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Category: eValue8

Monday, December 22, 2014

Only 7% of Employers Use Objective Quality Information to Select Health Plans

A recent Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research (AP-NORC) survey of employers found that 60% of employers think health plan quality ratings are important but employers employers lack familiarity with health quality information—particularly, objective data on the quality of health insurance plans. Just 7 percent of employers that offer health insurance use objective quality information from sources tested in the survey; 89 percent do not use or are unfamiliar with any of the... Read More
Posted by Cristie Travis at Monday, December 22, 2014 | 0 comments
Quality Health Insurance eValue8 Health Plans CIGNA BlueCross BlueShield MBGH Member Benefits

Tuesday, October 28, 2014

Beginning to See the Change We Want

An insightful article by Mark Hepler, CFO of Munson Healthcare, an 8-hospital system based in Traverse City, MI, on HealthLeadersMedia.com, reveals that health care providers, well, at least his, are beginning to make the changes that we want to see and that have, to a large extent, been spurred by the Affordable Health Care Act (see recent blog post on whether the ACA is working). What changes are happening in how health care is delivered? Investing in becoming clinically... Read More
Posted by Cristie Travis at Tuesday, October 28, 2014 | 0 comments
The Leapfrog Group Quality Commentary Health Reform eValue8 Cost Value-Based Benefits Payment Reform Hospital Safety Score

Wednesday, September 17, 2014

NBCH Names Top Performing Health Plans

MBGH, in collaboration with Healthcare 21 Business Coalition in east Tennessee, works with Cigna Tennessee and BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee to complete eValue8. Part of the process includes a face-to-face meeting with the health plan and their MBGH and Healthcare 21 member clients where results are discussed and action plans identified for improvement and collaboration among the coalitions, employer members, and plans. Those meetings are occurring in September 2014 so check back to see how... Read More
Posted by Cristie Travis at Wednesday, September 17, 2014 | 0 comments
eValue8 CIGNA BlueCross BlueShield

Thursday, November 15, 2012

State of Tennessee Wins Excellence in Value-Based Purchasing Award

The State of Tennessee, a member of Memphis Business Group on Health (MBGH), was presented with the Employer Excellence in Value-Based Purchasing Award at the National Business Coalition on Health’s (NBCH) annual conference. The award is sponsored by Ethicon Endo-Surgery and Johnson & Johnson Health Care Systems. At the awards ceremony, Cristie Upshaw Travis, MBGH CEO, thanked the State on behalf of the citizens and tax payers of Tennessee, for taking bold steps to reign in the costs of... Read More
Posted by Cristie Travis at Thursday, November 15, 2012 | 0 comments
Benefit Design eValue8 Cost Value-Based Benefits Vendor Selection/Management Employee Engagement Health Benefits Members

Friday, September 23, 2011

If I were King....

If I were King, and could wave my magic wand, my three wishes would be (ooops, I think I am mixing metaphors, oh well): Engage my employees as partners with me in the quality and cost of their health benefits. I would Implement a benefit design similar to the State of Tennessee , offering lower payroll deduction for premium co-shares, lower deductibles, lower co-pays, and lower co-insurance in exchange for employees and their families taking an HRA, getting their biometrics, and agreeing... Read More
Posted by Cristie Travis at Friday, September 23, 2011 | 0 comments
The Leapfrog Group Report Cards Quality Commentary Benefit Design eValue8 Health Plans Worksite Wellness Value-Based Benefits Worksite clinics Medical errors

Thursday, September 22, 2011

NBCH Hospital Patient Safety Action Brief Details Actions for Employers

The National Business Coalition on Health's (NBCH) Action Brief on Hospital Patient Safety, lays out the issues, details how health plans across the country are or are not working to improve safety, and details actions employers can take to have an impact on patient safety for their employees. 2011 eValue8 results were used to track how health plans are or are not working to improve safety. MBGH is an active participant in the eValue8 process and this year both BlueCross BlueShield of... Read More
Posted by Cristie Travis at Thursday, September 22, 2011 | 0 comments
The Leapfrog Group Quality Commentary Benefit Design Health Insurance Cost-Quality Connection Healthcare Cost eValue8 Health Plans Getting Quality Care Campaign MBGH Member Benefits Payment Reform Medical errors

Friday, April 29, 2011

MBGH Recognizes Two Health Plans & Five Hospitals For Improving Cost & Quality

The Memphis Business Group on Health (MBGH), Memphis’s only non-profit organization focused on employee health and wellness issues from the employers’ perspective, recognized two health insurance companies and five regional hospitals for their progress toward improving health care quality in the region in 2010. BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee and UnitedHealthcare of Tennessee were recognized for scoring in the top 15% on several aspects of eValue8, the leading evidence-based... Read More
Posted by Cristie Travis at Friday, April 29, 2011 | 0 comments
The Leapfrog Group Methodist Quality eValue8 Health Plans Baptist St. Francis The MED BlueCross BlueShield UnitedHealthcare

Thursday, November 18, 2010

Tennessee Health Plans Rank in Top 15% Nationally on eValue8

The National Business Coalition on Health released its national eValue8 2010 report "Engage...Focus...Improve"  on November 16, 2010. The report provides a snap shot of health plan performance on key elements including consumer engagement, provider measurement, pharmacy management, prevention/health promotion, chronic disease management, behavioral health management. This year, for the first time, eValue8 also measured plan performance in reducing waste and inefficiencies in the delivery... Read More
Posted by Cristie Travis at Thursday, November 18, 2010 | 0 comments
Report Cards eValue8 Health Plans CIGNA BlueCross BlueShield UnitedHealthcare

Monday, September 27, 2010

MBGH Releases 2010 eValue8 Report on TN Health Plan Performance

MBGH released its 2010 eValue8 report on Tennessee Health Plan Performance at the MBGH Annual Conference on September 9, 2010. This annual report is prepared in conjunction with HealthCare 21, the business coalition in middle & east Tennessee. Click here for a copy of the report. This year, MBGH reports on the progress these health plans have made collectively in the past three years as well as each plan's specific progress. Although there has been good improvement in the areas of... Read More
Posted by Cristie Travis at Monday, September 27, 2010 | 0 comments
Quality eValue8 Health Plans

Monday, August 16, 2010

Preventable Medical Errors Add More Than $19.5 Billion to US Healthcare Costs

Yet another study reveals the direct connection between poor quality of care and increased cost. Milliman's recent study for the Society of Actuaries found that, in 2008, avoidable medical errors added $19.5 billion to the US healthcare bill. This cost is not the full cost, because it only captures those errors that can be identified based on an analysis of health care claims. Major findings include: $13,000 in additional cost were incurred per error 2,500 people died from these injuries... Read More
Posted by Cristie Travis at Monday, August 16, 2010 | 0 comments
The Leapfrog Group Quality Cost-Quality Connection Healthcare Cost eValue8 Aligning Forces for Quality

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Cristie Upshaw Travis
Chief Executive Officer, MBGH
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