Center for Health Value Innovation Unveils New Tool to Help Employers Reduce Health Care Costs and Realize Healthier, Enga

CHVI’s Health Value Accelerator™ Enables Purchasers to Address Key Health Care Issues Driving Costs

ST. LOUIS--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- The nonprofit Center for Health Value Innovation (CHVI) has developed a new online tool to help U.S. employers faced with staggering health care costs design benefits to get more value for their money – resulting in healthier, engaged employees. Released today, the Health Value Accelerator™ is an easy-to-use online tool that allows an employer to create an actionable report founded on value-based benefit design to maximize their health care investments.

“As health care costs continue to rise and workforce health declines, the ability of U.S. businesses to compete with the rest of the world is being impacted,” said Cyndy Nayer, CHVI president and CEO. “Instead of looking at just cutting costs, we’re working to help employers find ways to get more value and better results for the money they are already spending. We are focusing on health value as the outcome that will get America’s businesses and communities healthy.”

A value-based strategy includes health insurance design in addition to a suite of incentives and disincentives that influence desired behavior change (i.e. increased participation in wellness programs, chronic care management and use of appropriate care sources).

Employer data securely entered into the online tool includes: the number of employees and covered lives; total health care costs for recent years; percentage of health costs spent on pharmaceuticals; percentage of population diagnosed with cardio-metabolic conditions (a group of risk factors such as obesity, hypertension, high cholesterol, smoking, diabetes and depression) and level of medication adherence for these conditions; percentage of employee population participating in health management activities (i.e. biometric screens, annual physicals and condition or disease management programs); and current communication sources and timing for internal and external stakeholders.

Immediately after the information is entered, the Accelerator provides a confidential, actionable assessment that allows an employer to see how their population compares to national and state indicators. The information also includes: recommended and prioritized actions for value-based changes and dividends based on beneficiaries’ risks and health conditions; guidance to the delivery services and communications that will improve health status and quality of care, create predictable health cost trends and shift to a culture of health that will build a competitive advantage; and finally, references for all recommendations.

“The Accelerator will be a valuable tool to help employers maximize the dollars they're already spending on health care, resulting in better employee engagement in their personal health, better health outcomes, predictable cost trends for budgeting and a culture of health that supports business goals,” said Marianne Fazen, president and CEO of the Texas Business Group on Health, a statewide coalition of employers.

The Health Value Accelerator is available free to CHVI members and can be purchased by non-members and consultants and brokers on behalf of their clients. Funding for the development of this tool was provided by sanofi-aventis.

About the Center for Health Value Innovation

A non-profit chartered as an educational 501c3, CHVI is dedicated to sharing the evidence of improved health, quality and economic outcomes through value-based designs for sustainable health and financial improvement. Representing over 60 million covered lives and a membership of key stakeholders in the health value supply chain, CHVI is focused on the relentless pursuit of innovation in benefit designs that improve engagement, accelerate accountability and create a predictable health cost trend. www.vbhealth.org

Note to editors: A brief demo of the Health Value Accelerator™ is available upon request.



CONTACT:

Center for Health Value Innovation
Cary Conway, 972-731-9242
[email protected]
Twitter: @cyndynayer
Facebook: http://on.fb.me/CHVI-1
www.vbhealth.org

KEYWORDS:   United States  North America  Missouri

INDUSTRY KEYWORDS:   Technology  Data Management  Practice Management  Health  Hospitals  Other Health  Professional Services  Human Resources  Insurance  Diabetes  General Health  Managed Care

MEDIA: