel’s mentorship and the lasting impact of his wisdom, guidance, and empathy.

15 years after the Affordable Care Act: What’s worked and not worked in Value Based Care

At the 2025 American College of HealthCare Executives Congress, an annual educational event attended by over 7000 healthcare leaders, the Delaware Valley ACO (DVACO) was represented by Joel Port, Senior Vice President for Business and Network Development, who co-presented with Mark Angelo, MD, the former CEO of the DVACO, to over 300 attendees. The topic was “15 years after the Affordable Care Act: What’s worked and not worked in Value Based Care”, and it was very well received based on the audience reaction, and the ratings ☺️! As many of you may recall, the Affordable Care Act (ACA), a comprehensive health care reform law was enacted in March 2010 with two primary goals:

1. Improve access to health care by making health insurance more affordable and accessible, including the expansion of Medicaid, and;
2. Fund the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid ( CMS) to support innovative health care delivery programs to improve quality and lower costs.

While this landmark legislation had its supporters and detractors, most would agree that it accelerated CMS’s and other payer efforts to offer value-based care programs and arrangements. Our presentation focused on these innovative value-based care programs, identify these initiatives, discuss what’s worked or not worked to date, present some case studies, and offer up some potential options for success in value-based care in the future.
Similar to the goals of the DVACO, we discussed how we can make value-based care more meaningful and successful in the future, and continue to enhance the US health care system. Parts of this presentation were based on the patient and providers experiences at the Delaware Valley ACO, as well as the ACHE Published book, Caring for Our Communities: A Blueprint for Better Outcomes in Population health.

Delaware Valley ACO CEO Mark Angelo on the future of value-based care

“What we’re doing is changing the paradigm of care,” Angelo said. 
Read Mark's projections for the future of value-based care in a recent interview on Healthcare Brew responding to the following questions:

• How would you describe your job to someone who doesn’t work in healthcare?
• What would you consider the most challenging part of your job?
• What healthcare trend are you most optimistic about, and why?
• Do you think the 2030 goal is feasible?

We are happy to announce that we will be presenting at the ACHE 2023 Congress on Healthcare Leadership! This event features an incredible group of leaders exploring practical solutions to the challenges we face in healthcare today.

Be sure to join us for our presentation Managing Value-Based ACO Performance Focusing on Network Performance and Health Equity Through Advanced Analytics on Wednesday, March 22nd from 3:15-4:15pm. Hope to see you at #ACHECongress! #ACO #POPULATIONHEALTH #VALUEBASEDCARE #DelawareValleyACO #MSSP

Check out the other presenters and sessions here: Congress on healthcare leadership