Posted on 09. Jul, 2010 by admin in Cyndy's Spot on Health Value, News, evidence
An Overview of Health Innovation in Wisconsin
Wisconsin–the state best identified with cheese, high taxes, the Green Bay Packers and beer–is also known for health care, creating diverse collaborative health care systems and well-established prevention programs. But it is also plagued by high costs and expenses. Despite Wisconsin’s health care woes–it ranked as the 16th state with the highest health spending per capita in 2004 (the most recent year for which comparative state-level data are available), it is a state primed for reform, a path it has been pursuing throughout the past decade. Employers, health plans and county governments all share in the journey towards cost-effective, high-quality, accessible health care.
This report, Wisconsin: Levers Drive Value-Based Innovation Across the State, makes a business case for value-based design as illustrated by Wisconsin companies Quad/Graphics [QuadMed], Humana, Journal Communications and Chippewa County. The four organizations are a representative sample of how innovation is providing resolution and relief in Wisconsin and how the state culture has contributed to the success of their solutions. The report is built on the Health Value Continuum, a development pathway for value-based design that shows the route to quality health improvement and behavior change. The Health Value Continuum was developed by the Center for Health Value Innovation to detail the experiences and path of early innovators in value-based benefit design. The four organizations highlighted in this paper (QuadMed, Humana, Journal Communications and Chippewa County, WI) have each reached different points along the Continuum as they move toward optimal health.
“We think Wisconsin is a truly unique learning laboratory,” says Cyndy Nayer, president and chief executive officer of the Center for Health Value Innovation. “Wisconsin has demonstrated a willingness to innovate, share, and do more. We want to learn about and share the experience of these Wisconsin companies by cataloguing the levers–or incentives–currently in place, the metrics used to measure outcomes, and how statewide efforts can be replicated in the marketplace. These companies are all members of the Center, and our mission is to provide evidence of improved health value so that other companies can improve the value of their health care spend.”
For the complete report in PDF format, please click here.
Posted on 25. Sep, 2009 by cyndynayer in Cyndy's Spot on Health Value, Events
Recently, we held a wonderful webinar with our friends at the Integrated Benefits Institute and American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine. Jack Mahoney (our esteemed Chief Medical Officer), Ron Loeppke (of both the IBI and the ACOEM) and I presented the latest findings on value-based design and health and productivity management. It’s focused on the broker/consultant community in order to keep these folks up-to-date on the newest models, the changes in value-based design, and the measures that matter for the businesses they serve. ACOEM has graciously posted the webinar on their site, and you can access it here. CHVI-IBI-ACOEM value-based design and HPM for the broker/consultant
Posted on 16. Sep, 2009 by admin in Press Releases
St. Louis, MO – September 16, 2009 – The Center for Health Value Innovation, the nation’s premier information exchange for value-based design, announces the addition of six new members to its Board of Advisors and the appointment of Paul Grundy, M.D., director, Healthcare Transformation for IBM, and president of the Patient-Centered Primary Care Collaborative, to its Board of Directors.
“This dynamic group of people will be a welcome injection of fresh thinking into our already vibrant mix of healthcare innovators at the Center,” says Cyndy Nayer, president and CEO of the Center. “As healthcare reform gets under way and there is increased focus upon creating financial value for all stakeholders in the healthcare system, the Center will continue to promote its game-changing initiatives.”
The Center elected six new members to its Board of Advisors:
• Cindy Johnson, Vice President of Human Resources, Group Health Cooperative
• Frank Johnson, Executive Director of Benefits, State of Maine
• Gregg Kamas, Director of Health Risk Management, IMA Financial Group, Inc.
• Jeff Kluever, Risk Manager, Journal Communications and Co-Founder of the SE Wisconsin Business Healthcare Group
• Mike Kushner, Risk Management Director, Polk County, Florida
• Bruce Sherman, MD, Consulting Medical Director, Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company
Mike Taylor, M.D., Center chairman and medical director for Health Promotion at Caterpillar, Inc., adds, “As we approach a new era in our country’s healthcare system, the addition of these stellar thought-leaders to the Center’s team will enhance our efforts to serve communities and stakeholder organizations, improve individual health, and lower consumption of health resources and cost trends through the exchange of value-based design ideas and strategies.”
Posted on 24. Aug, 2009 by admin in Library, News
Jack Mahoney, MD, Chief Medical Officer of the Center, is highlighted in this article for his work in value-based design.
Among Dr. Mahoney’s comments on the challenges in implementing value-based designs:
People may be used to research conducted by double-blind randomized controlled trials or pure health economic or cost-effectiveness research. But the employer world is more experiential and decisions have to be made very quickly. You also have to live with the rules of the road for dealing with employees; you can’t really put people into randomized double-blind studies in the employer world.
Read the full interview.
Posted on 30. Jun, 2009 by admin in Press Releases
Center for Health Value Innovation Members Honored as 2009 Best Employers for Health Lifestyles By National Business Group on Health
ST. LOUIS, Mo. – June 30, 2009 – The Center for Health Value Innovation, (www.vbhealth.org), the nation’s premier organization dedicated to establishing value and producing evidence for sustainable health and financial improvement, announced today that 11 of its member organizations received awards for the 2009 Best Employers for Healthy Lifestyles from the National Business Group On Health (NBGH; http://www.businessgrouphealth.org/).
NBGH is the nation’s only non-profit, membership organization of large employers devoted exclusively to finding innovative and forward-thinking solutions to their most important healthcare and related benefits issues, and its awards program acknowledges those organizations for their exceptional commitment to a healthy workplace and for helping their employees and families make better choices about their own health and well-being.
Recognizing The Center members which earned this distinction, Cyndy Nayer, president and CEO of The Center says, “Our member companies continue to be acknowledged for their cultures of health and emphasis on prevention and wellness, testimony to the success of value-based benefit design,” says Cyndy Nayer, president and CEO of the Center. “They are pioneers and innovators, demonstrating the power of consumer engagement to drive improved health, better outcomes and lower cost trends.”
These Center members earned the following NBGH 2009 Best Employers for Healthy Lifestyles Winners awards:
PLATINUM: Recognizing established “Healthy Weight, Healthy Lifestyles” programs with measurable success and documented outcomes.
FPL Group
Hannaford Supermarkets
IBM
Pitney Bowes Inc.
Quest Diagnostics
(Campbell Soup Company is part of this award category. While not a member of the Board of the Center, it is working with the Center and other companies in the Camden Counties Healthy Employees Consortium for an innovative model of value-based design).
GOLD: For creating cultural and environmental changes that support employees who are committed to long-term behavior changes.
Chrysler Group LLC
Humana
Mayo Clinic
WellPoint, Inc.
SILVER: For employers who have launched programs or services to promote living a healthier lifestyle.
sanofi-aventis U.S.
About The Center for Health Value Innovation
Information Exchange for Value-Based Design
Launched in 2007, The Center for Health Value Innovation is a multi-stakeholder not-for-profit (501c3) alliance focused on employers that drives the financial value of health dollars. www.vbhealth.org.
