The mission of Prognosis is to explore the nexus at which healthcare policy meets healthcare practice and how one affects the other. This blog makes readers more aware of the innovations taking place in healthcare delivery, financing and technology and the types of public policies that will encourage further progress.
Healthcare In Focus is a public education initiative of the HLC, created to promote a constructive dialogue about the state and future of American healthcare.
With eight out of every 10 over-65 adults having at least one chronic disease, and with chronic illnesses accounting for over 70 percent of our nation’s $2 trillion annual healthcare bill, Dr. Lorig’s program is a valuable one. The workshops and classes she initiated help chronic disease sufferers better communicate about their conditions engage in healthier lifestyles and do a more effective job handling their medication regimens.
The Kaiser interview caught my attention because Dr. Lorig makes an important point about the flaws in our healthcare system when it comes to treating many patients with chronic diseases. She said:
“Right now, it addresses diseases or even parts of diseases or small sub-parts of the body. It does not address the whole, complex person with multiple chronic diseases. So, right now, what happens, if you’re lucky, you go to a primary care doc who kind of does the day-to-day stuff and then you see four or five specialists each of which do their little specialty part — none of whom really talk to each other except maybe to look at your laboratory tests on an electronic medical record if you’re really lucky. It is totally uncoordinated. It’s chaotic. It serves pieces of people, not whole people.”
To be fair, there are a number of forward-thinking healthcare systems in the United States that have adopted coordinated care models and do an outstanding job bringing primary care physicians and specialists together to treat patients with a holistic approach. But, I can also attest personally, from overseeing my own father’s medical care, that there are too many cases where physicians aren’t communicating and don’t see the whole picture of a patient’s care when they recommend a new treatment or medication.
With over 50 percent of our senior population having multiple chronic diseases, it is clearly essential that coordinated care be the rule rather than the exception. And, as we move forward with the implementation of health reform, this has to be one of the most important priorities.
One doesn’t think of CNBC as a diet and fitness television channel, but the fact that the network is airing a special, “One Nation, Overweight”, this week is an indicator of the toll obesity is taking on our nation’s economy and on company budgets.
In this clip from the program, Johnson & Johnson CEO William Weldon, a Healthcare Leadership Council member, explains that an escalating obesity problem and the various illnesses and chronic diseases that result from it will inevitably drown employers in healthcare costs. Johnson & Johnson, by the way, is one of the real success stories in this country in developing employee wellness programs.
“One Nation, Overweight” will air again on CNBC this Saturday, May 22 at 7 p.m., Eastern time and Sunday, May 23 at 10 p.m., Eastern time.
We’re witnessing more encouraging new developments in empowering consumers to protect their own health, and attack the chronic diseases that are the most potent cost drivers in the U.S. healthcare system.
Today, HealthcareIT News spotlighted the employer organization Dossia for partnering with Mayo Clinic to provide employees with an online wellness application that enables them to better manage their health.
EmbodyHealth is a personal health management portal which offers resources such as health assessments, behavior change programs, tailored behavioral messages, instructional videos, questions and answers from Mayo Clinic specialists and a health reference library.
Dossia is a consortium of top U.S. employers dedicated to empowering individuals to improve healthcare. Healthcare Leadership Council members Cardinal Health and sanofi-aventis are amongst their founding organizations which also include AT&T, Applied Materials, BP America, Intel, Pitney Bowes, Abraxis Bioscience, Vanguard Health Services and Walmart.
“Dossia is committed to facilitating a consumer-led revolution by equipping employees with the tools necessary to better educate themselves about their health and healthcare decisions,” said Steve Munini, Dossia’s chief operating officer.
We all know that chronic disease accounts for 75 percent of the nation’s $2 trillion medical care costs. As I have said on this blog before, there is no doubt that employer wellness programs can play an enormous role in controlling healthcare costs. Additionally, a multifaceted approach, including greater emphasis on prevention and chronic disease management, the promotion of better nutrition, and fitness, is necessary to create lasting changes that will increase the health of Americans.
One of our nation’s greatest health threats is diabetes. Over 25 million Americans have it, and another 57 million of us, or one of every four American adults, have pre-diabetic conditions. If not diagnosed early and treated properly, diabetes can lead to kidney failure, heart disease and a host of other potentially lethal conditions.
And, besides the societal costs, we already know that 70 cents of every healthcare dollar Is spent on the treatment of chronic disease, diabetes being one of the leading cost drivers.
That’s why I’m so encouraged by the initiative being undertaken by the Walgreens’ pharmacies. Walgreens is working with the insurer United Health and the YMCA. The Diabetes Control Program will involve trained pharmacists working face-to-face with patients in their local pharmacies, providing personalized coaching and counseling to people with Type 2 diabetes. These pharmacists will offer advice on how to manage the condition and help ensure that patients are following their physicians’ treatment plans.
I’ve often said that all the public policy in the world can’t do as much to improve public health as intervening person-to-person in the doctor’s office, the clinic or the local drugstore. Kudos to Wallgreen’s for making a difference on one of the nation’s most pressing health challenges.
This week, Johnson & Johnson’s Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Bill Weldon added a new activity to his day—blogging. He became a contributor, for the very first time as he acknowledged, to the JNJBTW blog for company employees. His post reinforces the idea that employers need to have a more involved role in attacking disease and he outlines how Johnson & Johnson has established wellness techniques to do just that.
He wrote:
“J&J employees get a $500 discount off their health insurance premiums if they work to reduce their health risks – things like smoking, overeating, high cholesterol, physical inactivity, hypertension and stress. We try to make this easier to do, with on-site clinics, screenings, counseling, gym facilities, and cafeterias that served healthy food. We also have interactive and personalized digital health coaching that’s available 24/7. The coaching is tailored to each person’s motivations, confidence level, medical needs, personal characteristics and lifestyle.
So what’s the result? Only 4 percent of J&J employees smoke compared with more than 18 percent of Americans. Less than 7 percent of our people have high blood pressure, yet 28 percent of the U.S. public does. Seven percent of J&J employees have high cholesterol, while five times as many Americans – 37 percent – do.
With those kinds of changes, we estimate we’ve avoided some $21 million in costs from 2001 to 2009 alone. Our health care costs are trending 4 percent below increases for industries such as ours. And our return on investment has been 4 to 1, about $4 in healthcare and productivity savings for every dollar we’ve spent on prevention.”
There is no doubt that employer wellness programs can play a tremendous role in controlling healthcare costs. Currently, chronic disease accounts for 75 percent of U.S. healthcare spending. With more organizations taking this kind of activist role, the private sector can bend the health cost curve while also increasing workforce productivity.
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