COVID sparks employer focus on integrated care model
A proactive outreach plan helps employers control costs, improve care among patients with highest risk.
Health care provider Marathon Health says it has helped employers save more than $22.5 million in health care costs through a data-driven patient outreach program.
Between the start of the pandemic and August, Marathon contacted over 260,000 patients to address chronic conditions and physical and mental well-being. Using data to identify the most high-risk patients, the initiative helped those employees save an average $2,000 in health-care-related costs annually.
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“While managing patients with chronic health problems is more challenging than ever, it is also more critical than ever,” Dr. Bruce Hochstadt, executive vice president at Marathon Health, said in a statement. “Conditions like diabetes, high blood pressure and asthma do not enter remission during a pandemic, and ignoring them can prove disastrous.”
Marathon identified five elements of an integrated care plan that can help reduce health care costs to employers.
- Proactive population health monitoring and outreach. Use data from health risk assessments, claims analytics and physicals to identify risky patients and guide outreach programs.
- Expanded access to care. Virtual and telehealth options are more affordable than in-person care.
- Enhanced and integrated occupational health. As employees begin returning to the workplace, employers may need help with COVID-19 screening and testing. Citing data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Marathon found that workplace-based monitoring reduces the health threat to workers.
- Active patient navigation and care coordination. Many employees put off care when facilities were closed during the pandemic, which means health care costs may increase as they begin rescheduling elective procedures, especially if conditions that would’ve been treated become more severe and more expensive. Coordinating care can help mitigate some of those costs, according to Marathon.
- Integrated behavioral health. The pandemic has highlighted flaws in mental health support. Integrating behavioral health with physical health helps employers provide more comprehensive care.
“The model used by Marathon Health to proactively support and personalize care for employee populations offers a different path from traditional healthcare that’s effective for both patient and employer,” Hochstadt said. Enhancing access to health care and reinforcing its importance, even during a pandemic, can reduce the impact and cost of urgent care, emergency room visits and inpatient hospitalizations in the near and long term.”
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