Value Based Healthcare Roundtable
Leading the Transformation of the Healthcare Delivery System!
On Wednesday, May 9, less than a year after launching his Value-Driven Health Care Initiative, Health and Human Services Secretary Mike Leavitt held a roundtable with key business, union, government, community and health care leaders. He announced a major milestone: more than 100 million Americans are now served by health plans that are committed to the four cornerstones supported by Medicare and federal employee benefit
Secretary Leavitt stated “We are organizing the health care market to achieve better quality health care, at lower cost, for all Americans. That is the definition of value,” Secretary Leavitt said. “Yet until now, our health care system has been marked by a lack of consumer information to support value-based decisions.”
Employers’ Health Coalition, represented by their Executive Director Caryol Hendricks, participated in the roundtable as a nationally recognized organization of business leaders actively engaged in supporting value driven healthcare.
Hendricks said, “ It was an honor for the coalition to be invited to participate in this important roundtable discussion. Value is a combination of price and quality. Employers must give equal focus to both when purchasing healthcare for their employees and their families.
Secretary Leavitt continued to discuss progress toward a value-driven system at an event last week in Philadelphia. At the meeting, which was sponsored by the National Business Coalition on Health, Bridges to Excellence, and the Leapfrog Group, he spoke about the key role that employers are playing in the value-driven health care movement.
Caryol Hendricks also spoke at the event. Ms. Hendricks addressed the need for electronic medical records in physician’s office and how to overcome the obstacles physicians face in making the change.
Hendricks said” There is no doubt that the use of electronic medical records saves lives. The most conservative estimates are 44,000 to 98,000 lives saved per year. However, implementing this important tool in a busy office practice is challenging. Through one of our key quality initiatives, Bridges to Excellence, our leading employers will financially reward participating physicians for implementation of electronic medical records. The employers supporting BTE are Boyd Metals, Butler and Cook, Cloyes Gear, Kopco, Ok Foods, Riverside, Weldon Williams and Lick and Whirlpool.