New Jersey Prepares to Launch Accountable Care Organization

New Jersey is one of the first states to experiment with accountable care organizations, or ACOs, a relatively new health care model that is similar to the patient-centered medical home, or PCMH, and that links primary care and subspecialist practices with area hospitals to create an integrated delivery system. Providers are accountable for costs and the quality of care delivered, and bonuses and penalties are tied to overall spending and quality measures. Learn more

Swine Flu Employee Education

Below are links to a variety of swine flu educational resources that will help you stay on top of the situation. They include:

• General information about swine flu from the Centers for Disease Control. The CDC is updating this page several times a day.
• Information about workplace planning for a pandemic such as swine flu from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and OSHA.
• Additionally, we encourage you to contact your state and local health departments for additional guidance on this topic.

The CDC has offered recommendations for everyday actions people can take to protect themselves from this new strain of flu.

• Cover your nose and mouth with a tissue when you cough or sneeze. Throw the tissue in the trash after you use it.
• Wash your hands often with soap and water, especially after you cough or sneeze. Alcohol-based hand cleaners are also effective.
• Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth. Germs spread that way.
• Try to avoid close contact with sick people.
  • Influenza is thought to spread mainly person-to-person through coughing or sneezing of infected people.
  • If you get sick, the CDC recommends that you stay home from work or school and limit contact with others to keep from infecting them.

Hewitt Data Reveals Little Change in U.S. Health Care Cost Increases for 2009

This Hewitt report indicates that the average health plan increases across the U.S will average between 6%-7% for 2009 with several exceptions for metropolitan areas that experienced increases as high 11%.  

 

Jim Winkler, North American practice leader of Hewitt’s Health Management Consulting business states “The “Employers continue to diligently manage health care costs through a combination of approaches, including continued cost shifting, tougher negotiations with health plans, and expanded health and wellness programs with incentives to encourage behavior change.

 

Read more

Are you Complying with HIPAA’s Final Wellness Regulations?

The US Dept of Labor has developed a checklist to determine whether a health promotion or disease prevention program is required to comply with the DOL’s final wellness program regulations, and, if so, whether the program is in compliance with the regulations.    

Click here for the Wellness Program Checklist

Click here for DOL’s HIPAA Compliance Guide

Aetna Takes the Lead on Personal Health Records

Aetna deserves praise for being out in front with the first-ever personalized search engine that mines information from Aetna’s vast data resources to deliver meaningful, personalized health and health benefits information to Aetna members.  Aetna partnered with Healthline Networks to develop Aetna SmartSource.  Aetna SmartSource is available online and can be accessed through Aetna Navigator^®, Aetna’s member self-service website, the CareEngine-powered Personal Health Record (PHR), and Simple Steps To A Healthier Life^®, Aetna’s online wellness program. Aetna will pilot Aetna SmartSource with several large, pre-selected customers throughout 2008.

Click here for more on SmartSource.

A CEO and CFO Summit “Embracing Wellness as a Business Strategy”

On April 17, 2008 Kevin Seelman, VP of Matria Healthcare and Scott Bradley, VP of Cook, Hall & Hyde, Inc will discuss, principals and best practices for a successful employee based health management program, ROI and your wellness program, HIPAA Regs and how to develop meaningful wellness incentives and relative health plan benchmarking.  Don’t miss this informative seminar.

For more information click here

Google Releases Personal Health Record (PHR)

Google CEO Eric Schmidt formally introduced Google Health partnership and pilot with the Cleveland Clinic this week at the HIMSS (Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society) conference in Orlando, Florida.  

John Moore of Chilmark Research writes great article on Goggles PHR introduction to the market.  Click here

Marissa Mayer, VP, Search & User Products at Google posts “Google Health a First Look”  Click here