Managed Care - February 2008 - (Page 29) Companies demand wellness services, continued generally operate outside an employer’s relationship with any health plan, shows how serious corporate America is about taking control of its workers’ health. At recent employer conferences, Willette says, onsite clinics were the hottest topic on tap. “Employers are either looking at feasibility of onsite clinics or redefining what they currently have,” she says. “That clinic can be the onsite resource to help with integration of occupational, nonoccupational, and primary care, and be the storefront for the culture of health.” Faced with such trends, health plans must find ways to be rele- vant to their clients. “There are a lot of opportunities out there for them to reinvent themselves and be different,” Willette says. “The innovation is out there. The employers are pushing for it and I think the future is going to those health plans that can really evolve into something that they’re not today.” of medical trend rates, while employers are focused still being rolled out. The subsidiary she runs, on the broader goal of worker productivity. Health Management, employs 1,500 people, mostly “The employer’s issue is how to keep people health care professionals providing wellness servfrom getting sick in the first place, because once ices directly to WellPoint clients. As many as 800 they get sick, the barn door has been opened,” he may be added in the year ahead. says. “Is it in the health plan’s interest to prevent ill“We’re really focusing on what we call health nesses? Not necessarily, because they’re paid on optimization — how do you achieve, at an indivolume and how much money is going through the vidual level for an employee, optimal health,” system.” Kennedy says. “We see that health optimization From the health plans’ perspective, the vibeing the next generation, and we just need to ability of wellness services will be evaluated continue to work to slowly bring that inteon the expense of offering the services and the grated solution together as our core product.” savings that come from them. Other nationwide health plans share that “The key variables are: How many emfocus, although the terminology, goals, and ployees and families make use of these servmeasurement of the wellness movement have ices, what do those people look like from a deyet to become settled. mographic standpoint, and is there any cost Kaiser Permanente knows that its clients savings to be had in the medium term?” says Aren’t wellness eventually will want to know how wellness Snook, the actuary. programs are affecting worker productivity. programs risky? All too soon to know, he adds. If relatively ”I think it’s more Paige says that ways to measure the outcomes few employees use wellness programs, the ex- risky if you aren’t of wellness programs must be developed. pense of offering them will be minimal. On thinking that way “We’re very interested in working with our because you will the other hand, if already-health-conscious no longer be customers in developing those kinds of tools workers are the primary users, the savings competitive,” says because there is literature out there that says from reduced claims will be small since those Joan Kennedy, issues of productivity far outweigh the direct senior vice presipeople are not high cost anyway. medical costs that an employer experiences,” dent of WellPoint. Paige says. “But if you’re really hitting the target population — the people who don’t exercise and Meanwhile, in some cases, Cigna is already the people who eat wrong — then it could be more guaranteeing that its customers will benefit from effective in cutting costs,” he says. wellness programs. This is not to say Snook is against the programs. “In our chronic care program and some of our “I think this wellness thing is really a good idea, case management programs, we guarantee financial and I’d be very happy to see it succeed,” he says. results, the effect on medical cost and improved productivity,” Coloian says.“Even though the results are usually 12 to 36 months in the making, we are $100 million on a fad? making sure our customers understand we are deWellPoint’s Kennedy has invested nearly $100 livering the programs as we promised.” million to develop 360° Health, and programs are FEBRUARY 2008 / MANAGED CARE 29
For optimal viewing of this digital publication, please enable JavaScript and then refresh the page. If you would like to try to load the digital publication without using Flash Player detection, please click here.