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The Coalition would like to welcome the following new members:
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Employer Sponsored Health Insurance: To Be or Not To Be?
That is the question that is receiving much attention and speculation lately. The answer to this question will depend on the source.
A recent study from McKinsey & Co reported its findings that 30% of the 1300 employers surveyed would "definitely or probably" stop offering health insurance coverage after 2014. These findings have sparked much debate over the reliability of the methodology used in this study. In fact, 58.3% of the respondents answered they did not know what their company spent on medical and prescription benefits last year. 30-40% of the participants were not at all familiar with many of the provisions outlined in the U.S healthcare reform act.
More sophisticated studies performed of employer behavior , typically by creating "synthetic" firms and predicting how employers will act, based on data on past employer behavior. These studies have consistently shown a very different result: that the majority of employers will continue to offer health insurance, even after health care reform. In fact, new analyses by Avalere Consulting and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation came to the same conclusion. |
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Medicare to Release Data
Medicare officials released a proposed rule that would make claims data available that analysts can use to evaluate the performance of doctors, hospitals, and other providers. For years, those who measure the quality of providers' care or rate their performance have been frustrated because they haven't been able to get Medicare data for their reports. In the past, they've relied on information from private health plans. Under the proposed rule, groups who prepare these analyses would be able to combine Medicare information with private insurance claims data and provide more complete public reports about which physicians and hospitals provide the best care.Read more.
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The National Prevention Strategy
On June 16, 2011 U.S. Surgeon General Regina Benjamin and members of the National Prevention Council released the first ever National Prevention Strategy at a news conference in Washington, D.C.
On June 10, 2010 the President signed an Executive Order creating the National Prevention, Health Promotion, and Public Health Council. The National Prevention Council, chaired by Surgeon General Regina Benjamin, is charged with providing coordination and leadership at the federal level and among all executive departments and agencies with respect to prevention, wellness and health promotion practices. With input from the public and interested stakeholders, the National Prevention Council is charged with developing a National Prevention and Health Promotion Strategy (National Prevention Strategy). The National Prevention Strategy was released on June 16, 2011. |
Fitness DVDs, sweaty or serene, heat up cold market
According to a recent article published by Reuters, Video may have killed the radio star, but reality TV has been a boon to fitness DVDs, industry experts say. Workout DVDs still flex considerable muscle in an otherwise sagging market, as consumers wanting to shape up look for tough love from a trainer or try to dance with stars in their living rooms.
Fitness DVDs are bucking the downward trend of DVD sales generally. The Nielsen Company, which tracks retail sales, said 2010 overall home video sales were down seven percent from 2009, while home video sales for fitness titles were up seven percent for the same period.
"The audience of baby boomers and up is 99 million people," Vikman said, "and they're interested in DVDs."
Julie Cartwright of Anchor Bay Entertainment said "People don't have time anymore. There was a time in this industry when the workout almost had to be an hour long to be perceived as credible. That time is over."
A North Carolina based company, Rival Health, has developed a DVD and web-based wellness solution for employers of any size. Rival Fusion is deployable and measurable across multiple sites and remote employees. Each employee receives customized fitness and nutrition recommendations and the program is built to involve the employee's family and friends so they create a peer support network as they use the system. Rival Health's founder and CEO, Pete Durand adds, "Wellness is about performance. Wellness should create an entire team of healthy employees who can improve the bottom line and create a culture that is the envy of every organization you compete against." http://www.rivalhealth.com/
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AJ Whittenberg Elementary School of Engineering
Healthy School Initiative
School's out for summer but the administration at AJ Whittenberg is busy planning for next year, including activities for the healthy living initiative:
There will be a culinary bootcamp held this summer for cafeteria staff from 10 other Greenville County elementary schools. The staff will be trained on how to prepare food items so that these schools can replicate the AJW healthy lunch menu in their cafeterias.
AJW has developed a partnership with the Kroc Center which will include a Fall Tennis program allowing students access to the new Tennis Center, a winter swim program allowing access to the pool, and a Spring soccer program. AJW is looking for funding support to be able to provide these programs free of charge to students. If interested please contact Ansel Sanders, wsanders@greenville.k12.sc.us
AJ Whittenberg would also like to invite all friends and partners of AJW to kick off the new school year at Fluor Field, home of the Greenville Drive, on August 15th at 7pm. That evening, not only do the Drive square off against the Rome Braves, but you'll also be able to see examples of what makes AJW special. Likewise, part of the proceeds from ticket sales and concession sales directly supports AJW's innovative engineering curriculum.
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NBCH Annual Meeting
Nearly 500 health care stakeholders attend this annual 2-day program showcasing innovations, addressing the latest on health care reform, and highlighting case studies from the experts. The 16th Annual Conference is being held at the Pointe Hilton Tapatio Cliffs Resort in Phoenix, AZ.
Join invited health care experts for a discussion on employer strategies:
- Thomas Frieden, M.D., Director, CDC
- Suzanne Delbanco, Ph.D., Executive Director, Catalyst for Payment Reform
- George Halvorson, Chairman & CEO, Kaiser Foundation Health Plan & Hospital
- Donald Berwick, M.D., Administrator, Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services
Click on the logo banner above for more information and to register!! |
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