More companies boosting employee health incentives
Companies are increasingly implementing health and disease management programs for their employees, a survey of 242 major U.S. employers revealed. The survey, conducted by ERISA Industry Committee, the National Association of Manufacturers, and IncentOne, also highlighted the use of incentives to motivate employees to take better care of their health. Health management programs have evolved from a one-size-fits-all to a customized model that targets the needs of employees, said Katherine Capps, president of Health2 Resources.
DATE: 6/22/07
Sutter Health invests $1 million in CalRHIO
Sutter Health has pumped $1 million into the California Regional Health Information Organization, known as CalRHIO. The grant is part of a multi-million-dollar commitment by the healthcare system to further pass along savings from tax-exempt bonds to healthcare consumers. Sutter applied earlier this year to the state treasurer and the California Health Facilities Financing Authority for nearly $1 billion in tax-exempt bond financing to pay for construction, renovation and new equipment at six of the health system’s sites.
DATE: 6/20/07
Scorecard on states’ healthcare released
A report scoring all 50 states on how well they deliver healthcare estimates that bringing lower-scoring states up to higher-scoring states’ standards could save 90,000 lives annually, insure 22 million more people and save Medicare $22 billion. The Commonwealth Fund study, released in June, compares each state to benchmarks that have already been achieved in states across the country. According to the study, the states with the top five scores are Hawaii, Iowa, New Hampshire, Vermont and Maine, while those with the lowest scores are California, Tennessee, Alabama, Georgia and Florida.
DATE: 6/14/07
State efforts could lead feds to cover uninsured
State efforts could be pivotal in promoting federal action to insure the more than 46 million Americans without coverage. At a June panel discussion hosted by the Alliance for Health Reform and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Pam Dickson, deputy director of RWJ’s healthcare group, said change at the federal level is often based on models that have been shown to work at the state level.
DATE: 6/5/07