HealthCare Consumerism Superstars 2012

PRSRT STDU.S. Postage

PAIDPermit #104

Ft. Atkinson, WI

Showcasing Innovative Health and Benefit Management

www.theihcc.com

Profi le of 57 winners, including:General Electric, JetBlue, Dell

Featuring top executives: John Reynolds, Cielostar

Adam Bruckman, Digital Insurance

William Short, Amerifl exJohn Goodman, NCPA

Plus: Care Continuum Alliance Population Health Awards;

HERO Executive Health Champion Award

ISSUE || Annual 2012

Renaissance ManYoung’s a Crusader

for Health Care Consumerism

Affordablewith a partner who doesn’t just talk lower costs, but guarantees them. Healthstat offers healthcare solutions that drive better employee health while reducing healthcare costs. Our experience, advanced technology, scalability and predictive modeling system can create an environment of wellness that works. As the leading provider of on-site primary care, health risk intervention, chronic care management and occupational medicine, Healthstat is here to change healthcare for the better. Inspire a healthy change today, by visiting healthstatinc.com.

Generated a 2:1 ROI in year 1.

Implemented Healthstat for his company last year.

Used only 2 sick days. Increased her sales by 5%.

Healthcare is

wellness that works. As the leading provider of on-site primary care, healthrisk intervention, chronic care management and occupational medicine,Healthstat is here to change healthcare for the better. Inspire a healthychange today, by visiting healthstatinc.com.

010463.6_CDHCSolutions.indd 1 2/16/12 10:26 AM

I N S I D E

www.TheIHCC.com I HealthCare Consumerism Solutions™ I Annual Superstars 2012 3

John J. Robbins Senior Memorial HealthCare Consumerism Leadership Award18 John Young

Senior Vice President of Consumerism – Cigna Young’s a Crusader for Health Care Consumerism

CEO Leadership Award21 Adam Bruckman

President/CEO – Digital Insurance Sticking Up for the Little Guy

22 Jay CudePresident/CEO – Coeur Inc.Cude Puts Health Care Costs, Employee Health in his own Hands

23 Dr. John Reynolds President/CEO – Cielostar After Successful Sale of Company, Reynolds on to Another Challenge

24 William ShortPresident/CEO – AmeriflexAmeriflex Continues to Thrive in Market Ravaged by Uncertainty

25 David SpaldingCEO – SelectAccountSpalding, SelectAccount Turn Minnesota into a Hotbed for HSAs

Most Innovative Health & Benefit Plan Design Award27 Julie Engebose

Corporate Benefits Manager – WS Packaging Group Inc.Engebose Simplifies Employee Benefit Offerings at WS Packaging

28 Lynda MorvickDirector of Benefits & HRIS – Toshiba America Medical Systems (TAMS)Morvik Makes Wellness Fun, Effective at TAMS

Most Effective Health & Benefit Plan Implementation Award29 Steve Gebben

Global Director of Compensation & Benefits – Solutia Inc.Gebben Makes a Career of Transforming Company Cultures

30 Judith Murphy & Tom SeldenHR Director / CEO – Southwest General Health CenterSouthwest General Says Bravo to No Increase in Health Care Costs

Most Innovative Employee Communications & Education Plan Award31 Terri Byron

Benefits Administration Manager – Sonic AutomotiveByron, Her Team Soup up Benefits Communication at Sonic Automotive

32 Steve EnoManager, Healthcare Programs & Marketing – General Electric CapitalEno Revolutionizes Benefit Communications at GE Capital

33 Lisa GomezSenior Benefits Analyst – Con-way FreightGomez Keeps Employee Communications Simple at Con-way

34 Tashi TheismanDirector of Global Benefit Operations – DellRebooting Benefits Communication at Dell

35 Sally MalowneyPrinciple Product Consultant – Blue Cross Blue Shield of MinnesotaCreating Better Heath Care Consumerism Online

HR Visionary Award37 Cyndee Blue

Human Resources Director – EverenceSwitching to Standalone Benefit, Blue Keeps Employees Focused on Vision

38 Steve BrowneVice President, Director of Human Resources – Wiginton Fire SystemsBrowne Focuses on Educating Employees on Importance of Vision Benefits

39 Maurice Evans, Jr.Director of Human Resources – The Integral GroupProtecting the Vision of Those who Envision Building Better Communities

Most Innovative Employee Empowerment Award41 Dawn Bading

Vice President of Human Resources – Kaiser PermanenteLearning to Thrive at Kaiser’s Georgia Region

42 Howard SpencerVice President of Compensation & Benefits – JetBlueSpencer Connects JetBlue to Better Access to Health Care Through Telemedicine

43 Shannon SwansonDirector of Benefits & Wellness – APi Group Inc.Swanson Transforms Benefits, Wellness Program at APi Group

Most Effective Population Health Management Award44 Jennifer Forster

Forster Re-fashioning Employee Health and Benefits

45 Matt RobbinsBenefits Manager – Sabre HoldingsRobbins, Sabre Holdings Challenge Conventional Wellness to Soaring Results

46 Charity TrujilloManager of Benefits & Compensation – Allegiant Travel CompanyTrujillo Helps Travel Company Embrace Wellness, Healthy Behavior

Financial Wellness Award47 Dana Hammonds

Director, Financial Programs & Advisor Administration – NFL Players AssociationFourth-and-long: How Hammonds Coached the NFL Out of a Dire Situation and into Financial Wellness

48 Carol KlusekHead of Retirement & Financial Benefits—AetnaAetna’s Three-pronged Approach to Wellness

Public Policy Leadership Award49 Dr. John Goodman

President/CEO – NCPADr. Goodman’s Common Sense Approach to Health Care

Most Innovative Partner-Consultant Award50 David Blanchard

Principal – Digital Benefit AdvisorsBlanchard Helps Struggling City to Become Better Health Care Consumers

51 Liz FrayerPresident – Strategic Employee Benefit Services of Georgia Inc.Staying Ahead of the Curve: Frayer, Broker Team Welcome Challenges of New Health Care Arena

52 Ray TomlinsonPresident – Crowne Consulting GroupWorking On-site to Enhance Employee Care

Most Innovative Partner-Consultant Award53 Johnny Angelone

Principal – Benefit Commerce GroupAngelone, Benefit Commerce Group Create an Employee Benefits Firm for the Contemporary Health Care World

54 Chris ClarkVice President of Employer Services – The McCart GroupClark Develops Innovative Wellness Program for South Georgia Community

55 Matt KleymeyerMarket Lead – Bernard HealthKleymeyer has Eye for Photography, Saving Clients Money With HSAs

17-67 We are proud to highlight those unsung heroes who are making a difference in the arena of health care consumerism and worthy to be called Superstars.

In our seventh year, we have identified 57 innovative companies, executives, brokers and consultants in various categories, including leadership, plan design, implementation and more who are superstars in the area of health and benefit management.

On these pages you will find profiles of the best of the best in health and benefit management. Learn best practices of implementation from these Superstars and see if their innovative solutions would be a perfect fit for your company.

Showcasing Innovative Health and Benefit Management

(From the publishers of HealthCare Consumerism Solutions, the

© 2012 BBY Solutions, Inc. INCENTIVE POINTS

Positivity is contagious. So create some good vibes with Reward Zone® Incentive Points, which allows you to easily motivate, thank and reward your employees. There’s an online tool that allows you to manage and track your account as you award Best Buy® Reward Zone points in amounts of your choosing. It’s easy for you to use and easy for them to love.

Learn more at RewardZoneIncentivePoints.com/CDHC.

THEY JUST MIGHT WHISTLE WHILE THEY WORK

11836-5_RZIP_Music_Ad_CDHC.indd 1 7/17/12 12:13 PM

I N S I D E & O N L I N E LEARN.CONNECT.SHARE.


DEPARTMENTS

6 Editor & Publisher’s LetterClosing the Book on a Tumultuous 2012, Looking Ahead to ’13

9 IHC FORUM Making Consumerism Work Dates for Forum East in Atlanta;

Forum West in Las Vegas Benefits for Attending FORUM What’s New at FORUM Super Saver Rates

INDUSTRY AWARDS

12 National Business Group on HealthNational Business Group on Health Honors 66 Employers With ‘Best Employers for Healthy Lifestyle’ Awards

13 Care Continuum AllianceCare Continuum Alliance Announces Winners of 2012 Outstanding Leadership in Population Health Awards

14-15 Health Enhancement Research Organization (HERO)

HERO Selects Anderson, Harris to Receive Industry Leadership Awards

HERO Names Gorman Recipient of Inaugural Executive Health Champion Award

15 URACURAC Names Health Care Stars Award Winners at Annual Quality Summit and Awards Program

40 Recognition Profiles

68 Who’s Who Profiles

74 Resource Guide/Ad Index

56 Connie GeeVice President – Med-Vision LLC

56 Dr. Nicholas KavouklisPresident/CEO – Argus Dental Plan

57 Shub DebguptaFounder/CEO – WiserTogether

57 Jason GorevicCEO – Teladoc

58 Dr. Don PowellPresident/CEO – American Institute for Preventive Medicine

58 Jon RobbInvestment & Research Associate – Devenir

59 Tom KeeslingCo-founder/President – IndUShealth

59 Michelle KobernickFounder/CEO – Gourmet Everyday

60 Harry GottliebFounder – The Jellyvision Lab

60 Michael ByersPresident/CEO – HighRoads

61 Josh HilgersFounder/President – Health Partners America

61 Mark ThiererChairman/CEO – Catamaran Corporation

62 Ralph C. DerricksonPresident/CEO – Carena Inc.

62 Jeremy MillerFounder/President – FSAstore.com

63 PMSI Clinical DepartmentPMSI

63 Troy R. UnderwoodFounder/CEO – BenefitsCONNECT

64 Roger M. TravisCEO – ExperienceLab Inc.

64 Liz DavidsonCEO – Financial Finesse

65 Terry McCorviePresident/CEO – Workable Solutions

65 Mike MartinCEO – The Karis Group

66 Kevin RobertsonVice President & National Sales Director – UMB Healthcare Services

66 Gen BarronSenior Manager of Global Wellness – Medtronic

67 John LinssFounder/Chairman – MedServ Global

INNOVATOR AWARD WINNERS

ON THE COVER:

Cigna Senior Vice President of Consumerism John Young has been named the John J. Robbins Senior Memorial HealthCare Consumerism Leadership Award recipient. Young, a zealot for the health care consumerism megatrend, has logged thousands of miles in rental cars and racked up a great deal of frequent flyer miles all in the name of educating his clients on the latest trends in health care consumerism. Young, a regular speaker at IHC FORUM, is a true Superstar when it comes to innovative health and benefit management.

COMING UP NEXT:In the next issue of HealthCare Consumerism Solutions, the official publication of The Institute for HealthCare Consumerism:In less than a year, The PPACA-mandated federal and state-administered health insurance exchanges will be up and running. The IHC examines the different types of exchanges that will exist.The National Association of Dental Plans (NADP) examines the essential health benefits created by the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) and what it means for employers implementing a dental plan.Transitions examines the essential health benefits created by HHS and what it means for employers implementing a vision plan.

Needless to say, it has been an interesting 2012. The market witnessed arguably the most surprising decision by the U.S. Supreme Court when Chief Justice John Roberts announced the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) was deemed constitutional on June 28.

Five months later, the future of the controversial law, coined ObamaCare by opponents of the law and eventually embraced by the administration, was secured when President Obama won a second term.

For employers holding off on implementing health plans compliant with the health care law, thinking the law would be overturned by the Supreme Court or Obama would lose his bid for re-election and Mitt Romney would win and repeal and replace the health care law, they are behind the eight ball.

Time is running out, and important dates about the health care law are looming, including the creation of state and federal exchanges and employers facing penalties for not being compliant with the health care law.

Luckily for those employers, brokers, advisors, consultants and third party administrators, The Institute for HealthCare Consumerism will continue to be the reference guide to the latest news and compliance issues regarding the health care law.

Through our online community, www.theihcc.com, we will continue to provide the best commentary from experts in the health care field and the leading thought leaders in health care consumerism. Our blogs, articles, case studies, white papers and podcasts will provide all the information needed in order to implement successful health care benefit strategies, compliant with the health care law.

The IHC also will continue to hold its forums, with the theme for the 2013 IHC forums (www.theihccforum.com) being, “Making Consumerism Work.” Once again our day-and-a-half conference series is the only event focused 100 percent solely on best and better practices in health and benefit management.

Continuing with our long-standing tradition, The IHC Forum showcases the top thought leaders in the health care consumerism movement such as: Ronald E. Bachman, Dr. Wendy Lynch, John Hickman, Roy Ramthun, John Young and many more keynote speakers, who are disciples of this megatrend.

As the numbers prove, consumer-directed health plans (CDHP) are continuing to grow, despite the future of ObamaCare.

In 2012, large employers implementing CDHPs, rose to 36 percent, up from 32 percent in 2011 and 23 percent in 2010. The result of the growth of CDHPs was an increase in group plan costs rising slightly more than 4 percent, the smallest increase in 15 years, according to a survey of more than 2,800 employers released Nov. 14 by Mercer L.L.C. in New York. We anticipate these trends to continue, as CDHPs continue to gain acceptance.

Best wishes for a prosperous and fruitful 2013.

Sincerely,

Todd CallahanEditorial [email protected] Field

CEO/[email protected]

L E T T E R EDITOR & PUBLISHER

6 Annual Superstars 2012 I HealthCare Consumerism Solutions™ I www.TheIHCC.com

www.theihcc.comVOLUME 8 NO. 7 SUPERSTARS 2012

Published by FieldMedia LLC292 South Main Street, Suite 400

Alpharetta, GA 30009 Fax: 770.663.4409

CEO/ PUBLISHER/EDITOR-IN-CHIEFDoug Field

@

MANAGING DIRECTOR Brent Macy

EDITORIAL DIRECTORTodd Callahan

MANAGING EDITORJonathan Field

ASSOCIATE EDITORKelvin Hosken

ACCOUNT MANAGERJoni Lipson

Rogers Beasley

Joe Tomaszewski

ART DIRECTORKellie Frissell

CHAIRMAN OF IHC ADVISORY BOARDRonald E. Bachman

EDITORIAL ADVISORY BOARD

Kevin Carnegie

Tom Becher

REPRINTSRogers Beasley

BUSINESS MANAGERKaren Raudabaugh

HealthCare Consumerism Solutions™

©


HealthCare Consumerism Solutions™ is published FieldMedia LLC., 292 South Main Street, Suite 400, Alpharetta, GA 30009.

CDHC Solutions™

PRINTED IN THE U.S.A.


Because there is never a good time to get sickOn-demand medical care 24/7 by phone and secure video

Copyright © 2012, Carena, Inc. All rights reserved. CareSimple is a registered trademark of Carena, Inc. Medical care is provided by CareSimple providers, PS.

Life is stressful enough, who has time to be sick? !is year, give your employees the gi" of peace of mind with CareSimple by Carena. Ideal for companies of all sizes with high deductible plans, CareSimple uses technology to provide employees access to medical care they can a#ord without breaking your bank. With satisfaction ratings of 98%, it’s a simple solution with a big impact.

Learn more at www.CarenaMD.com

CareSimple_IHC_ad_121112_FINAL.indd 1 12/11/12 4:58 PM

FORUMEAST 2013

FORUMWEST 2013

May 9-10, 2013ATLANTACobb Galleria Centre

Dec 5-6, 2013LAS VEGASRed Rock Resort

VISIT WWW.THEIHCCFORUM.COM FOR SUPER SAVER AND EARLY BIRD RATES AND DEADLINES.

FieldMedia LLC is the parent company to The Institute for HealthCare Consumerism, HealthCare Consumerism Solutions (formerly CDHC Solutions) magazine, and IHC FORUM. 292 South Main St., Ste 400, Alpharetta, GA 30009

Making HealthCare Consumerism Work

LEARN. CONNECT. SHARE.

Learn how to get your employees to become better health care consumers and lower your health care benefit costs.

Attend the day-and-a-half conference to:

Learn new strategies to enhance your current health and benefit offering

Hear the latest updates and changes to the health care law

Connect with key industry leaders, see the latest solutions and be able to implement them right away

Build your health benefit skills in our educational workshops, earn CE and SPHR credits

Network with your peers — Hear what has worked for them and share your successes

Benefits of Attending

What You’ll Learn

FORUM 2013

NEW AT THE FORUM– Luncheon Table Topic Discussions

– Exhibitor Prize Drawing

– Interactive Employer Panel

– Broker Workshops

– Interactive Share Sessions

Visit www.theihccforum.com to preview the agenda and register for the conference.

Atlanta & Las Vegas

The FORUM EAST and WEST conferences will be day and a half events with 40 speakers participating in five general sessions and your choice of 24 workshops.

In addition to networking with top industry leaders, you will learn how to successfully be on the cutting edge of new health care benefits through topics and discussions, such as:

Wellness Program

participation

HealthCare Consumerism Work

Plan to attend the pre-conference workshops (additional fees apply) for certification courses on HealthCare Consumerism, Consumerism 101 and Population Health Management.

www.theihccforum.com

At the IHC FORUM, the only conference 100% dedicated to innovative health and benefit management, we continue to deliver programming that is engaging, educational and packed with networking and new business opportunities. This content not only cuts at your bottom-line, but also gives you a deeper look at the

on your journey, the IHC FORUM will equip you with the money-saving strategies you need to successfully navigate the health care consumerism landscape and avoid the bumps along the road.

and regional health plan providers interested in engaging their employees in consumer-directed health plans. Whether you and/or your company attends

We understand you have many conferences to attend and a limited amount of time and budget, so we provide Early Bird Rates and Super Saver Rates for this 1 and 1/2 day event to make things a little easier.

Look forward to seeing you there,

Doug Field, Founder & PublisherIHC FORUM HealthCare Consumerism Solutions MagazineThe Institute for HealthCare Consumerism

MAKING HEALTHCARE CONSUMERISM WORK

Plan Ahead and SaveRegister now to receive our Super Saver rates and save your company money. At the FORUM you’ll learn strategies to lower health care costs and save even more.

FORUMFORUM

Produced by The Institute for HealthCare Consumerism

FORUM WestRed Rock Casino Resort Spa11011 West Charleston Boulevard

Las Vegas, NV 89135702.797.7777 or 1 (866) 767.7773

Discount Room Rate for Attendees: $125 Cut off date 11/3/13

FORUM EastCobb Galleria Center

Two Galleria ParkwayAtlanta, GA 30339

Renaissance Waverly Hotel 2450 Galleria Parkway

800.228.9290 or 770.953.4500Special FORUM Rate $153 (Cutoff Date 4/17/13)

NATIONAL AWARDS


The National Business Group on Health honored 66 U.S. employers for their ongoing commitment to promoting healthy work environments and encouraging workers to live healthier lifestyles. The honored employers, including 15 first-time winners, were presented with 2012 Best Employers

for Healthy Lifestyles awards at the Business Group’s Institute on Innovation in Workforce Well-being Leadership Summit held in Washington, DC.

Now in its eighth year, the Best Employers for Healthy Lifestyles awards annually acknowledge those employers that have responded to the urgent need to improve their employees’ health, productivity and quality of life. The underlying goal of the program is to encourage all employers to take action.

Helen Darling, President and CEO of the National Business Group on Health, commented: “With health care benefit costs continuing to rise at unacceptable levels, more and more employers are focusing on health improvement programs at the workplace—and with good reason. One of the keys to controlling costs is to keep employees and their families healthy. All of the employers we are recognizing this year are fully committed to offering innovative workplace programs that encourage employees and their families to take control of their health and live healthier lifestyles.”

“We are very proud to honor this year’s winning companies for their leadership and innovation in providing workplace well-being programs for their employees and families,” said LuAnn Heinen, vice president of the National Business Group on Health, who has overseen the awards program since its inception in 2005. “From offering on-site medical clinics and physical activity initiatives to health advocacy, coaching and weight management programs, these forward-thinking companies are leading the way in promoting healthy lifestyles. These efforts will have long-lasting positive results for employers, employees and their families and can be used as examples by other companies looking to promote healthy lifestyles in workplaces.”

Winners of the 2012 Best Employers for Healthy Lifestyles awards were honored in one of two categories: Platinum, for established workplace well-being programs with measurable success and documented outcomes; and Gold, for making cultural and environmental changes and developing comprehensive programs that support employees healthy lifestyle goals.

The National Business Group on Health also presented inaugural awards to companies in four special areas. These include:

Company were presented with Global Distinction awards in recognition of their efforts to enhance the physical, psychological and emotional health, well-being and productivity of global employees and their dependents.

National Business Group on Health Honors 66 U.S. Employers With

Best Employers for Healthy Lifestyles Awards

PLATINUM AetnaBaptist Health South FloridaCampbell Soup CompanyCardinal HealthCarolinas HealthCare System*Cerner CorporationCignaCVS CaremarkDell Inc.

Our Lady Health System*General Board of Pension and

Health Benefits of the United

Healthways, Inc.H.J. Heinz Company

California Region

NextEra Energy Inc.PepsiCo Quest DiagnosticsTexas Instruments The Boeing CompanyUnileverUnitedHealth Group

UnumVisant CorporationWellPoint, Inc.

GOLD Accenture, LLCAmerican Airlines*American Express

Assurant, Inc.*BD

Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Alabama

Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

BP America Inc.*Chesapeake Energy Corporation*Chrysler Group LLCCompass Group DTE Energy*Erie InsuranceGeisinger Health System*General Dynamics Electric Boat

Georgia Power/Southern CompanyHewlett-Packard Company **Ingersoll Rand Company*

Companies

Paychex, Inc.Pitney Bowes Inc.PNC Financial Services Group, Inc.*

Alaska*Saint-Gobain Sprint

Insurance CompanyTexas Health ResourcesThe Home DepotUnion Pacific RailroadVerizon Communications

* Denotes first time winner

** Denotes winner for five consecutive years (since 2007)

Denotes global distinction


Care Continuum Alliance (CCA) presented the 2012 Outstanding Leadership in Population Health Awards to eight researchers from

-tions to the population health management industry.

The Care Continuum Alliance, the leading organization for the population health management industry, announced the awards at the closing plenary session of The Forum 12, the industry’s annual meeting. The association has presented its widely recognized industry awards since 1999. This year, along with its customary peer-reviewed process, CCA implemented a juried format in which panels of experts selected one presentation from each of five categories, and the posters exhibition.

“The work of the 2012 awardees truly showcases how far the population

and CEO. “The recognized research offers concrete proof of concept and value of population health management programs, innovations and initiatives.”

Advancing Wellness: Leveraging the Tools of Technology with the Power of Prevention

The research provides insight into the converging trends of preventive medicine and new technology. It identifies the potential opportunities and challenges of wireless health and evaluates the potential for wireless health technology in the delivery of preventive medicine for more effective population health management.

“Our research demonstrates that leveraging the tools of technology with the power of prevention can drive better health at lower cost,” said Dr. Ron

other mobile devices are transformative tools that will empower consumers and providers in more effective population health management and will play an important role in the emerging wireless health ecosystem.”

Collaborative Strategies: Sun Health: Innovative Partnerships for Community HealthRonald D. Guziak, FAHP, President and CEOJennifer Drago, MHSA, MBA, Vice President, Business Development, Sun Health

“Sun Health Services is honored to receive recognition for its pilot project in population health management,” said awardee Ronald D. Guziak, President and CEO of Sun Health Services. “Through the Care Continuum Alliance’s Forum 12, successful solutions to major health care issues are now brought to the forefront and can provide benefit to other communities.”

Measuring Value: Home Blood Pressure Monitoring Improves Medication Adherence and Blood Pressure

This research discusses how a pilot program integrating home blood pressure monitoring into a CAD management program enhanced patient and physician insight and overall health outcomes. It examines a pilot program that provided home blood pressure monitoring to 859 high-acuity commercial health plan members to reinforce physician office treatment for CAD, while explaining how home blood pressure monitoring was integrated into an existing CAD condition management program. It also reinforces the value of home blood pressure monitoring in the diagnosis and ongoing management of hypertension.

“Though doctors know very well when and how to treat high blood pressure, the CDC noted this year that a majority of those diagnosed with this common and serious condition do not have their blood pressure well-controlled,” said Dr. Gordon Norman, EVP and Chief Innovation Officer of Alere, Inc. “This is a prime example of the common population health problem of “doing better what we know” vs. “knowing better what to do.” Our pilot study demonstrates that using home monitoring of blood pressure to augment high blood pressure treatment by clinicians is a highly cost-effective means for achieving improved hypertension control.”

Care Continuum Alliance Announces Winners of the 2012 Outstanding Leadership in Population Health Awards

CARE CONTINUUM ALLIANCE AWARDS

From left to right: Fred Goldstein, CCA Board of Director Chair; President, U.S. Preventive Medicine Award Winner: Gordon K. Norman, M.D., M.B.A., Chief Innovation Officer, Alere; Chris Coloian, CCA Immediate Past Chair; President & CEO, Predilytics, Inc. and Tracey Moorhead, CCA President & CEO

From left to right: Fred Goldstein, CCA Board of Director Chair; President, US Preventive Medicine Award Winner: Ronald D. Guziak, President and CEO, Sun Health; Chris Coloian, CCA Immediate Past Chair; President & CEO, Predilytics, Inc. and Tracey Moorhead, CCA President & CEO


HERO AWARDS

The Health Enhancement Research Organization (HERO) announced today the recipients of two awards that recognize leadership and research excellence in the field of employee health management.“These awards recognize the important role that strong leadership and

high quality research play in improving the health of the nation’s workforce,”

Dundon founded HERO in 1996, the organization has provided industry leadership and research that have helped demonstrate how employee health management can improve health outcomes, control health care spending, and improve productivity. This year’s recipients exemplify these traits and both have amassed long track records of success.”

Leadership Award for his sustained leadership in enhancing the practice of employee health management and for fostering measurable improvements in behavior change and workplace health.

Harris is currently forming a new company called Performance pH, which helps companies improve business performance using a number of strategies. He was previously chief well-being officer and vice president of innovations at Healthways.

Before joining Healthways, he was the co-founder of Harris HealthTrends, Inc., an entrepreneurial corporation specializing in the prevention of disease and the reduction of health care costs. Harris HealthTrends became part of

and Health Promotion Advocates. He speaks internationally on the subject of population health management and has authored numerous publications on employee health, including Why and How People Change Health Behaviors, co-authored with Dr. Joseph Leutzinger and Integrating Wellness Into Your

“I am deeply honored to receive the Bill Whitmer Leadership Award because it is named after a person who contributed so much to the field, and

for whom I have so much respect,” said Harris. “The fact that Bill is retiring in the near future makes receiving this award all the more special. It is gratifying to be recognized by your peers.

We have all worked hard to advance this field, and I appreciate what we have achieved together.”

Dundon Research Award. This award recognizes an individual who has consistently worked to enhance and promote research that advances the science of employee health management. The recipient must be a published author of peer-reviewed articles, have served as principal investigator on original studies, and helped facilitate research by other health management professionals.

Anderson is currently senior vice president and chief health officer at

the design and validity of StayWell’s health assessment and behavior change models. He is a nationally recognized expert in research that addresses population health management, behavior change, and the financial impact of workplace health initiatives. Anderson has authored or co-authored more than 50 peer-reviewed journal articles and given more than 100 presentations at national wellness and benefits conferences.

“When I began my career, few employers knew what wellness was or saw the relevance for their business. Furthermore, many practitioners had the naïve idea that knowledge would yield behavior change, and we had no evidence wellness could improve business outcomes. It was clear to me that research was essential to creating a strong employer wellness market,” said Anderson.

Whitmer, I’m pleased to say we’ve built a solid evidence base linking wellness to lower health care costs and improved employee performance. The focus has now shifted to increasing engagement in effective programs, and I suspect research will again play a central role in defining this.”

According to Philip Swayze, chair of the HERO awards committee and vice president of health promotion development for Plus One Health

peers and selected based on a review of their overall body of work in the field of employee health management.

Applications were reviewed and rated by a committee of industry-leading professionals with extensive experience in designing and implementing workplace wellness programs.

“This year we received nearly double the nominations. All of them were highly qualified nominees who have made significant contributions to the practice of employee health management,” said Swayze. “But in the end, John Harris’ decades of innovative work in employee health management and prevention-focused leadership, and the incredible volume of impactful research and extensive thought leadership generated by David Anderson led the committee to honor these men with HERO awards.”

HERO Selects Anderson, Harris to Receive Industry Leadership Awards

BY TODD CALLAHAN » EDITORIAL DIRECTOR » THE INSTITUTE FOR HEALTHCARE CONSUMERISM


HERO AWARDS

The Health Enhancement Research Organization (HERO) announced today that Leon Gorman, chairman of the board, L.L. Bean, has been named the first-ever recipient of the HERO Executive Health Champion Award.

The Executive Health Champion Award recognizes a person of senior leadership status who has made an outstanding contribution toward the advancement of employee health management within their company. According to HERO, the award was developed in acknowledgment of the significant role that leadership plays in establishing and maintaining a culture of health in the workplace.

“Research shows that compa-nies with lower health care trend and the most successful employee health initiatives are those that have an engaged and supportive leadership team,” said Jerry Noyce, president and CEO of HERO. “Executive leaders that not only approve funding for workplace wellness programs, but that are visibly involved in and supportive of workplace health as a long-term corporate value are those that generate lasting results for their employees and their company.”

The Executive Health Champion Award was presented to Gorman during

with introducing employee wellness at L.L. Bean in the early 1980’s, well before employers began to recognize the connection between employee health and workplace performance.

According to information provided by L.L. Bean, the employee wellness program began with an onsite fitness room and a “heart club” that was focused on achieving healthy blood pressure and cholesterol levels.

Over the years, as Leon Gorman grew his grandfather’s business, he never lost sight of his early commitment to employee health. In fact, he continued to evolve the company’s wellness program into a comprehensive workplace health management program that has won numerous industry awards, including being a

L.L. Bean’s wellness program is currently available to more than 5,000 employees and dependents and has generated positive results, including: an average participation rate of 85 percent over the last five years; a decline in smoking rates from 24 percent in 2005 to six percent in 2011; and an average medical trend of just 5.8 percent.

“When the Executive Health Champion Award was conceived earlier this year, we pictured a leader whose personal and professional influence had helped

create a measurable culture of health for an organization,” said Philip Swayze, chair of the HERO awards committee and vice president health promotion development

Gorman’s many years of dedication to improving the health of L.L. Bean employ-

ees and his community, in combination with his own love of fitness, exceeded the committee’s expectations for the first recipient of this award.”

URAC Names Health Care Stars Award Winners at Annual Quality Summit and Awards Program

URAC, a leading health care accreditation and education organization, recognized its 2012 Health Care Stars! Awards winners. Honored this year were Thomas Button and Dr. Stephen Vogt. URAC’s Health Care Stars! Award honors those who have demonstrated a commitment to the welfare of health care consumers through saving and improving lives, preventing adverse health outcomes, and other positive changes. The awards were presented during

Francisco,!CA. “The Health Care Stars! Awards recognize individual health care

professionals who deliver on the mission of protecting and empowering consumers and promoting quality care through their daily work,” said Alan P. Spielman, URAC President and CEO.

This year’s Health Care Star! Award winners are:

Dr. Vogt established BioPlus as a new model of specialty pharmacy: one that treats patients with individual pharmaceutical care plans to ensure that their biologic specialty medicines have the best possible outcomes. In reaching that goal, Dr. Vogt created a unique technology tool called Therapy Access Portal, an application that can be used by prescribers on smart phones, tablets, and laptops. The app improves patient outcomes, reduces risks, promotes collaborative communication among the entire medical pharmacy care team, and helps to control costs.

focusing on Private Duty Nursing cases, Dialysis cases, and long term hospitalizations. Thomas has won the consumer empowerment award this year for his work with a 54 year old patient with ALS. This patient, who is dependent upon a ventilator 24/7, is unable to move, and can only communicate through a computerized speech generating device that he operates with his eye movements, had only one request: to see his two daughters graduate college, hours away from his home in Arizona. While Thomas knew the obstacles that this patient would have to overcome, he went above and beyond the call of duty, working with servicing providers to donate the needed equipment, supplies and staffing to accomplish this trip. Through much collaboration, led by Thomas, the patient was able to attend his daughters’ graduation and was even put in the front row to ensure he could see his daughters cross the stage.

URAC’s 2012 Health Care Stars! Awards were open to any individual who works for the more than 500 organizations that have earned or are in the process of earning URAC accreditation. The Awards were judged by a panel of health care industry experts including URAC advisory committee members, board members and key leaders from accredited organizations. The panel reviewed all of the nominations, looking for specific accomplishments and clear results that the nominee had made a positive impact on the health of the consumers they!serve.

HERO Names Gorman Recipient of Inaugural Executive Health Champion Award


Q7097_FirstTime_Congrats_HC_8_175x10_875_MG.indd

Client: CignaDescription: CONGRATS - When’s the last time

you did something for the first time?

Publication: Healthcare ConsumerismScale: 1:1Print Scale: None

Live: 7” x 10”Frame: N/ATrim: 8.125” x 10.875”Bleed: 8.3125” x 11.125”Gutter in Spread: N/A

Art Director: NanStudio Op: GouldUsername: Dylan GouldProjectManager: GreenProduction: MajeauFile Status: MechanicalArt Status: ApprovedResolution: 300 dpi

Job Colors: CMYK

Ink Name: Cyan Magenta Yellow Black

Font Family:Gotham, Archer

CIGN CORP Q7097 12-19-2012 5:28 PM Page 1

CignaVerticalLogo_4C.eps (images RO:Cc:Cigna:Dam:Brand Assets:1_Logos:CignaVerticalLogo_4C.eps), GO_YOU_SM_K.eps (images RO:Cc:Cigna:Dam:Brand Assets:1_Logos:GO_YOU_SM_K.eps)

SPECIAL INSTRUCTIONS:None

Products and Services provided by Connecticut General Life Insurance Company or Cigna Health and Life Insurance Company.© 2012 Cigna. All products and services are provided by operating subsidiaries of Cigna Corporation, including Connecticut General Life Insurance Company and Cigna Health and Life Insurance Company, and not by Cigna Corporation. The registered mark “Cigna” and the “Tree of Life” logo are owned by Cigna Intellectual Property, Inc. Cigna.com.

850150a

Always rememberyou’re one of a kind. We will.

CL

IP, S

AV

E, R

EM

EM

BE

R. You were born an original. But it’s up to you to live that way. We can help. We’re Cigna. And we’re

a di!erent kind of health benefits and services company. We get to know the real you. The living, breathing person behind the number on your card. It’s an approach that o!ers a genuinely personal experience, tailored to fit your specific needs — and ultimately keep you healthier. When you’re at 100%, you have the strength and confidence to show the world who you really are. Hey, there’s a first time for everything.

Congratulations to John Young, winner of the John J. Robbins Sr. Healthcare Consumerism Leadership Award.

Join us at Cigna.com/GOYOU

CONGRATULATIONS TO JOHN YOUNG, WINNER OF THE JOHN J. ROBBINS SR. HEALTHCARE CONSUMERISM LEADERSHIP AWARDWHEN’S THE

last time you DID SOMETHING FOR

the first time?

The Institute for HealthCare Consumerism is continuing the tradition of honoring individuals, innovative solution providers and organizations making a difference in the continued growth of the health care consumerism movement.

For the seventh year in a row, The IHC (www.theihcc.com), formerly known as CDHC Solutions, is proud to present our largest HealthCare Consumerism Superstars issue to date with the 2012 edition. This continues to be the lone award totally dedicated to the health care consumerism megatrend. This year we are honoring 57 individuals and industry innovators as HealthCare Consumerism Superstars.

For the second year in a row, we are honoring the memory of John J. Robbins, Sr., a true visionary and a major contributor to health care consumerism. Robbins, 64, succumbed to Hodgkin’s lymphoma on Feb. 22, 2011.

During last year’s inaugural award, honoring the DataPath founder, The IHC named Whole Food’s CEO John Mackey as the recipient. This year the IHC editorial board has tweaked the award and rebranded it the John J. Robbins Senior HealthCare Consumerism Leadership Award, and this year’s winner is John Young.

The senior vice president of consumerism at Cigna, Young embodies the characteristics of what it takes to earn the John J. Robbins Senior HealthCare Consumerism Leadership Award. A mainstay speaker at IHC Forum and a regular editorial contributor to HealthCare Consumerism Solutions, Young is a true advocate for health care consumerism.

He connects with solution providers, employers, advisors, brokers, consultants and third party administrators to help promote this megatrend. He has logged thousands of frequent flyer miles, tacked miles on the odometer of countless rental cars and spent more time in company boardrooms and airport terminals than he has in his home office in Minneapolis. Young goes the extra mile because of his passion for consumer-directed health care and consumerism strategies.

“John is simply the go to expert in his field of consumerism,” says Kevin Munkholm, principal at Barney & Barney, the 29th largest insurance brokerage in the United State. “He knows every thing there is to know about consumer-driven options and health care in general.”

Munkholm’s assessment of Young is spot-on. Young uses his knowledge, mixed with his interpersonal skills and knack of producing informative and entertaining presentations, to connect and educate clients about consumerism and strategies to help people make better decisions about their health care spend.

“John Young is an innovative, progressive, passionate leader in moving health care consumerism to a desirable future direction,” says Barb Vasko, vice president of Aon Hewitt. “He has coached me on various client engagements on how to optimally position consumerism in order to obtain successful client outcomes.”

This year The IHC also debuts two new categories, as our awards continue to evolve to reflect the ever-changing health care consumerism movement. This year we debut the Financial Wellness Award and the HR Visionary Award.

Wellness has always played a key role in consumerism and being financially secure is beneficial because it cuts down on

stress. Being financially fit also aids in paying for medical procedures or other health care expenditures—both expected and unexpected—in the

future.Supplemental insurance also plays a key role in the health care

consumerism megatrend, and a vision plan is key in helping preserve the health of the employee population. Regular eye exams help detect the onset of chronic disease such as hypertension and diabetes.

The award, sponsored by Transitions, honors Maurice Evans, Steve Browne and Cyndee Blue, a trio of human resources directors, who are true visionaries in health care consumerism.

These are just a few highlights from the 57 top superstars in health care consumerism showcased in this edition.

The Institute for HealthCare Consumerism Congratulates the Winners of the Seventh Annual Superstars Awards



Minneapolis this week, Boston the next, a layover in Atlanta and then it’s off to Dallas and then hitting the West Coast for meetings in Phoenix, Los Angeles and Seattle.That is not the itinerary for the last leg of a U2 tour. It is just another

business trip for John Young, who has been honored with this year’s John J. Robbins Senior Memorial HealthCare Consumerism Leadership Award.

As the Senior Vice President of Consumerism for Cigna, Young is a Tour de Force in the health care consumerism movement. Consumerism is not only a job title, but it is a passion and way of life for Young, who has been involved with the health care consumerism movement since 2000.

“John’s passion for consumerism is infectious,” says Chris De Rosa, president of the western region for Cigna and Young’s direct supervisor. “John’s greatest strength is his ability to humanize consumerism and apply it to day-to-day living. You don’t have to be an industry expert to understand what John is telling you.”

For more than a decade Young has logged several miles on the odometer of countless rental cars, accumulated thousands of frequent flyer points and spent more time in airports and company board rooms than probably any person in the health care industry.

“Not only is he an expert in the field of consumer-driven health care, [Young] is creative, insightful and forward thinking,” says Bill Reindl, the market development leader of corporate exchanges at Aon Hewitt, who managed Young when Reindl was vice president at Cigna. “John is also a tireless worker and first rate presenter who will make an audience laugh while thoroughly educating them at the same time. He is a valued partner.”

Young has been a fixture at The Institute for HealthCare Consumerism’s FORUM conference series and always provides insightful, educational and entertaining presentations.

A true Renaissance man, Young has the ability to reference the French writer and philosopher Voltaire in the same sentence with Marvel comic’s Amazing Spiderman and make it work. He also has been known to mix in some historical references in his presentations, such as the French Revolution or throw in a reference from “The Simpsons” just to keep the audience entertained and on its toes.

A quality about Young in his presentations is he can relate to any faction of the health care industry, whether it be employers, brokers, consultants, advisors, TPA or other insurance carriers and solution providers. He also has established relationships that go beyond helping employers and brokers with business strategies and decisions about their health care spend. The senior vice president of consumerism for Cigna also is helping shape the political landscape of this megatrend with his many frequent trips to Washington D.C. as a member of the Board of Directors for the American Bankers Association’s HSA Council.

“I invited John to join the Board of Directors of the ABA’s HSA Council because of his depth of knowledge and experience in consumer-driven health care operations at CIGNA,” says Kevin McKechnie, executive director of the ABA/HSA Council and a former HealthCare Consumerism Superstar. “Few other industry executives have the same combination of expertise, experience, foresight and political acumen that John has accumulated in his career.

“John and I worked closely throughout the congressional debate over the Affordable Care Act. His advice on how to explain our business to political leaders was invaluable. Our organization prides itself on finding only the best

leaders to represent our industry and among those, only the best to serve on our Board of Directors. It is an honor and a privilege to have his guidance.”

Consumer-directed health care continues to gain widespread acceptance among employers, and Young has been a catalyst for the steady increase in adoption rates. He also has transformed his presentations from focusing on defining consumerism to the next stage of how to implement CDHC into an employer’s workforce.

Young also has aligned himself with an impressive list of broker/advisors, who help lead the crusade of health care consumerism. Young has been associated with key figures such as Barb Vasko, vice president of Aon Hewitt; Sander Domaszewicz of Mercer Health & Benefits; Kevin Munkholm, Arlene Lieberman, Tracey Best and Leticia Germain of Barney and Barney LLC; Nancy Riggs of Lockton; Scott Wood of Benefit Commerce Group; Courtney Touw of Clearpoint; Dan Hodges of Woodruff Sawyer and Company; and Nicole White of Wells Fargo, as well as many others from around the nation.

Partnering with these and other CDHC-savvy advisors has allowed Cigna to become one of the top carriers in the health care consumerism arena. This partnership also has developed several new HSA accounts, helping employers and employees save money.

“John is simply the go to expert in his field of consumerism,” says Munkholm, principal at Barney and Barney. “He knows every thing there is to know about consumer driven options and health care in general. We have been fortunate to deploy this knowledge to our clients’ benefit, educating them on the advantages of adopting his very effective approach to health care cost containment. When it came time to search for the best person in the industry to deliver this message, there was no comparison as John was, and is, the definitive source. He just also happens to be a great guy.”

Vasko echoes those same sentiments.“John Young ! is an innovative, progressive, passionate leader in moving

health care consumerism to a desirable future direction,” Vasko says. “He has coached me on various client engagements on !how to optimally position consumerism in order to obtain successful client outcomes. I can thank John’s coaching on helping me become a solid consumerism expert, which has allowed me to implement consumerism across all my clients.”

According to Young, the overall success and growth of health care consumerism boils down to the best practices like key leavers such as an optimal plan design, targeted incentives to gain maximum employee engagement, simple and direct communication, which also will effectively enhance employee engagement, and easy-to-use cost transparency tools that help to build consumer trust.

Transparency has been a buzzword thrown around a great deal in recent months, thanks to the emergence of solution providers such as Castlight Health out of San Francisco and Atlanta-based Monocle Health Data.

At IHC FORUM East in April and again at FORUM West in Las Vegas in September, Young was the moderator of a general session focusing on cost transparency and decision-support tools at the point of health care services.

“I agree with Ron Bachman and don’t like the word transparency,” Young says. “He called it the ‘right to know’ and it’s true—people have the right to know health care price, quality and information on alternatives procedures or medications.”

Joining Young on the general session panel titled, “Health Care Transparency Today and Tomorrow – Empowering the Individual” was Wally

A Renaissance Man: Young’s a Crusader for Health Care Consumerism



Gomaa, the president of ACAP Health; Praveen Mooganur, the chief operating officer and Castlight Health Medical Director Dena Bravata.

“John has relentlessly pressed all stakeholders: providers, health plans, employers and patients to recognize their own contributions to the needless escalation in health care costs and over utilization,” Bravata says. “Moreover, he has pushed for benefit designs that rationally but fairly encourage consumers to evaluate their own health services utilization, to encourage employers to question whether the care being provided to their employee populations meets the best available evidence, and to support tools that facilitate well-informed decision making. He is indeed a champion of consumerism in health care.”

Young says in the case of CDHPs, individuals have assumed both greater power and responsibility in making health care decisions for themselves and their families. Consumers deserve the right to know health care costs, the quality of the care they are seeking and alternative treatment options.

“If the goal is to have informed consumers making the best and most cost efficient health care choices, then access to the right information how, when and where they want is fundamental to making rational, wise, and successful health care decisions,” Young adds. “At Cigna, we see evidence that our Choice Fund CDHP customers are increasing their use of available online cost and quality information to help them select a doctor or hospital, or compare care options, or to review potential medical costs. Making this information ‘actionable’ has been a bumpy road, until now. It’s an exciting time for health care consumers, because today this information is personalized, accurate, motivating.”

With the emergence of Monocle, Castlight and the work of health plans such as Cigna, Aetna and UnitedHealthcare, information is slowly being offered to consumers.

In 2012, Young’s organization embedded the mycigna.com consumer portal’s “Find Doctors and Services” online search engine with highly accurate quality and pricing information—including specialist, facility and related fees—according to the real-time status of the consumer’s health plan deductibles and co-insurance, as well as their available health spending account funds. Now consumers can compare total costs for 200 procedures (accounting for 80 percent of claims), by specialist and affiliated facilities, before choosing their physician.

“So what I see as a consumer’s right, is really a health plan’s obligation—to our clients, our customers and the communities we serve,” Young says. “Our approach of placing the right information how, when and where consumers want it.”

Cigna’s newly improved web portal was named by the InformationWeek 500 as one of the world’s top 10 innovations of 2012, and has been nominated for a 2013 Edison Innovation Award for its contribution to society.

Before becoming a rock star on the speaking circuit and banging the drum in support of health care consumerism and the consumer’s right to know when it comes to pricing for health care procedures and prior to coming to Cigna, Young held employee benefit consulting and management roles with Marsh McLennan, and was a founding member of Consumer Driven Marketing,

the middle market sales agent for Definity Health, which has long been considered a pioneer in the health care consumerism movement. A company founded in 1998 on a table in a borrowed conference room, Definity Health was sold six years later to UnitedHealth Group for $300 million.

“The amazing original people at Definity Health were what I affectionately refer to as the ‘virus in the machine,’” Young says.!“Bottom line - my work there taught me that innovation always pokes at how things are done today and asks, ‘how can we do it better? What needs to change and how do we make that change happen with excellence and meaningful results?’! This little idea in the late ’90s has changed how everyone does employee benefits today.”

Young, who spent four years at Definity, also served as office head of Great-West Healthcare in Minneapolis, as well as their national consumer-driven health expert in 2004 after the buyout. Young served on the Executive Board of Consumers for Health Care Choices, was the Chair of the Industry Advisory Committee of the HSA Council, He also has given his time as an adjunct Professor at the University of California San Diego and the University of St. Thomas in Minnesota teaching employee benefit courses in their master’s program.!

“John is one of the most innovative thought leaders in educating the market on health care consumerism,” says IHC founder and CEO Doug Field. “His passion is contagious and matched by his real time market experience. There is nobody more deserving of the John J. Robbins Senior Memorial HealthCare Consumerism Leadership Award.”

“John has a keen eye for noticing innovations in health care consumerism. He goes above

and beyond in getting to know people, understanding the core problems innovations are trying to solve for and connecting people

in ways that drives collaboration.”

John Young, Senior Vice President, ConsumerismCompany: CignaHeadquarters: Bloomfield, Conn.Website: www.cigna.comFounded: 1982No. of Employees: 29,000-plusNature of Business: Cigna is a global health service company, committed to

improving the health, well-being and security of the people it serves.Key Executives: David Cordani, President, CEO; Mark Boxer, Executive Vice

President; Maggie Fitzpatrick, CEO; Herb Fritch, President.

THE JOHN J. ROBBINS SR. MEMORIAL LEADERSHIP AWARD

© 2013 Total System Services, Inc.® All rights reserved worldwide.

TSYS® is a federally registered service mark of Total System Services, Inc.

A winning combinationOur unique experience in both the healthcare and payment services industries means unmatched expertise and reliability. Known for our elite levels of customer service and a long-term commitment to the industry, TSYS Healthcare® is focused on lasting relationships and people-centered paymentsSM.

Integrity | Relationships | Excellence | Innovation | Growth

Learn more at www.tsyshealthcare.com or call us at +1.706.649.5080

Get to know us. [email protected]


CEO LEADERSHIP AWARD

There is much innovation in the employee benefits world focusing on the large employers, one might think trends in consumerism are only for large employers, and a consumer-directed health plan’s success is contingent upon a large employee population.However, Adam Bruckman, chief executive officer of Atlanta’s Digital

Insurance, has proven these critics wrong over the past decade, as his team has successfully implemented CDHPs to small- and mid-size clients.

Bruckman founded Digital Insurance in 2000 specifically to address the employee benefit needs of small businesses and mid-sized companies. He realized with little buying power, these employers couldn’t access the same attractive rates and plans from carriers that large organizations typically received. They were overlooked by the industry, even by the benefit firms hired to represent them.

Originally, Digital’s concept was to sell insurance online to employers. However, the company soon refined this strategy. The new direction: to partner with other brokers, agents and financial services companies to manage or acquire their small-group customer base, freeing them to concentrate on obtaining and servicing larger groups. This turned out to be a win-win scenario, and Digital’s business—as well as its clients’—flourished. Digital formed a number of key partnerships that enabled it to secure attractive rates where its clients previously could not.

With its customers’ needs in mind, Digital formulated a new division in 2011, Digital Benefit Advisors, which evolved through a series of acquisitions, involving a network of leading agencies from across the country. The new division took Digital’s commitment to its clients’ success to another level. Clients in key markets received customized consultation from seasoned professionals, who devise creative solutions to meet strategic business goals.

The new division combines an established local reputation and a long history of community connections with the national Digital network to offer a powerful, new approach to benefits.

Bruckman’s success has always hinged on understanding his clients’ needs. He understands clients make a sizeable investment in their employee benefit programs, and his team is committed to helping their clients save on

costs and maximize their return on investment through a benefits plan that meets their business goals and is highly regarded by employees. A large part of this strategy has been promoting health care consumerism to clients.

Digital generally takes a multi-dimensional approach to plan design. The company offers a number of medical plans with various deductibles to offer choice and cost-savings opportunities. For Digital, education is essential; it’s vital an employer understands why a plan is recommended.

The choices almost always include a consumer-driven plan (HSA or HRA) with detailed communications and education to maximize efficiencies and use of medical care. Digital also structures product designs to promote wellness and consumerism in order to reduce claims costs over the long term.

To control health costs for its small to mid-size clients, Digital focuses on implementing some aspect of health care consumerism. Educating not only employers—but also the client’s employees and families—is a priority. Education starts with targeted, strategic communications. Digital’s communications philosophy is to stay meaningful and relevant and maintain it year-round. Digital tries to make its benefit messaging fun and lighthearted with the emphasis being on moving from an employer-driven model to a consumer-driven one.

Additionally, Bruckman has always ensured that Digital stays ahead of the curve in regards to health reform. As a leader in the employee benefit industry, Digital is committed to helping its customers navigate the complexities of health care reform. The company anticipated these changes for years and has a dedicated health reform team that is highly knowledgeable on reform provisions and mandates.

Digital’s health reform communications tools include: frequent client advisories, InfoBriefs, educational webinars, e-newsletters, handbooks, advocacy efforts and a comprehensive online Health Care Reform Resource Center.

Digital represents more than 750,000 insured lives and more than 25,000 employers. As the health care market continues to change and health costs generally continue to rise, Digital’s clients will be well-prepared.

Bruckman’s commitment to the principles of health care consumerism and to understanding the complexities of health reform should put any employer’s nerves at ease.

Adam Bruckman, President and CEO

Company: Digital InsuranceHeadquarters: AtlantaWebsite: www.digitalinsurance.com Founded: 2000No. of Employees: 250+Nature of Business: Employee

Benefits AgencyKey Executives: Mike Sullivan,

Executive Vice President and CMO; Chuck Ristau, Chief Financial Officer

Sticking Up for the Little Guy

BY JONATHAN FIELD » MANAGING EDITOR » THE INSTITUTE FOR HEALTHCARE CONSUMERISM

As a leader in the employee benefit

industry, Digital is committed to helping

its customers navigate the complexities

of health care reform. The company

anticipated these changes for years and has

a dedicated health reform team

that is highly knowledgeable on reform

provisions and mandates.



Like several manufacturing companies, Coeur Inc., faced some alarming numbers.

Based in Lebanon, Tenn., a small town a little more than 20 miles from downtown Nashville, Coeur faced rising overhead costs that

were cutting into the bottom line. A state-of-the-art designer and contract manufacturer for the medical and commercial marketplace, Coeur looked for a solution, which came from a forward-thinking chief executive officer.

The company, which in addition to manufacturing and assembling its own proprietary line, offers a full complement of services ranging from design, molding, tubing extrusion, assembly and packaging of medical devices, was founded in 1998 by current president and CEO, William Jay Cude, who has more than 30 years of experience in the manufacture and sale of medical devices to the cardiology and general surgical market.

Nearly 10 years ago, health costs were spiraling out of control at Coeur, a company that has built a strong reputation in the industry for creating quality innovative products. Costs were rising more than 10 percent annually, and management wasn’t really sure why. Like many companies, management simply cut employee benefits and settled for a slightly smaller increase in cost. Clearly, this was not a sustainable system.

“In about 2006, we did some interesting math,” recalls Cude, whose company’s products are primarily used in medical imaging. “Given the average rate of increase in our employee health care costs, we estimated that in 10 years, the average cost of family coverage would actually exceed our hourly employee’s individual gross wage.”

Cude knew he had to act; he had to do something. The initial strategy was using a long-distance, telephone nurse consulting program, but the employee population really didn’t take to it.

“This was, frankly, a dismal failure,” Cude admits. Undeterred by the setback, Cude was determined to make a change.

That’s when he discovered Corporate Health Partners (CHP). Based in Nashville, CHP is known for its fully customizable wellness

programs—or as CHP founder and CEO Jack Curtis prefers to say “comprehensive health management solutions.”

CHP’s business is driven by the success of the ROOTS Wellness Program, a wellness process that allows employers to measure results, drive engagement, manage the program simply and effectively and build a sustainable culture of healthy living. The program is built on three fundamental steps:

1. building and managing an infrastructure and culture of health awareness;

2. using biometric screenings, nicotine testing and health risk assessments (HRA) to measure and establish baseline metrics; and

3. personal health coaching.

It’s this last step that proved to be a great success for Coeur.According to CHP, with on-site health coaching, wellness participants

are up to 350 percent more likely to drop a bad habit for a good one. After the failure of the telephone consulting program, this strategy sounded pretty good to Cude.

“Working with Corporate Health Partners, we switched to on-site coaches,” Cude says. “This was a home run. The on-site coaches not only conducted wellness related activities at the plant during work hours, we also made them available for individual consultation. This made all the difference.”

With a solid wellness infrastructure in place and a reliable partner in CHP, Cude set to personally inspire his employee population toward better health. He personally visited manufacturing facilities in North Carolina and Wisconsin, explaining the company’s situation.

“I told the employees that I didn’t like handing out cost increases with reduced benefits any better than they liked getting them.” Cude recalls, “I told them that I couldn’t guarantee success, but I felt that we had to do something different. We needed to take matters more into our own hands. I asked for their support.”

The support came. Participation in the wellness program started at 67 percent, but soon rose into the 80s. Employees reacted strongly to the visible role Cude played in the new wellness program.

Cude also was a participant. The company CEO noticed the demands an international business had taken a toll on his own health. So he and his wife set out on an aggressive intervention program to take control of their own numbers. His staff and employees saw first-hand that Cude looked, felt and performed better, and many followed his example.

Today, Coeur’s health care costs are actually less than they were in 2006, despite the increase in the price of health care over the years.

As of 2011, Coeur had already saved $1.6 million on health costs. While Cude is certainly happy with the results, he isn’t settling. Coeur is continuing to improve its health benefits, specifically by improving its incentives program. Results of the program at Coeur have been very impressive, but Cude is modest when talking about the program’s success.

“Wellness is a journey—not a destination,” he says. “Hopefully, we’ll keep getting a little better at it each year.”

Cude Puts Health Care Costs, Employee Health in his own Hands


Jay Cude, President and CEOCompany: Coeur Inc.Headquarters: Lebanon, Tenn.Website: www.coeurinc.comFounded: 1998No. of Employees: 150Nature of Business: Medical and Commercial Manufacturer Key Executives: Mike Cude, Executive Vice President; Dan LeRese, Chief

Financial OfficerKey Solutions Providers: Corporate Health Partners

“Wellness is a journey—not a destination.

Hopefully, we’ll keep getting

a little better at it each year.”



It is safe to say Dr. John Reynolds loves a good challenge. A highly successful business president and CEO with phenomenal success integrating strategies, innovations, technologies, and personnel to build successful and

profitable ventures, the 50-year-old Reynolds negotiated arguably the most successful sale in the history of the health care consumerism movement with the $335 million sale of FIS Healthcare Benefit Solutions to Lightyear Capital in August. Lighthouse rebranded the organization to Alegeus Technologies.

After nearly 30 years in the health care industry, leading FIS Healthcare as its president for the last six years and being responsible for the organization’s ranking of either No. 1 or No. 2 nationally across all business lines, one would expect Dr. Reynolds to take it easy and enjoy his success.

A few weeks after the FIS sale, Dr. Reynolds, an expert in negotiating business mergers, accepted a new position as president and CEO of Cielostar, a Minneapolis-based health care payment and benefit technology company with a nationwide customer base that is capitalizing on the health care consumerism movement and emerging technology, including the development of private health insurance exchanges. The company, which has existed for 25 years and has a vibrant benefit enrollment technology solution and back office operation supporting a variety of customers in administering consumer-directed health plans and COBRA, changed its name from Outsource One.

“It has been a ‘blast’ to be a part of a high growth company that is tackling a significant market shift in health care consumerism,” Reynolds says. “Private exchanges comprise an important ‘core’ offering of the firm and enable consumers to thoroughly compare health insurance offerings along with other related discretionary benefits. So, an early decision was to rename the firm to encompass the expanding array of services.”

Dr. Reynolds got creative with the name change, selecting Cielostar. Cielo, translated from Italian, means sky or heaven, and the star reflects a navigational theme. The name also reflects the decision support technology that helps consumers navigate their health and benefit choices.

“Thriving on change, is one of the key competencies that I have developed over the span of my career,” Dr. Reynolds says. “In order to more than survive radical change you have to be jazzed about learning new things and developing new skills. It is what I have enjoyed the most about being in the financial services / health care technology businesses.”

Reynolds has thrived on change. This could be due to his atypical background.

His family owned a cattle ranch and had the distinction of importing the first “pure blood” Marchigiana’s (Italian breed of beef cattle) into the United States in the 1970s when there was concern about a beef shortage.

A full-grown Marchgiana bull weighs about 3,200 pounds and stands six feet tall at the shoulder and is white. These bulls are much larger than the traditional breeds, such as Angus and Holstein and other common breeds, meaning electrical fences were not sufficient to corral the Italian cattle.

“On one occasion two full-grown bulls pounded there way through the

side of the barn to escape into the neighbors’ fields,” Reynolds recalls. “We also found that ranchers in Texas were partial to ‘black’ cows not ‘white,’ even though our statistics on the Marchigiana would bring measurable financial benefits to the ranchers.”

The Reynolds family was able to cross breed a black cow and earned a blue ribbon at a cattle show in Denver. The same cow would later drown trying to swim across the lake to get to the heifers.

“Let’s just say that the cattle business was less than glamorous, back and heart breaking,” says Reynolds, who also is a licensed pilot. “I was a commercial pilot and flight instructor early in my career and flew airfreight in Minnesota, North and South Dakota. My route required an 11 p.m. ‘wheels up’ and a 7 a.m. ‘wheels down.’”

Reynolds’ seat was not bolted down to the plane’s frame so the load could easily shift to meet the weight and balance requirements. He flew in all weather conditions and was never “made to fly” if the weather was bad.

However, if there were snowstorms or bad thunderstorms Reynolds could earn up to five times as much as a clear evening. It was flights during hazardous conditions that helped him reevaluate his career choice and go to graduate school.

“The health care / financial technology industry has been a good field for me because while it doesn’t hold the same ‘white knuckle’ adrenaline rush that flying air freight in a snowstorm does or punching a new ID tag in the ear of a 3,200-pound bull, it has its own excitement and an abundance of ‘change,’” Reynolds says.

Reynolds has seen a great deal of change during his career. He has witnessed first-hand the growth of consumerism and now the emergence of exchanges. He is looking forward to the wide acceptance of private exchanges and the continued growth of Cielostar.

“The increasing acceptance and growth of private health insurance exchanges and defined contribution health care are key trends that the firm is capitalizing on,” Reynolds says. “Demand for better ‘decision support’ technology for consumers is increasing exponentially as more and more consumers are becoming directly engaged in selecting their health insurance and assume responsibility for an increasing share of their health care expense.”

Prior to joining FIS, Reynolds was senior vice president and business director for Institutional Trust & Custody, Benefits Consulting and Health Benefits Services at Wells Fargo & Co.

After Successful Sale of Company, Reynolds Moves on to Another Challenge


John Reynolds: CEOCompany: CielostarHeadquarters: MinneapolisWebsite: www.outsourceone.comNature of Business: Cielostar provides benefits administration outsourcing

services and technology solutions. It offers employer solutions, including online enrollment and electronic data interchange, aggregated billing and reconciliation, COBRA/HIPAA and retiree administration, FSA and pre-tax administration, and employee service center.

Key Executives: William Mehus, Founder; Dr. John Reynolds, President and CEO; Dr. Duane Harris, CFO; Pierce McNally, CSO.



Since joining Ameriflex less than four years ago, William Short has seen tremendous growth and change in health care payments technology.The president and CEO of arguably the nation’s most respected third party administrators (TPA), Short has helped develop and implement

numerous payment solutions that have reduced health care costs for thousands of employer groups, which represent millions of individual health care consumers around the nation.

Since becoming one of the youngest chief executive officers at 29 when he joined Ameriflex in January of 2009, the company has more than tripled in size, thanks in large part to a strategy that anticipates the needs of an often-uncertain marketplace and introduces cost-effective product and service offerings to meet those changing needs.

“Change is all around us, but we’re still trying to figure out exactly what that ‘change’ will look like,” Short says. “Questions remain following the passage and Supreme Court affirmation of PPACA, but one thing is certain: with health care reform, taxes are going up. Rising tax rates will make it even more important for employers to consider offering FSAs [flexible spending accounts] and other types of health spending account plans, and that is where I see opportunity within the TPA market.”

Short also believes employers will still want to offer competitive benefits packages to attract and retain the best talent. This may force innovative thinkers to become more creative in how those benefit packages are constructed and delivered, but it does open the door for new TPA services and offerings.

Like all solution providers, Short and Ameriflex have had to adapt to change created by the health care law. They, like employers, brokers and consumers, also have had to address a great deal of uncertainty around how the new law will ultimately change how health care is delivered and obtained.

Short attributes Ameriflex’s ability to anticipate the changes that will occur as PPACA is rolled out, and develop solutions to address new market demands as a key reason the company has grown during these times of great uncertainty.

“Up until now, the biggest concern has simply been uncertainty,” Short adds. “Is health care reform here to stay? What will happen with the exchanges? How will this affect the level of benefits I offer my employees? And, of course, How much will it all cost? Now that we know health care reform is here to stay, our clients are weighing the impact on their bottom line. We are focused on bringing solutions to the table for our clients that will help them offer the same level of benefits that their employees are accustomed to in an affordable way.”

With the health care law in place, a sluggish economy and monumental changes in the industry, Shorts adds the needs of Ameriflex’s clients have not changed. At the end of the day, their concern is still: “How can I deliver the best possible benefits package to my employees in the most cost-effective way?”

One of AmeriFlex’s goals has always been to explore new product solutions and payments technology that can help streamline the health care payments cycle in order to drive down costs and facilitate the health care

payments process. The company has rolled out its new ClaimsPay solution, the latest in health care payment solutions.

Ameriflex has always been at the forefront of developing payments technology. In 1999, the company pioneered the use of health care debit card technology with the introduction of the AmeriFlex Convenience Card. With the AmeriFlex Convenience Card, participants could more easily access the pre-tax funds in their FSAs, while receiving immediate reimbursement of their medical, dependent care, and commuter expenses by simply presenting their card at the point of service. The hassles and delays associated with manual paper claims were effectively eliminated.

Since then, AmeriFlex has continued to lead the industry when it comes to delivering more convenient, cost-effective health care payments solutions. AmeriFlex now offers a consolidated FSA/HRA/HSA/CRA platform with single participant pricing. The state-of-the-art debit card technology offers the flexibility to handle a multitude of plan designs on a single card, which in turn allows for seamless compatibility with electronic payment systems and a more user-friendly experience for participants.

In these uncertain times, Short believes a consumer-directed health plan, along with a mix of voluntary benefits, as the ultimate survival tools.

“Regardless of whether consumers obtain their health plan through their employer or through the exchanges, there will continue to be a progression toward low-cost, consumer-driven plans,” Short said. “Alongside these plans, it will become increasingly important for employers, especially those whose employees may be getting coverage through the exchanges, to find new ways to attract and retain talent. One solution is for brokers, and employers to deliver voluntary benefits packages that supplement the employee health plan.”

Short sees a back-to-the-future type scenario where the market returns to the days before the PPO model, when plans revolved around the voluntary benefits/supplemental offering. The difference is that compared to the last time the market witnessed this trend, there now are a host of new product innovations and payments technology in the market that will facilitate implementation and administration of these types of plans, while greatly enhancing the consumer experience.

in Market Ravaged by Uncertainty


William Short, CEO and PresidentCompany: Ameriflex LLCHeadquarters: Frisco, TexasNo. of Employees: 100-plusNature of Business: Ameriflex is an

independent third party administrator providing technology-based, consumer-driven benefits and compliance solutions to more than 3.5 million participants nationwide.

Key Executives: Bart McCollum, COO; Scott Mardis, Senior Vice President of Sales



David Spalding predicts the future of health savings accounts is a lot like his home state of Minnesota. Spalding, the chief executive officer at SelectAccount, the Eagan, Minn.-based medical spending account custodian and account administrator, definitely would be

one to know. Spalding has been involved in consumer-directed health care since

its earliest days. When he took over as CEO at SelectAccount, the company was a small regional firm specializing in flexible spending accounts. It has since become one of the nation’s largest custodians of medical spending accounts. And as senior vice president at Blue Cross Blue Shield of Minnesota (BCBSMN), Spalding leads the business development division of a company that has long been a supporter of consumer-directed health care.

In 2002, almost two years before health savings accounts were signed into law by then-president George W. Bush, SelectAccount launched a funded health reimbursement account (HRA) and became a custodian of medical savings accounts (MSAs), the predecessor to the HSA. Their foresight that these types of accounts would boom in popularity over the next decade proved brilliant.

In addition to being the first to introduce funded HRAs and MSAs, SelectAccount also was first to market with a number of critical HSA product innovations. Its partnership with Devenir, the Minneapolis wealth management company and previous HealthCare Consumerism Superstar recipient, resulted in SelectAccount becoming the first HSA administrator to offer best-in-class, self-directed mutual funds for account holders.

“In 2007,” Spalding recalls, “we were the first custodian to roll out tiered HSA plan designs allowing employers and individuals the freedom to choose between HSA plan designs that offer lower administrative fees or higher rate of interest on account balances.”

But perhaps one of Spalding’s proudest achievements at SelectAccount is the high-touch customer service model. The trust SelectAccount has built between the company and its clients is critical to its success. When polled by a third-party research firm, more than 90 percent of clients say they trust SelectAccount as their HSA custodian.

The model combines what Spalding calls “good ‘old-fashioned’ telephone customer service with the latest in technology for customers who prefer to engage online.” In this instance, top-of-the-line customer service has been a major differentiator for SelectAccount throughout the years.

The consumer-directed health care market has come a long way in the last decade and is continuing to grow at an impressive rate.

“A long-time HSA employer customer recently remarked to me that the odds are high today that a new employee joining his company would be rolling over an HSA from his or her previous employer,” Spalding says.

SelectAccount’s growth over the same time period has been equally impressive. SelectAccount has generated a 250 percent enrollment growth and has increased the assets it manages from $5 million to $415 million since 2006.

Spalding’s leadership at SelectAccount has contributed to his broader business success, including being appointed senior vice president of Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota. In this position, he leads the company’s business development division and affiliated businesses, which includes SelectAccount, Clear Stone, Innovation Health and Wellness and CCStpa.

Spalding’s professional leadership extends to numerous board positions, including being a member of the executive board for the American Bankers Association HSA Council and being on the board of directors for Availity, LLC. He also is Chairman of the Board for CCStpa, a St. Paul third party administrator, and former member of the board of directors for Innovis Health, a health care system located in Fargo, N.D.

Back in Minnesota, Spalding is a father of three children; where he coaches youth soccer and helps out with the hockey team. He also volunteers in many community organizations, and he plays a significant part in revolutionizing how Americans consume and use health care.

When Spalding looks at the expansion of the health savings account market and compares it to his home state, he likes the fact HSA adoption in the individual insurance market is stable around 40 percent. He sees the synergy created there between BCBSMN, one of the state’s largest health plans, and SelectAccount, the state’s largest HSA custodian.

Spalding, SelectAccount Turn Minnesota into a Hotbed for HSAs


Dave Spalding, CEOCompany: Select AccountHeadquarters: Eagan, Minn. Website: www.selectaccount.comFounded: 1989Nature of Business: HSA Custodian/

Account Administrator Key Executives: Carol Kraft, President

& COO; Nikki Stretar, Vice President of Technology; Larry Deegan, Vice President of Sales

Key Solutions Providers: Blue Cross Blue Shield of Minnesota, Devenir

The model combines what Spalding calls

“good ‘old-fashioned’ telephone customer

service with the latest in technology for

customers who prefer to engage online.”

In this instance, top-of-the-line customer

service has been a major differentiator for

SelectAccount throughout the years.

© 2012 United HealthCare Services, Inc. 1212No part of this document may be reproduced without permission.

C ngratulations...

We’re proud to be your bene!ts partner!

and her team are innovation

to WS Packaging Group Inc. for winning the Most Innovative Health and Bene!ts Plan Design Award!


MOST INNOVATIVE HEALTH & BENEFIT PLAN DESIGN AWARD

A leading producer of innovative packaging and printing services and products, WS Packaging Inc., has 19 manufacturing facilities scattered throughout the U.S. and Mexico.

For 45 years the company has produced high quality packaging products for worldwide customers, ranging from small businesses to large, high-volume manufacturers and consumer product goods companies.

WS Packaging has received multiple awards for its continued commitment toward green manufacturing processes, as well as sustainable packaging innovation. While WS Packaging is on the cutting edge when it comes to packaging and printing services, the company’s health benefit offerings were not up to par for its more than 1,900 employees.

WS Packaging had acquired several smaller companies, and prided itself in maintaining a small company feel but having the employee benefit of a big company. However the acquisition of different companies brought with it more health plan strategies. There were more plans, multiple benefit structures and health care expense financing approaches, presenting what could be a confusing proposition for WS Packaging employees.

Open enrollment was a confusing time for the team members and their families. They were forced to spend valuable “brain share” trying to interpret the choices they had when it came to choosing medical, dental, vision and pharmacy benefits. Instead of focusing on developing quality-packaging solutions, employees were preoccupied with how to save money on their health care spend.

Corporate Benefits Manager Julie Engebose knew the company had to consolidate some of its plans to streamline the health plan offerings.

“We joined forces with our benefits consulting firm,! Associated Financial Group, led by Jan Stage, and his colleague, Elaine Newlin to draw up a strategic plan that would allow us to streamline benefits for all WS Packaging Group employees,” Engebose! says. “In 2006 we offered all employees a choice between a copay style PPO plan and the new high-deductible health plan [HDHP] coupled with a health savings account.!By 2008 we only offered the HDHP with the HSA, and in 2009 we redesigned our HDHP to include medical, dental, vision and prescription drug coverage, Total Health Plan.”

The team recognized a clean connection between consumer-directed health plans (CDHPs) and the simplification that was needed in the organization’s health plan design.

The plan was very simple and going from a copay style plan to a simple deductible and co-insurance was not too difficult, but when all the dental codes were added it created a challenge for WS Packaging’s third party administrator, UMR, to keep the very unique plan on track.

Another pain point was educating employees they needed to satisfy their deductible before their prescription drugs were covered. WS Packaging helped to soften this by contributing to the employee’s personal HSA to give them a little cushion. Engebose and her team continued to stress more and more on the importance of employees saving their own additional funds into the “pre-tax.”

“I cannot stress enough how rich our preventive wellness benefit is within our Total Health Plan,” Engebose said. “We feel very strongly about people taking care of themselves and getting their routine services handled on a yearly basis, and even their dental cleanings every six months.”

Engebose and her team had faith WS Packaging team members could and would be engaged to make better decisions about their health care, which would benefit both the company’s bottom line and the wallets of the employee population.

“Because we phased in the HDHP as an option and did some heavy education to our employees, I feel that employees took the change in good stride,” Engebose says.!“A big area of concern was with regard to prescription drugs being subject to deductible. It was so important that we educate more and more on making sure employees work with their physicians on what meds they take that perhaps they could get a generic equivalent and in some cases looking to purchase that medication at a pharmacy offering low cost alternatives.! It is all about consumerism and asking the provider ‘why?’ or ‘what other alternatives do I have?’”

This innovative approach allowed the organization to also simplify its communications planning, consumer education materials and enrollment events. Getting the entire population on a core plan design also created the opportunity to generate substantial movement toward consumer behaviors and a better grasp of the financial wellness impact of health decisions. This would increase engagement among the employee population and make them better consumers of health.

Engebose and her team continued to expand on the consumer concept by rolling incentives and wellness components onto the plan structure, to further enhance employee engagement, which has risen to 74 percent participation over the past four years in the company’s health plan.

Employees and spouses have the opportunity to complete a health risk assessment and biometric screening beginning this year to set a baseline health score. The scores determine the team member’s access to substantial discounts of health care expenses in the form of premium reductions and increased employer funding HSA contributions.

Employers scoring below the benchmark can still earn incentives by meeting with their primary care physician to discuss opportunities to improve their health status and help them to achieve their health goals.

at WS Packaging


Julie Engebose, Corporate Benefits ManagerCompany: WS Packaging Group Inc.Headquarters: Green Bay, Wis.Website: www.wspackaging.comNumber of Employees: 1,900Nature of Business: WS Packaging Group offers the

widest array of printing and flexible packaging across 19 manufacturing facilities in the U.S. and Mexico.

Key Executives: Rex Lane, CEO; Jay Tomcheck, CFO; Scott Fisher COO.

Key Solution Providers: UMR, Associated Financial Group


Lynda Morvik didn’t want to take baby steps to test the waters of wellness.As director of benefits and HRIS at Toshiba America Medical Systems (TAMS), the California-based medical

systems subsidiary of the Tokyo-based multi-national, Morvik knew her employee population would be best served by having a fully-formed wellness program in place for the initial rollout.

A program, representing her wellness philosophy, had the full support of senior management, and Morvik was able to partner with some of the best-in-class wellness companies to implement the program. Morvik wanted the plan design and incentives to make sense for her employee population. However, the implementation was not an overnight process. In fact, the planning process took almost two years, but as she says, “preparation was key.”

When the program finally rolled out, Morvik and her team decided to name the program Health360 to represent the organization’s commitment to total wellness, which was a great deal more than just being physically healthy.

“We believe that physical, emotional, and financial health are all connected,” Morvik explains. “If one aspect of your life is healthy, it promotes health in other areas of your life. Likewise, if one part is unhealthy, it puts a drain on the others.”

Morvik does considerably more than just provide a health benefits program for TAMS employees; she gets employees excited about wellness and their overall state of health.

The TAMS Wellness Kickoff Gala included: a DJ, catering, games, beach balls, Hula-Hoops and a presentation by Danna Korn, CEO of Sonic Boom Wellness, one of the program’s key partners. Each new hire is required to watch a five-minute, professionally-produced video explaining the benefits of Health360 and the incentives tied to the program. Wellness is fun at TAMS, and more than 58 percent of employees are becoming healthier as a result of taking advantage of the program.

Health360 encompasses all of TAMS’ wellness benefits, including: medical, dental, vision, preventive screenings, health assessments, health coaching, tobacco cessation, and a web-based wellness program focusing on daily improvement of employee health habits. Employees are encouraged to have fun while learning about all of the health resources available. TAMS’ President/CEO Donald Fowler also was an active participant. He flies out to

recognize the year’s top performers and he also rallies the troops around the company’s wellness initiatives.

Sonic Boom Wellness has been a huge help in keeping the program fresh with quarterly contests and daily challenges.

“Those challenges can be a little goofy at times,” Morvik admits, “[but] seeing everyone from a mail clerk to a manager perform a ‘duck walk’ is fun and a great equalizer at work.”

Perhaps Morvik’s greatest success is her ability to bring together the strengths of a number of health and wellness companies. WebMD has been a major factor in the program’s success. WebMD provides both the health risk assessment and health coaching program, which has been critical in increasing employee participation. TAMS also offers the Quit For Life tobacco cessation program, created by Alere Wellbeing and the American Cancer Society.

Morvik utilizes Sonic Boom’s Wellness Incentive Management System (WIMS) to organize all of Health360’s vendor activities into a single, streamlined incentive platform. She combines participation-and results-based incentives to maximize participation across the board. TAMS employees can earn a $500 premium differential by completing an initial health coaching call and health assessment through WebMD, and a preventive screening through Onsite Health Diagnostics.

In addition, employees can earn up to 50,000 Boomer Bucks per year for participation in any combination of an extensive list of additional activities. This list includes: recording a target amount of physical activity each day; additional coaching calls with WebMD; maintaining healthy biometric ranges for blood pressure, BMI, and other key measures; scheduling and attending annual physician, dental and vision exams; and more. Boomer Bucks are a virtual currency employees use to shop at an online catalog containing more than 3,000 unique gift items.

At TAMS, the Health360 program has truly done what it set out to do—and more. It has gone above and beyond the average wellness program.

“In a nutshell,” Morvik says, “the Health360 program has not only fostered a culture of health, but it’s subtly affected the corporate culture itself in ways I couldn’t have anticipated.”

Morvik Makes Wellness Fun and Effective at TAMSBY JONATHAN FIELD » MANAGING EDITOR » THE INSTITUTE FOR HEALTHCARE CONSUMERISM

Lynda Morvik, Director of Benefits and Human Resource Information Systems

Company: Toshiba America Medical Systems (TAMS)

Headquarters: Tustin, Calif.Website: www.medical.toshiba.comFounded: 1977No. of Employees: 1,200Nature of Business: Diagnostic medical

systemsKey Executives: Donald Fowler, President &

CEO; Shuzo Yamamoto, Senior Vice PresidentKey Solutions Providers: Sonic Boom

Wellness, WebMD, Alere Wellbeing

MOST INNOVATIVE HEALTH & BENEFIT PLAN DESIGN AWARD

“We believe that physical, emotional, and

financial health are all connected. If one

aspect of your life is healthy, it promotes

health in other areas of your life.

Likewise, if one part is unhealthy,

it puts a drain on the others.”


MOST EFFECTIVE HEALTH & BENEFIT PLAN IMPLEMENTATION AWARD

With more than 25 years experience working in human resources, and more specifically compensation and benefits, Steven Gebben has become an expert when it comes to global benefit design.When he was the vice president of compensation and benefits

at Sara Lee from 2005 to 2007, Gebben was on the front line of helping the North American food and beverage giant move to full replacement consumer-driven health plan, administered by Blue Cross Blue Shield of Illinois. The company offers coverage for medical and prescription drugs and provides tools and information to help employees be informed health care consumers. Sara Lee also continues to offer dental and vision insurance coverage. Sara Lee employees also can receive a 50 percent reimbursement of annual health club fees, up to a maximum $500 reimbursement.

Having changed the culture of Sara Lee, Gebben moved on to another challenge when in 2011 he became the director of global benefits at Solutia, a global manufacturer of performance materials and specialty chemicals, including polyvinyl butyral (PVB), ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA), and thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) interlayers for laminated glass, aftermarket window films, protective barrier and conductive films, and rubber processing chemicals, used in architectural, automotive, alternative energy, electronic devices, consumer and industrial applications.

Gebben is now the vice president of compensation and benefits for Eastman Chemical, which acquired the St. Louis-based Solutia on July 16.

With 2,000 active U.S. employees, Solutia decided to implement a high-deductible health plan to increase employee responsibility for their health and management costs.

This was not going to be an overnight process. Gebben and his team worked with Mercer Health & Benefits and developed a two-year strategy of plan implementation.

The strategy was to offer a pair of health savings account (HSA)-eligible PPO plans and one non-HSA-eligible PPO plan to non-union employees in 2012. Next year the plan is to phase out the non-HSA-eligible plan and only offer the two HSA-eligible PPO plans. Unions will follow as individual negotiations are done.

Gebben oversaw the development of a communications strategy that delivered consistent, strategic health and wellness messages. To reach a broad range of multi-generational employee population, Gebben used a wide range of communication strategies, of online, printed material and the old fashion face-to-face conversations.

Gebben’s team routinely sent out e-mails offered online tutorials, modeling tools and flipbook surveys. For the more seasoned and those employees, who prefer to have something more tangible to hold in their hands, Gebben offered a high-deductible health plan (HDHP) introduction brochure, as well as posters and postcards.

His team also conducted leadership workshops, training and employee meetings. Gebben also received assistance from vendors, Anthem, Medco and StayWell to provide educational tools and conduct workshops for the employees of Solutia.

Customized online tutorials also were developed to explain the basics of an HSA/HDHP. This helped ease concerns, as senior management wanted to put off the thought of using a HDHPs, which had been explored in 2010, until later in the process.

“Steve is very knowledgeable in the compensation and benefits arena,” says Sue Tucker, former manager of general services procurement with Solutia. “He brings a wealth of knowledge to his job responsibilities and shares it in a way that non-HR individuals can understand the process and the desired end result. His coaching assisted me in getting quickly up to speed on the comp and benefits programs at Solutia in preparation for current and upcoming vendor negotiations.”

Another challenge Gebben and his team faced was with employees spread out in multiple locations and only having a centralized HR team driving support, there was fear there would be little to no local support resulting in low engagement rates among the total employee population. There also was the fact employees were not familiar with the mechanics of an HSA/HDHP.

Pushing forward, the company expected 70 percent of employees would enroll in the plan in 2012. Through Gebben and his team’s tireless efforts, those expectations were exceeded, as 76 percent of non-union employees enrolled. One union also offered HDHP.

Expected company expenses came in 2 percent under budget due to the enrollment, and nearly 84 percent completed a health screening and health assessment.

As a bonus, the HR department received fewer than expected phone calls and issues, proving Gebben’s communication strategy was successful in engaging the majority the employee population.

“Steve was successful in launching his strategy because he understood where he wanted his program to go,” says Sander Domaszewicz, principal at Mercer Health & Benefits. “He took the time to develop strong and thoughtful tools and communications for his employees and management.”

Gebben Makes a Career of Transforming Company Cultures


Steve Gebben, Global Director of Compensation and Benefits

Company: Solutia Inc. (Eastman Chemical)Headquarters: St. Louis (Kingsport, Tenn.)Website: www.Solutia.comNo. of Employees: 3,300Nature of Business: Solutia Inc., is a leading

performance materials and specialty chemicals company with a strong global presence and brands that set the standard for performance and quality, backed by outstanding technical and customer support as well as a company-wide commitment to ingenuity, productivity and performance.

Key Executives: Brad Lich, President; David Golden, Vice President, Associate General Counsel and Corporate Secretary of Eastman Chemical Co.

Key Solution Providers: Mercer Health & Benefit, Anthem, Medco, StayWell


MOST EFFECTIVE HEALTH & BENEFIT PLAN IMPLEMENTATION AWARD

Southwest General Health Center, a 358-bed, non-profit hospital located in Middleburg Heights, Ohio, just outside the Cleveland city limits, is used to receiving accolades for its commitment to its patients.The hospital has a reputation for its commitment to the community

and quality care. It made the list of Thomson Reuters Top 100 Hospitals and has received Blue Cross Blue Shield distinctions, several Joint Commission certifications and UnitedHealth special designations. HealthGrades, the nation’s leading independent health care ratings company, consistently rates Southwest General as one of America’s 50 Best Hospitals.

In 2009, Southwest General recognized the opportunity to bring that same level of care into a wellness program for employees eligible for the hospital’s health insurance. By offering a program where employees can take personal accountability for their health, Southwest General began demonstrating another level of healthy living to the community. The hospital began working with Bravo Wellness, a Cleveland results-based wellness incentive plan administrator known for its innovative approach to population health.

Initially, Southwest General struggled with employee engagement and participation in the program. Southwest, after all, was the first hospital in northeast Ohio to implement this type of results-based wellness initiative. It was new to everyone, and employees needed more time and education to feel comfortable using the program.

Judith Miller, Southwest’s vice president for human resources, initiated a series of programs and events to engage employees and create a pervasive awareness of the new wellness offerings.

“We conducted on-site meetings open to all employees who wanted more information about the program,” she explains. “We also developed a comprehensive guidebook to help employees understand the purpose and benefits of wellness.”

The hospital conducted on-site wellness screenings with no additional cost to employees. But that was just the start. Miller wanted to keep wellness at the forefront of Southwest’s culture. She developed wellness fairs, free quit smoking programs, free nutrition and fitness counseling, free blood pressure, cholesterol, osteoporosis, diabetes screening and education and more. Soon engagement in the program began to increase.

Miller admits the program couldn’t have succeeded without support from the hospital’s executive team, including Tom Selden, chief executive officer who, played a large role in the program from the beginning. He worked directly with Miller to help design the program, and his visible, active role encouraged employees to participate in the program.

The program was named “You At Your Best!” and functions thus: Any employee eligible for their employer’s health benefits plan is encouraged to participate in this voluntary program and therefore, given the opportunity to reduce their insurance contribution by participating in a wellness screening and completing a health risk assessment. Each biometric-graded criterion has a generous health goal, which is determined by Southwest General, utilizing the National Institutes of Health standards as a reference point. “You At Your Best!” also provides many diverse wellness programs such as Weight Watchers at Work, a walking program, free smoking cessation classes, additional screening

opportunities, employee assistance programs to work with a nutritionist, and new in 2012—telephonic coaching sessions.

After three years, “You At Your Best!” has effectively changed the employee culture at Southwest General. Employees realize by making the right lifestyle choices, they will be healthier and thus pay less for health insurance coverage.

“Wellness is now a part of our culture,” Miller says.Over the last three years, key health statistics have shown much

improvement, including an increase in “desirable” BMI and a decrease in the overweight and obese categories; an increase in normal blood pressure and a decrease in pre-hypertensive or hypertensive conditions; and an increase in desirable LDL cholesterol of 10 percent. Additionally, nicotine/tobacco usage has dropped by 23 percent.

The Southwest community represents this new culture of health in many ways. The hospital has implemented a daily “Well Being” meal selection in the cafeteria and discontinued offering sugary beverages. The hospital also has transitioned an absolutely smoke-free campus, and recently sponsored a “Slimdown Challenge” where 505 employees, comprising 93 teams, lost 2,579.2 total pounds.

“You At Your Best!” has transformed Southwest General’s culture at-large, and this transformation has had an immense impact on the organization’s health care costs.

“In an economy where the average cost of health care benefits is expected to rise at least 6 percent in 2013,” Miller explains, “Southwest General will have no increase in cost for the organization and no increase in basic monthly premium charged to our employees.”

Southwest General Says Bravo to No Increase in Health Care Costs


Judith Murphy, Vice President for Human Resources; Tom Selden, President & CEO

Company: Southwest General Health CenterHeadquarters: Middleburg Heights, OhioWebsite: www.swgeneral.com Founded: 1920No. of Employees: Approx. 2,600Nature of Business: Health Care Services/HospitalKey Executives: Vasu Pandrangi, M.D., ChairmanKey Solutions Providers: Bravo Wellness

Southwest General health Center has successfully implemented an innovative health plan for its employee population. Key players in this implementation are, From left to right, Curtis Gray, Director, Nutrition Services; Karen Raisch-Siegel, Director Lifeworks of Southwest General; Suzanne Schloss, Manager, Employee Compensation and Benefits; Judy Murphy, Vice President, Human Resources and Debbie Greco, Manager Employee Health Services.


MOST INNOVATIVE EMPLOYEE COMMUNICATION/EDUCATION PLAN AWARD

Year after year, it seems another employee benefits study comes out announcing the same thing: a sizeable chunk of employees don’t understand their benefits. So what’s the point of offering a great benefits program if your employees don’t understand how to get the

most out of it, and how can you have consumer-directed health care if the consumers (your employees) are not informed and empowered to make the appropriate health care decisions?

With these questions in mind, Terri Byron, benefits manager at Sonic Automotive, the Charlotte-based, Fortune 500 company and one of the largest automotive retailers in the United States, took to re-working the company’s benefit communication materials and strategy.

With more than 9,000 employees at more than 100 dealership locations, maintaining consistent and effective benefits communication can be a challenge. Byron and her team used feedback from human resources to determine where breakdowns in the effective communication were currently happening and where improvements could be made. Byron needed to ensure that her employees were making the right choices for themselves and their families. One-on-one counseling was often the most successful means of communication benefits, but “Balancing that personal touch with a limited staff and limited time was always challenging,” she says.

Byron and her team worked to custom tailor a multi-channel benefit communication plan, including video, print, one-on-one and online counseling, all focused on their key philosophy: make it relevant to the audience. Byron and the Sonic benefit team ensured that their enrollment guide was easy to understand and navigate by using terminology employees are familiar with. It is obvious from the start the enrollment guide has an automotive theme that is carried throughout the piece of literature. Benefit options are described as “Standard” versus “Hybrid” and throughout the guide participants are encouraged to reference “Road to Wellness” keys.

Sonic understood that for their employee population they needed to use a variety of media—from traditional to innovative—to reach all audiences.

“Though we’re paperless when it comes to paychecks and benefits enrollment,” Byron says, “we’ve learned that people still feel a need to receive that piece of paper or document as a reminder or to use as reference material to pick up and view at a later date.”

Sonic’s workforce is predominately male, but many spouses are the key factors in making important benefits decisions for the family. Print benefits guides are easy to bring home and review with other benefits decision-makers.

Sonic has truly mastered using many forms of communication to effectively inform the employee population. They have a comprehensive online benefits portal that houses benefits summaries, calculators and forms.

“We also utilize posters and flyers in our 100-plus dealership locations as our e-mail communications may not reach everyone, or may not even get read because of the volume of e-mails associates receive daily,” Byron says.

One of the key components of the re-vamped program’s success has been the partnership with Jellyvision, a fellow HealthCare Consumerism Superstar Award recipient that has been recognized as an Industry Innovator.

“Our most recent rollout of Jellyvision’s personal benefits counselor last year received very positive feedback,” Byron explains. “The interactive, online tool lets associates pick and choose the topics they want to learn more about. They have the option to learn the basics about insurance plans, or just skip to information about the cost for the new year if they’re already savvy benefits consumers.”

Efficient employee education and communication are essential to implementing a consumer-directed health plan or wellness program. Employees need to be educated on their options and know what’s in it for them, depending on what they choose. By truly getting to know the intricacies of their employee population, Byron and her team successfully designed and implemented tools for their employees that exceeded plan participation and increased employee engagement in their health care. Byron’s example shows what’s necessary in benefits communication to create educated health care consumers.

at Sonic Automotive


Terri Byron, Benefits Administration ManagerCompany: Sonic AutomotiveHeadquarters: Charlotte, N.C.Website: www.sonicautomotive.com Founded: 1997No. of Employees: 9,000+Nature of Business: Automotive Retailer Key Executives: Bruton Smith, CEO; B. Scott Smith, President & Chief Strategic

OfficerKey Solutions Providers: Jellyvision, ConnectYourCare

By truly getting to know the intricacies

of their employee population, Byron and

her team successfully designed and

implemented tools for their employees that

exceeded plan participation and increased

employee engagement in their health care.



In 2010, when GE migrated salaried employees to a high-deductible health plan (HDHP), the company understood it also needed to connect with employees in a different way. In order for the new health plan to function properly, communication needed to be streamlined and

employees needed to be better educated. They needed to be active health care consumers—not passive participants in their health care spend.

As Manager of Healthcare Programs & Marketing at GE Capital, Steve Eno knew the traditional channels of using e-mail, home mail and town hall meetings would have limited success for employees of the financial services unit of one of the world’s largest companies. As the company moved into the second year of the plan for salaried employees and migrating production employees to a HDHP, Eno knew benefit communications needed to changed.

Traditional marketing channels—e-mail, home mail—push information at employees, and many tune out and don’t get the message. In-person communication channels—town halls meetings and Lunch-and-Learn meetings—can be more effective, but many may feel they are receiving a lecture and nobody is listening to their concerns. Another problem with on-site meetings is they don’t reach remote employees or dependents.

Websites have the potential to reach the entire target population, but while they can have a lot of valuable information, the content is static. It can be difficult for employees to find pertinent information when they need it.

GE needed a new method complimenting its new philosophy of health benefits! and focus on creating empowered consumers of health care. GE believes the key to reducing health costs is helping its employees make smart choices when seeking health care. Consumers face many choices, often made under emotional duress, about how to obtain the testing and treatment they need. In these situations, employees need to recognize their range of options and understand the relative cost (and value) of these options. They need to make wise decisions.

Previously, GE had worked with an innovative, Florida-based media group called Wahi Media on a smoking cessation video. Eno and his team thought Wahi’s innovative, proprietary software might be the solution for GE’s communication woes.

“We saw a great opportunity to use their expertise and unique technology in another way to help our employees better understand their health care choices,” Eno recalls.

Wahi Media provides a unique technology called web automated human interaction, or WAHI, which automates one-on-one interactions with an audience, shows viewers real-life scenarios and allows them to experience different outcomes when making choices. The interactive experience is delivered directly (via the Internet) to viewers in their offices and homes.

The medium of Wahi is quite different from a typical Internet communication: It is not a running video, but rather an interactive video experience with hundreds of small videos set against different scenes and strung together with the Wahi technology. Eno recognized the possibilities for using this technology for a comprehensive benefits communication program. He worked with Wahi Media and its innovative technology platform to create GE’s My Interactive Health Guide.

The interactive health guide, built by GE and Wahi Media, has two primary goals:

1) to help employees learn about the company’s high-deductible health plan and choose the plan option that is best for them, and

2) to build awareness of alternatives and options available when seeking health care and reduce the costs of that care.

My Interactive Health Guide has successfully achieved both goals.The Interactive Health Guide was launched during the 2012 annual

open enrollment period, and in the first four weeks after the launch, 15 percent of the target population experienced the site. Since last year’s annual enrollment, it has been incorporated into existing employee marketing channels and used in new employee orientation and town hall meetings. GE Capital also has used the site as the basis for benefits orientation sessions. Since GE launched the site in October 2011, there have been 45,000 views and counting.

“The general reaction has been ‘this is so much better and understandable than just listening to a presentation,’” Eno says.

Eno and his team at GE Capital understood education was essential to the success of any consumer-driven health plan. With the help of Wahi Media, they developed an interactive benefits communication platform every bit as innovative as their health plan.


Steve Eno, Manager, Healthcare Programs & Marketing

Company: GEHeadquarters: Fairfield, Conn.Website: www.ge.comFounded: 1892No. of Employees: 300,000+Nature of Business: Multinational ConglomerateKey Executives: Jeff Immelt, Chairman & CEO; John Lynch, Senior Vice

President, Human ResourcesKey Solution Providers: Wahi Media

Since last year’s annual enrollment, it

[My Health Guide] has been incorporated

into existing employee marketing channels

and used in new employee orientation and

town hall meetings. GE Capital also has

used the site as the basis for benefits

orientation sessions. Since GE launched

the site in October 2011, there have

been 45,000 views and counting.



It is true employees don’t think about their employer-sponsored benefits until they really need them. Their priorities are on making a tight deadline with a proposal or making a pivotal sale.

Like many large companies, Con-way Freight is trying to figure out how to solve the pain points of educating and engaging employees to be better consumers of their health care benefits. An industry leader in the transportation and logistics industry, Con-way combines the resources of more than 28,500 professionals, decades of experience and industry leadership, and the financial stability of a $5.3 billion publicly traded company to create competitive advantage for its customers.

However, when it comes to communicating and engaging employees, Con-Way is at a unique disadvantage than other firms—accessibility. To counter this problem, senior benefits analyst Lisa Gomez and her team focuses on communicating with the spouses at home, who are usually on the front line of making health care decisions.

While the majority of Con-way Freight’s employees head home after a long day, more than 3,000 employees work from home, which means their truck, which complicates matters. They also are leery of change.

“We have a large group of employees who never actually arrive home during the open enrollment season because they are long haul-drivers,” says Gomez, who has to connect with an 85 percent employee population who are in a truck most of the day. “There is an expectation that all employees meet certain minimal requirements for completing an online health assessment in order to develop our wellness objectives further.! We have a group of employees who have access to a computer as an integral part of their daily job function and reaching those employees is often a fast approach but it is also important that the messages we are sending out reach their homes.! Our experience has been that the partner at home plays a large part in benefit decisions.”

Gomez and her team provide the most up-to-date, easy-to-understand benefits communications to the diverse Con-way employee population. They also have to rise to the challenge of making sure the communications strategies fit the needs of the long-haul drivers, who make up the bulk of the large population. Through her tireless efforts, Gomez has achieved that goal.

A decade ago, Con-way produced a new Summary Plan Description (SPD). But instead of outsourcing the writing, Gomez and her team were on the ground floor of creating the new document.

“Although it was very labor intensive the first time around, we produced a better product, and delivered it more quickly than the very expensive consulting firm would have produced,” says Gomez, who has been with Con-way since 1990. “The company savings on that one document was in excess of $1 million that year.”!

In 2011, Gomez was faced with another challenge. The company had six employee benefit handbooks, each in various stages of completion. Gomez and her staff worked with compliance communication expert, HighRoads, to streamline the development of materials and create documents that included compliant and understandable content.

She faced tight deadlines for updates and some internal software needed

was not available, but Gomez came up with a plan but didn’t rush in an attempt to just get it done. She and her team focused on accuracy, efficiency and delivery.

“Fast forward to 2011 and we had new challenges that necessitated a new solution for production of our SPD,” Gomez says. “We partnered with HighRoads and achieved a quality product, in less than half the time it would take for me to complete the project in-house, and this partnership has led to additional solutions for creations of Summary of Benefits Coverage (SBC) and ongoing document retention.”

Two years ago the company implemented a high-deductible health plan and put the HR department in charge of the communication and education of the employee population. HR went to its vendors, grabbed all of the educational material and blasted its employee population with information.

E-blasts were routinely sent out, and an online portal was created during open enrollment. The result was a 2 percent enrollment rate, as employees preferred the same old health plan.

Using surveys, Con-way asked its employees what was the best method of communication. The company also developed a three-year communications plan as it moved forward with introducing a consumer-directed health plan and a wellness program.

Gomez and her team also identified ways to more effectively use those words to get better engagement rates.

“We had never done that before,” Gomez said of the three-year plan. “It became painfully apparent that baby bits of information is better. You don’t have to say it all at once.”

The team reordered content to place focus on information considered most important to employees and divided content for easier access to topics of interest.

The team also worked with Gomez to make sure the content met ERISA requirements as well as the new Affordable Care Act.

At the completion of the project, plan participants received material written at a 13.2 grade reading level. The content had a better flow and still met with compliance guidelines. The reader-friendly employee benefits handbooks are already starting to see results in regard to increased employee participation.

In the second year of the communications plan, Con-way has seen a 6 percent increase in participation and expects that to continue to grow as the culture begins warming to the idea of a CDHP.

Lisa Gomez, Senior Benefits AnalystHeadquarters: Ann Arbor, Mich.Website: www.con-way.comNo. of Employees: 28,500Nature of Business: Con-way is an industry leader in the

transportation and logistics industry and delivers industry-leading services through its primary operating companies of Con-way Freight, Con-way Truckload, and Menlo Worldwide Logistics.

Key Executives: Douglas W. Stotlar, President and CEO; Stephen L. Bruffett, Executive Vice President and CFO.

Key Solution Provider: HighRoads.

Gomez Keeps Employee Communications Simple at Con-way




For more than 28 years, Dell has been delivering technology solutions to enable customers to achieve more whether at home or at work.! It is critical for Dell to attract and retain top notch talent. With over 110,000 team members globally, Dell has been recognized as one of

the best places to work worldwide.With such a large, diverse team, communicating benefits to U.S. team

members was a challenge especially when it came to legally-required ERISA materials, such as Summary Plan Descriptions (SPD). SPDs can be long documents, filled with legal-jargon, making it difficult for team members to fully comprehend and appreciate their benefits programs.

A breakdown in communications can have costly effects on the company’s bottom line. Knowing this, the benefits team wanted to make changes to keep communications costs from skyrocketing and to ensure they were providing team members with user-friendly, compliant SPDs.

“A few years ago our acquisition strategy became more prevalent,” says Tashi Theisman, director of global benefit operations. “Our population became more complex and diverse. When we saw how our communications were becoming full of exclusions, amendments and footnotes due to having so many different programs and populations, we knew we needed to simplify our messages.”

Dell’s Benefits began looking for an efficient solution to its ongoing problem and found HighRoads, the Massachusetts-based benefits management firm and fellow HealthCare Consumerism Superstar recipient.

The Dell and HighRoads partnership was set up initially to simplify the communications process and provide materials, primarily SPDs, that are easier to understand and navigable while still complying with ERISA regulations. Summary Plan Descriptions was Dell’s most complex communication challenge because they are both compliance-based and team member-facing.

Teams with members from Dell’s legal, benefits and communications departments are required to create the document. Steps have to be taken to ensure the accuracy of the document. This requires also working with benefits providers to ensure absolute agreement on the document’s accuracy.

Dell immediately set to re-working these complex benefits and legal documents. The results were immediate and helped Dell achieve their communications goal. She recalls, “Our ultimate goal is to have a system that makes updating our communications simpler and streamlined for the team—and ensures that we have compliant and consistent output. Our team’s work is vastly simplified by being able to review a master version with the nuances highlighted for any give population—that flows to all versions.”

With the implementation of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), Dell was able to easily create and distribute Summary of Benefits and Coverage (SBC) materials. SBCs are newly established and require employers to provide employees with clear, understandable and straight-forward information on what health plans will cover, what limitations or conditions will apply, and what they will pay. Because Dell already had a best practices approach put into place with its SPDs, they were able to re-purpose existing information to create SBCs on time, in compliance, and in a cost-effective manner.

Response to the new material at Dell has been positive. As Tashi remarks, “one sign of successfully regulated material is when you don’t have any negative feedback and minimal questions—the fact that we haven’t had complaints or confusion is telling.”

Dell was built on delivering solutions that enable smarter decisions and more effective outcomes. The benefits team is no-different. By overcoming obstacles in a strategic manner the team is able to achieve long-term results.

BY KELVIN HOSKEN & JONATHAN FIELD » THE INSTITUTE FOR HEALTHCARE CONSUMERISM

Tashi Theisman, Director, Global Benefit Operations

Company: DellHeadquarters: Round Rock, TexasWebsite: www.dell.com Founded: 1984No. of Employees: 110,000+Nature of Business: Computer technologyKey Executives: Michael Dell, CEO &

ChairmanKey Solutions Providers: HighRoads

“A few years ago our acquisition strategy

became more prevalent, Our population

became more complex and diverse. When

we saw how our communications were

becoming full of exclusions, amendments

and footnotes due to having so many

different programs and populations, we

knew we needed to simplify our messages.”

“One sign of successfully regulated

material is when you don’t have any

negative feedback and minimal

questions—the fact that we haven’t

had complaints or confusion is telling.”



How we access health care is constantly progressing.In 2000, Sally Malowney, project manager at Blue Cross Blue Shield of Minnesota (BCBSMN), remembers Blue Cross was an early supporter of retail health clinics when they were first introduced to Minnesota.

Some consumers were apprehensive, but now retail health clinics can be found throughout the country in supermarkets, discount and drug stores.

“It takes time for consumers to embrace new and innovative health care models,” Malowney says. BCBSMN was no different when Malowney’s team unveiled the web-based health care platform, Online Care Anywhere.

“Since Online Care was a new concept and a new model of care—Blue Cross was the first in the continental United States to implement Online Care Anywhere,” Malowney says. “Our employees were unsure of what Online Care Anywhere really was at first.”

Employees had concerns about security and privacy issues and were confused about the cost and who the providers were they were going to see. But Malowney was patient; she knew the platform could revolutionize health care for BCBSMN employees.

During implementation, Malowney fortunately had a lot of key supporters, including the entire lead-ership team to help get the program off the ground and curb employee concerns.

“They helped us gain trust from the employees, increase momentum and helped spread the word about Online Care Anywhere,” Malowney says.

From the CEO down to the managers, the company understood the need to engage employees on the Online Care Anywhere platform.

American Well, the software’s creator, also was instrumental in the implementation process. From the very start, there had been great synergy between American Well and Blue Cross.

“We rely on American Well not only for the software but for their guidance in all things Online Care Anywhere related,” Malowney explains.

One of Malowney’s greatest innovations in gaining employee participation was the employee ambassador program. She developed the program by recruiting volunteers throughout all different levels of Blue Cross, as “evangelists” to spread Online Care information to Blue Cross employees in their divisions.

The program included more than 40 ambassadors from 22 different divisions who were trained in the benefits of Online Care Anywhere. This was used as a way to get employees comfortable with using Online Care Anywhere.

“We also had contests between departments on who could get the most employees enrolled,” Malowney says.

After the employees’ initial hesitation waned, the program took off in popularity. In addition to a drop in health care costs, employees loved the convenience of the program.

“I feel our biggest successes have to do with the more personal aspect of Online Care Anywhere, such as the convenience factor of having an Online Care Anywhere visit from your home or work, saving time of not needing to drive to a retail clinic or doctor’s office and the hassles of not having to make appointments and sitting in a germ-filled waiting room with their children,” Malowney says.

The Online Care Anywhere interface is extremely easy for employees

to use. The visits are live, immediate, and are face-to-face consultations using video, secure web chats or the phone. Employees don’t have to wait for a call back from a provider; they are immediately connected with a health care professional. Employees can see and choose providers based on education, training and patient ratings—rather than receive a call from an unknown provider.

As a result of employees not having to leave work for a doctor visit, productivity

has increased. Absenteeism has decreased, and employees do not have to use their PTO hours on check-ups. The participation numbers from the employee population show widespread support for the program. Ninety-five percent cite satisfaction with the service. Ninety percent save time over other care options, and 85 percent fully resolve their medical issues.

Another of the program’s greatest successes has been the introduction of Online Care Anywhere virtual clinics at each Blue Cross campus. The virtual clinic takes the Online Care Anywhere program to another level and similar to a physical doctor’s office.

“These rooms allow our employees to have a private and confidential online care visit without needing to leave work,” Malowney explains. “This concept has been replicated at many of our employer sites and has proven to be just as successful.”

Ultimately, Online Care Anywhere has created better health care consumers out of BCBSMN’s employee population. Employees no longer feel the need to wait to seek care until symptoms get serious.

Malowney likes to relay a story about an employee who had a nagging back injury. Eventually, the pain began interfering with work and other daily activities. During his lunch break, the employee decided to use Online Care Anywhere. The employee connected with a physician who had a new way of treating the injury that no one had previously suggested. The physician wrote a new prescription, and the employee was on his way to recovery—all during lunch.

Creating Better Health Care Consumerism OnlineBY JONATHAN FIELD » MANAGING EDITOR » THE INSTITUTE FOR HEALTHCARE CONSUMERISM

Sally Malowney, Principle Product Consultant

Company: BCBS of MinnesotaHeadquarters: Eagen, Minn.Website: www.bluecrossmn.com Founded: 1933No. of Employees: 3,800Nature of Business: Health insurance

plans Key Executives: Scott Lynch, Interim

President & CEO; James Eppel, Jr., Senior Vice President & COO; Colleen Connors, Senior Vice President of Human Resources

Key Solutions Providers: American Well

MedServ Global, LLC | 3719 Old Alabama Rd | Suite 300 #G176 | Phone: +1-678-528-8511 | Web: www.MedServGlobal.com | Email: [email protected]

Building on experience garnered since 2007, MedServ Global has established a solid foundation to address the emerging globalization of healthcare. Our approach has won the 2011 Industry Innovator Award from the Institute for Healthcare Consumerism.

Global MedPass™ Access to Affordable Healthcare

2400 ACR Accredited US Imaging Facilities

35 Joint Commission US Surgical Facilities

Joint Commission Accredited International Network

FIVE STAR Personal Patient Advocate & Concierge

Employers Win - Employees Win MedServ can save you 40% to 80% on imaging and surgical services. In addition, with the right benefit design, employees can save up to 100% for treatment.

Wrap-Around Benefit Options for All Employees

Covered Benefit for Surgical Procedures

Employee Benefit for Affordable Plastic, Dental, Fertility

End to End Patient and Family Support Services

Price Transparency, Decision Support, & Education

Social Wellness and Behavioral Incentive Programs

Savings Range from 40%-80% on Surgical Procedures

MedServ Global’s Integrated Platform transforms health benefit plans by putting economic, health, and wellness choices into the hands of the people that are directly affected. Each component is tailored to encourage personal involvement in altering health and healthcare purchasing behaviors which saves money for employers and employees while improving employee health.

Savings Range from 40%-80% on Surgical Procedures

Education and Engagement

Access and Affordability

Wellness and Incentives

Information Access through Evidence-Based Multi-Media

Content, Communications, Community and Social Engagement

Decision Support, Patient Advocacy, Affordable Networks,

and Transparency Providing More & Better Options

Using Behavioral Science, Analytics, Incentives and

Personalization to Drive Better Choices and Lower Cost


HR VISIONARY AWARD

Cyndee Blue says her employees really have no excuse when enrolling in the company’s vision plan. And with nearly 90 percent of her 400-plus employees

enrolled, this human resources director at Everence Financial must be doing something right.

Split between its headquarters in Goshen Ind., and field offices across the U.S., Everence offers banking, insurance and financial services, and is dedicated to helping people integrate their faith and finances.

Founded in 1945 by the Mennonite Church, Everence grew out of a long tradition of church communities putting faith into action by sharing resources with each other. The company started by offering loans to church service volunteers and over the years, it added many more mutual aid and stewardship programs.

A chairperson of Everence’s wellness committee, Blue says her company’s benefits package is instrumental in motivating employees to make the right health decisions, vision being no exception.

“We wanted to provide incentives for employees to take care of their eyes just as they would go to a doctor for an annual physical,” she says. “We saw the importance of making sure they took care of themselves in that way, especially given the demands of their job.”

Employees work in a computer-based environment, where properly corrected vision is critical, and eyestrain is common. Everence also has many tenured employees over age 40, who will likely need some form of vision correction, and are at higher risk for eye-related issues.

“It’s that magical number where we want to make sure eye care is priority for you,” Blue says.

With this goal in mind, Blue, who has been with Everence since 1981, decided in 2008 to discontinue the eye exam-only benefit in her self-funded medical plan and switch to a more robust standalone vision benefit. She also moved funds toward subsidizing about half of the vision premium for employees, making it even more inexpensive for employees to join the new voluntary plan. For the first time, employees were also able to add family members.

The plan provides an annual eye exam with a $10 copay and allows employees to use the rest of their benefit for prescription eyeglasses with a $25 copay. Employees also have a $150 allowance for frames or for contact lenses.

In addition, it includes full coverage for lens options such as progressives, anti-reflective coatings, scratch coatings and photochromics like Transitions® lenses, as well as a 20 percent discount on additional pairs of eyeglasses, etc.

Blue says the switch to the standalone plan was what really brought vision to the forefront for her, and prompted her to start discussing vision more in her enrollment meetings and regular wellness outreach.

While she says her employees were skeptical at first—with roughly 50-60 percent enrolling—education and word of mouth about the richness of the benefit quickly led to 86 percent of employees enrolling in the plan.

“Three or four times a year, an employee will come to me and say, ‘my eye doctor says my plan is the best he has ever seen,’” she says.

The ringing endorsement from a professional eyecare specialist, combined with positive feedback from other employees, really strikes a chord with employees. Blue adds the health plan motivates employees to actually get their eye exam and encourages family members to do the same.

When it comes to vision education, Blue has used everything from more traditional vehicles—like benefit meetings and including vision in her monthly newsletter—to thinking outside the box and inside the stall, with a “Stall Solutions” fact sheet in the employee restrooms.

New employees also are given a flyer from the vision provider about why they should consider their vision benefit. Additionally, enrollment meetings touch on the financial aspect of how much value employees receive at a very reasonable premium.

“We try very hard to be innovative, so we provide a [benefits] package that serves employees well while balancing the business aspect,” Blue says. “Our efforts toward wellness have been very rewarding to be a part of. It goes back to being able to resource the employees—we can only lead them so far, and provide a vehicle and encouragement for them to get there.”

Blue Keeps Employees Focused on Vision


Three or four times a year,

an employee will come to me and say,

‘my eye doctor says my plan is the

best he has ever seen.

Cyndee Blue, Human Resources DirectorCompany: EverenceHeadquarters: Goshen, Ind.Website: www.everence.comFounded: 1945No. of Employees: 400-plusNature of Business: Everence is a ministry of Mennonite

Church USA and other churches that help individuals, organizations and congregations integrate finances with faith through a national team of advisors and representatives. Everence offers banking, insurance and financial services with community benefits and stewardship education.

Key Executives: Larry Miller, President and CEO; Jim Alvarez, CFO Senior Vice President; Rodney D. Diller, Senior Vice President, Sales and Distribution.

Key Solution Provider: Transitions.

Produced in conjunction with


HR VISIONARY AWARD

With many of his employees requiring safety eyewear on the job, Steve Browne is all too aware of the importance of eye health for his workforce. An employee-owned company, Wiginton Fire Systems

provides fire protection and installation services, with offices throughout the southeastern U.S. Browne is responsible for the benefits of 340 employees in three lines of business: installation, engineering and fabrication.

He says he focuses his benefits package on core offerings that will matters most for employees, including vision.

“If they can’t see well, how can they work? How can they drive?” he says. Recognizing the importance of eyecare and eyewear to protect employees’ vision and perform well on the job, Browne switched to a more robust plan several years ago.

This single-tier plan provides employees an eye exam with a $10 copay, a frame credit through the vision provider, a $150 material allowance and discounts on numerous lens options, such as Transitions® lenses, all at a low annual premium to employees. Protective, prescription eyewear is provided through the plan as well, or employees can get reimbursed directly through the company.

While Browne says he incentivizes his employees to seek regular physicals, his predominantly male workforce can be pretty stubborn about not visiting their doctors. The 300-plus employees also are very diverse in education and their background.

Wiginton Fire Systems is one of the few fire protection design-build firms in the United States staffing professional engineers registered in fire protection. The company’s professionals each have a minimum of 20 years of engineering experience in fire protection, including manufacturing, insurance consulting and fire protection contracting.

Possessing in-depth knowledge of all the various perspectives through a broad experience base and through membership and participation in code making bodies such as the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), industry associations, such as the National Fire Sprinkler Association and the Society of Fire Protection Engineers (SFPE) as well as membership and involvement in end-user associations such as the National Association of Industrial and Office Properties (NAIOP), the Building Owners and Managers Association (BOMA and the International Association of Refrigerated Warehouses (IARW), Wiginton engineers, and certified engineering technicians are uniquely qualified to advise clients, not only from a fire and building code perspective but also from a long term real estate and operational perspective.

By keeping up with the fast paced innovations of the fire protection indus-try, Wiginton Fire Systems is able to incorporate the very latest fire protection technology, such as Tyco Quell™, CMSA and ESFR design parameters.

The engineers are more concerned about the newest technology available in fire prevention rather than taking time to get their eyes checked. This leaves Browne with the unenviable task of getting the engineers focused on the importance of vision care.

“Having an opportunity to see a medical professional in a setting not as

intimidating as doctor’s office is extremely important,” Browne says. “An eye exam can diagnose eye diseases, diabetes, blood clots, or can alert employees that they are on the path to one of these illnesses.”

Browne says he’s also very aware of how certain employees’ lifestyle habits—like smoking—could contribute to vision problems, and encourages employees to become familiar with their family history of obesity or other medical issues that might impact their eye and overall health risk. Especially since preventative medical and dental exams are fully covered, he says it makes it even easier for employees to pay just $10 to cover all three vital check-ups.

With employees scattered across branches and many working remotely, Browne says it can be tough to get them together for lunch and learns or benefits education throughout the year.

He puts up posters from his vision provider in the employee check-in area, to remind employees to take advantage of their vision benefit, but really drives home some key messages during his enrollment meetings. He says he speaks not only to the preventative aspect of eyecare and the importance of safety vision, but how taking advantage of the vision benefit can help put money back in their pockets by improving the financial health of the employee-owned company.

As Browne explains, “better health turns into increased share value and happier retirements, so employees can hopefully be both healthy and wealthy.”

Browne says he also encourages his employees to be educated consumers when making purchase decisions.

“When you buy glasses, it’s like buying a new car,” Browne says. “You need all these add-ons. Find out what you really need and what’s important to you.” For instance, he says certain eyewear options like Transitions lenses provide value to employees because they are like two glasses in one, for indoor and outdoor use.

For Browne, truly educating employees—instead of just explaining their options to them—makes all the difference between compliance and commitment. If employees understand not only their benefits coverage, but how preventative care can address their medical needs and impact their own bottom line, they become more motivated and committed to take control of their own health, he says.

Seve Browne, Vice President, Director of Human Resources

Company: Wiginton Fire SystemsHeadquarters: Orlando, Fla.,Website: www.wiginton.netFounded: 1967Nature of Business: Florida-based company that designs,

fabricates, installs and maintains fire sprinkler systems for industrial, commercial and residential construction projects.

Key Executives: Don Wiginton, Chairman and CEO; Alan Wiginton, COO;

Browne Focuses on




HR VISIONARY AWARD

The Integral Group is shaping the ways communities look by developing investment management, real estate development, construction management, property management, and human development

services though out the southeastern United States.The company prides itself in creating and developing

an organizational culture to serve the needs of others above all else. The Integral Group leaves its footprint on revitalizing communities and smart growth.

To do that members of Integral Group’s executive team have to have tremendous vision of the future, and the person protecting their vision is Maurice Evans, Jr., director of human resources for the full-service real estate services group. Just as Integral Group is committed to its clients, Evans says he is committed to improving the overall health of his workforce of 250 employees.

With a workforce that skews older and includes a large number of computer workers, as well as outdoor workers, he believes proper vision is absolutely critical to employee health and productivity, and that offering and promoting a quality vision plan plays a key role.

He has already been making strides in the wellness initiative space over the last few years by offering employee health fairs, lunch and learns, and programs to encourage a healthy lifestyle.

Despite turning to a voluntary vision plan in 2011, Evans saw his enrollment spike by 30 percent, thanks to beefing up a then-basic vision plan to include lens technologies like Transitions lenses.

A wearer of the lenses himself, Evans understands how this product can help employees see more comfortably while protecting their eyes from UV. Through his vision plan, Transitions lenses are free for kids up to age 19, and available at a small upcharge to adults. In 2013, scratch resistant coatings (already covered for adults) will be covered for kids as well. Progressive lenses also are covered by the plan, and (impact resistance) polycarbonate lenses are available at a small charge.

“Vision is the most critical aspect of being able to perform your job,” Evans says. “Several said this is something I shared with my spouse or talked to my parents about. It’s impactful for them to have that information available to them. The information is so important, yet so many people don’t understand it.”

Evans says he also has significantly increased his eye health/vision benefit education efforts since 2011, providing education to his employees on a quarterly basis. This education emphasizes not only the importance of eye exams for disease detection and prevention, but also the importance of proper vision for productivity.

After participating in the Transitions Academy HR panel in 2012, Evans has worked with Transitions Optical on a custom education program, taking advantage of vision education tools available through the Transitions Healthy Sight Working for You Program, and integrating them into his existing employee outreach.

Throughout the year, employees have been reached via e-mail blasts twice

a month on a variety of eye health topics. The blasts link to education tools, such as eye doctor video clips, e-newsletters and more. The tools also are featured on Integral Group’s employee portal.

Evans said he just referred to one of the e-blasts (on diabetes and vision) during his open enrollment, and found that many employees had read it and retained much of the information.

Diabetes management is a key focus area for Evans. With Integral Group being a minority-owned company with a large minority population, Evans is aware of this group’s higher risk for diabetes, and also how diabetes can negatively impact vision and eye health.

Evans has also taken advantage of tools like the Healthy Sight Calculator (HealthySightCalculator.org) during enrollment and orientation meetings, to show employees their risk for eye health issues and how taking advantage of their vision benefit can help them protect their health and save money.

Even if employees don’t enroll, he says it gets them thinking about getting an eye exam.!He also recently worked with his vision plan provider to offer vision screenings during a lunch and learn, helping to identify employees that needed to make an eyecare appointment.

Another effort that makes him stand out is that he pushes for employees to share vision information with family members.!Having three sons himself, he feels it’s especially important for employees to protect the vision of their children.

As he pointed out, when children have vision problems or eye-related health issues, parents are distracted, absent from work and not performing their best. This is one of the reasons why he thinks it’s important for employees to enroll their children in the vision plan, and for it to fully cover protective eyewear options for kids.

Employee reaction to Evans’ vision education efforts has been very positive, reinforcing that employees value education on their benefits. Evans told one story of an older employee who suffered from severe migraines, and even went through nasal surgery, to no avail. After Evans urged him to get an eye exam, the employee found that his eyeglasses were three years old and that he simply needed an updated prescription, which quickly eliminated the migraines. Evans feels eye health awareness is increasing, and is putting measures in place to quantify results.

Protecting the Vision of Those who Envision Building Better Communities


Maurice Evans Jr., Director of Human ResourcesCompany: The Integral GroupHeadquarters: AtlantaWebsite: integral-online.comFounded: 1993Nature of Business: The Integral Group LLC, through its subsidiaries,

provides investment management, real estate development, construction management, property management, and human development services. It offers real estate development services for multi-family rental housing, multi-family for-sale housing, senior housing, housing for special populations, and mixed-use projects, as well as office, commercial, and retail developments. The company also provides construction management services, such as general contracting, program management, and consulting services.

Key Executives: Egbert L.J. Perry, Chairman and CEO; Mitchell Powell, CFO; Carl Powell, President, Investment and Emerging Markets Division; Art Lomenick, President, Real Estate.


RECOGNITIONP R O F I L E S

to Judith Murphy & Tom Selden of

Southwest General Health Center on the

IHC Superstar nomination for “Most

Effective Health and Benefits Plan Award.”

Southwest General along with Bravo Southwest General along with Bravo

Wellness offers a program where

employees can take personal accountability

for their health.

CONGRATULATIONS

www.bravowell.com


CONGRATULATIONS

STEVE GEBBENVice President, Compensation & Benefits

Eastman Chemical Company (formerly Global Director

Compensation & Benefits, Solutia Inc.)

2012 Solutions Superstar for Most Effective Health and Benefits

Plan Implementation Award.

For more information, please visitwww.mercer.com


MOST INNOVATIVE EMPLOYEE EMPOWERMENT AWARD

As an integrated health care organization, Kaiser Permanente (KP) is known for its commitment to healthy living and its prevention-driven approach to health care. After all, KP is not just a health plan; the organization

inspires its members to thrive, to achieve total health. In Georgia, like many parts of the country, Kaiser has taken the lead in promoting healthier neighborhoods and communities, investing millions of dollars into metropolitan Atlanta for health care improvements. In these ways, Kaiser represents the next evolution of health plans as an active participant in members’ wellness.

By design, employees at KP have access to all of the same healthy living and disease prevention services as its health plan members. But in 2010, when Dawn Bading, vice president of human resources for Kaiser’s Georgia region, began investigating about the rate of engagement for Kaiser’s employees in the prevention-driven programs, she realized the rates of engagement were not on par with what the organization expected. Executives assumed employees were taking advantage of the array of wellness and prevention programs offered by Kaiser.

“What we realized,” Bading remembers,” was that our employees were not participating in as many of our services as we had thought.”

Bading knew she needed to motivate her employees, but her main challenge was identifying the measures to incorporate into a wellness program that would motivate the employees to participate. Ultimately, Bading and her team decided it was necessary to measure data in four categories: prevention, physical activity, community involvement and engagement.

“We felt these areas supported our strategy and were inclusive enough to achieve full participation,” she says.

Additionally, Bading realized positive recognition of employees’ efforts was needed to encourage and sustain participation. During the design and implementation stages of the new wellness program, Bading worked with Atlanta-based gBehavior, fellow HealthCare Consumerism Superstar recipient and a veritable expert in all things incentives, to identify needs, set goals and break those goals into manageable, measureable activities that motivate employees to make healthier lifestyle choices.

Founded in 2003, gBehavior creates powerful and unique incentive programs that help companies translate goals into legitimate, sustained behavior change. And without their expertise, Kaiser’s new wellness program would not have achieved the same results.

There’s an old and arguably outdated argument in incentive strategies of using either the stick or the carrot. Bading knew she wanted to focus on the positive, and with gBehavior’s assistance, Bading and her team focused on encouraging the right behaviors—not penalizing employees.

“Penalties are never a good way of sustainable change in behavior,” she

says, “I am reminded of that very often ... I have a 13-year-old.” Kaiser’s program uses positive recognition and rewards that motivate

employees until they gain the internal motivation to make these healthy behaviors sustainable.

One of the biggest successes of the wellness program was transitioning the culture of healthy living that Kaiser markets to its health plan members into the Kaiser workplace.

On a national level, Kaiser has instituted a variety of programs: walking programs, encouraging everyone to “Maintain, Don’t Gain” during the holidays, and television commercials that focus everyone to find “our thing” and inspire us to “thrive.”

Bading took these already motivational messages and programs and made them viable to her employee population in Georgia.

Another of the great successes of the program was seeing the very tangible results in incentive-driven programs like breast cancer screenings.

“Our breast cancer screening rates,” Bading says, “make me smile because I know we are catching opportunities to identify cancer with every mammogram.”

The wellness program also makes great use of existing Kaiser technology. It collects vital signs at every medical visit—sick or well—and, because of their electronic medical records, can flag needs for each patient.

“When the nurse inputs the blood pressure, weight or any other vital sign into the electronic medical record,” she explains, “the nurse can remind the patient of lab work or screenings that they need.”

Through their marketing, technology, hospitals and community involvement, Kaiser Permanente is known for promoting a culture of healthy living. Now, thanks to the efforts of Bading and gBehavior, Kaiser’s Georgia region can similarly be a model for other organizations and a community resource others can look to as they navigate improving the health of their employees.

Learning to Thrive at Kaiser’s Georgia RegionBY JONATHAN FIELD » MANAGING EDITOR » THE INSTITUTE FOR HEALTHCARE CONSUMERISM

Dawn Bading, Vice President of Human ResourcesCompany: Kaiser PermanenteHeadquarters: OaklandWebsite: www.kaiserpermanente.org Founded: 1945No. of Employees: 175,000 (3,000 in Georgia)Nature of Business: Managed care consortiumKey Executives: George C. Halvorson, Chairman & CEO;

Chuck Columbus, Chief Human Resources Officer; Kathy Lancaster, Chief Financial Officer

Key Solutions Provider: gBehavior

“Penalties are never a good way of

sustainable change in behavior.

I am reminded of that very often ...

I have a 13-year-old.”

“When the nurse inputs the blood pressure,

weight or any other vital sign into the

electronic medical record, the nurse

can remind the patient of lab work or

screenings that they need.”



JetBlue prides itself in being an innovative airline that offers its award-winning service, ample legroom in coach, free TV as well as its low fares. But Harry Spencer wants the airline to become known for its innovative health and benefit packages.Spencer, vice president of compensation and benefits for the New York-

based airline, was a cog in making NowClinic Online Care an integral part of the JetBlue “Crew Member” health care lifestyle.

With a mobile workforce, many being pilots and flight attendants, who spend more time on a plane than they do on the ground, there is little time to schedule an appointment with their primary care physician when they get sick.

This makes the concept of telemedicine an ideal strategy for the fast-moving JetBlue employees, who can access a doctor, specialist or clinician from their home, office or on one of JetBlue’s fleet of Wi-Fi ready planes. It is convenient for the employees and saves the company money because employees will not be making trips to the emergency room.

Spencer, who was hired at JetBlue on April 4, 2011, after more than a decade with Time Warner Inc., where he served as vice president, global benefits and HR operations, played an integral part in the partnership between the airline and NowClinic Online Care.

He was key in educating JetBlue employees on what the service is; how it works and when to use it. Further Spencer, who previously served in benefits and finance positions at Exxon Mobil Corporation, demonstrated why the NowClinic service is valuable and has made it available to all employees and their families. It allows them to get the care where and when they need it.

Through Spencer’s tireless efforts of communicating the importance of this telehealth service, he broke through the barriers, championing and leading the charge to achieve high use of the service with high satisfaction rates among employees.

“Harry’s creative approach to promoting NowClinic has led to significantly higher access to care on the ground and in the air,” says Shira Berger of UnitedHealthcare. “As a result of his efforts, JetBlue staff can dedicate more time with providing outstanding services to customers and less time worrying about accessing the health care they deserve.”

Eighty percent of members have rated the service as excellent, and 16 percent have rated it as good. This makes for a 96 percent satisfaction rate. The majority of members, 94 percent access NowClinic online, and the others used a telephone consultation. Twenty-five percent of the consultations were with members who have used the service before, and 73 percent of members accessed the service during the week. Twenty-seven percent took advantage of the service over the weekend.

Keying the success of the program has been three-fold: pre-enrollment, desired outcomes and management commitment.

Once employees and family members invested in enrollment, they were much more inclined to try out the service when they got sick. They also saw how fast, simple and effective the service was and were quick to inform others about the service. That explains the 96 percent approval rating.

Spencer and the rest of JetBlue management also actively promoted the service, messaging through e-mail, e-newsletters, flyers, brochures and using

social media to showcase the service as a perk for all employees and their families.

Because the majority of JetBlue employees do not work under normal schedules, normal being a typical nine-to-five schedule, access to quality health care is very time consuming. Prior to NowClinic Online Care, Jet Blue employees, such as baggage handlers, telephone personnel, ground people and flight crew would have to take off work. It was costly for them and costly for the company and in some aspects costly for customers of JetBlue, who depend on the airline to get them safely, comfortably and efficiently to their particular destination.

NowClinic Online Care focuses on transforming health care by focusing on access to care, the quality of care and keeping cost down. NowClinic Online Care goes beyond the traditional brick and mortar and eliminates geographic barriers. It also reduces trips to the emergency room or urgent care visits.

NowClinic Online Care, a service of UnitedHealth Group, also used credentialed providers and uses evidence-based care in delivering convenient visits at less costs than an urgent care visit.

Spencer and his team identified the need to extend innovative options for employees to receive acute care services for episodic, non-urgent needs. The team’s focus was driving appropriate access and value, all while enhancing productivity and access to care.

By implementing NowClinic Online Care, Spencer was able to extend telehealth services to JetBlue employees and their families and provide them the option of live online interaction with health care professionals. The doctors on NowClinic were able to provide assistance with self-care plans, guidance on next steps to follow a care plan, diagnose a condition and prescribe medication. The doctors provide meaningful live consultations with the patient through video secure text chat or via a phone call.

Through Spencer and his team’s dedication, passion creativity and hard work of educating and engaging JetBlue’s employee population, NowClinic is an integral part of the health plan offering and has seen widespread adoption from the 3,500 employees and their families.

Employees have used the services for conditions such as bronchitis, sinusitis, allergies and infections. NowClinic has contributed to an increase in employee and their families’ morale and productivity. Missed workdays are down and employees are happier, healthier and more productive.

Spencer Connects JetBlue to Better Access to Health Care Through Telemedicine


Harry Spencer, Vice President of Compensation and BenefitsCompany: JetBlueHeadquarters: New YorkWebsite: www.jetblue.comNature of Business: Known for its award-winning service and

free TV as much as its low fares, JetBlue offers the most legroom in coach of any U.S. airline (based on average fleet-wide seat pitch) as well as super-spacious Even More Space seats. JetBlue has 750 flights a day to 74 cities.

No. of Employees: 13,000Key Executives: David Barger, CEO, President and Director; Mark Powers, CFO;

Rob Maruster, Executive Vice President and COO.Key Solution Providers: UnitedHealthcare, OptumHealth, Payflex.



When transforming the benefits and wellness program at the APi Group, Shannon Swanson doesn’t have to concern herself with the employee

population of one company but a diverse family of companies dedicated to delivering innovative solutions to the construction industry.

The APi Group is the holding company for more than 32 independently managed companies reaching approximately 9,000 vibrant union and nonunion employees. With more than 150 locations in the U.S. and Canada, APi’s billion-dollar success is based on one philosophy: Offer the finest customer-driven service by using common resources and shared experiences to build a safer environment.

The unique partnership allows small companies to offer a more robust benefits package. However, with many employees out at remote construction sites, the task of communicating, engaging and empowering employees is difficult.

Swanson was an administrative assistant to one of the subsidiaries before making the move to being the director of benefits and wellness five years ago for the U.S. market. During her tenure, the company has been transformed into better, more educated consumers of health care.

“When I stepped into this role five years ago, I felt that most employees were in the dark about their health benefits,” Swanson said. “They learned a bit about them upon hire, and then had to sign up during annual enrollment, but it seemed like that was it.”

Swanson was the lone person the entire employee population of 2,800 came to if they had questions. This left very little time for education and employees had little resources to help when they had questions regarding benefits.

Another pain point was the company transitioned to a self-service benefits model. This meant the company moved from a suboptimal benefits database to a robust self-service outsourced platform with helpful resources, such as call center support.

However, as the company grew the call center was unsustainable. So the company made sure every office had a local benefits expert. APi Group also launched a nationwide wellness program, which includes on-site health screenings and risk assessments. The company created a dedicated health and well-being newsletter and recently partnered with a new open enrollment vendor and launched a virtual benefits counselor to aide in employee education.

The APi Group also had to focus on education on health benefits, as the company moved to implement a consumer-directed health plan. Many employees have embraced the consumer-directed plan as a way to save for the future, while gaining a better understanding of how the system works.

The APi Group is entering its third year with a consumer-directed plan and 39 percent of employees are taking the HSA option. The company encourages its employees to check options, ask questions, look at prices and

review their bills and Explanation of Benefits (EOB)s, and it seems they’re becoming more comfortable doing so. Swanson also can tell by the nature of questions and suggestions she receives that employees are developing better consumerism habits.

“I think the majority of our employees are more empowered and engaged in the process than they were a few years ago,” Swanson says. “It seems they appreciate having options to choose from, and have more control over their coverage and their health care dollars.”

Swanson adds the employee population’s collective attitude toward health care has improved. There will always be those employees who are not engaged for personal reasons or who find it confusing and therefore are put off by the changes.

What is helping employees become better consumers of health care and being more concerned about their personal well-being is a cultural change sparked by the C-suite executives.

“The key reasons behind the transformation are leadership support, solid partnerships and quality solutions providers,” Swanson says. “Employee health and well-being are very important to our CEO and CFO, so their support has been invaluable. I’ve worked to align myself with innovate partners in health benefits and wellness because I believe in delivering the best to our people. Finally, we have to find the best services out there to support our employees and our benefits team. There are two of us managing benefits for nearly 2,800 lives. We need solid vendors to deliver our programs, or we will be incapable of moving forward.”

With the help of vendors, Swanson and her staff have conducted countless webinars and training seminars to continually educate the company’s trainers. She has networks of benefits administrators and wellness advocates to share information and run programs and she communicates regularly on various health and wellness topics to keep people engaged throughout the year.

“Shannon has been the catalyst of a substantial transformation of the benefits and wellness program at APi Group,” says Aon Hewitt Vice President Barb Vasko, who has worked four years with Swanson on a partnership. “In addition to dealing with their tremendous growth, she has brought in technology, transparency, consumerism and employee responsibility into the programs to ensure a more empowered employee group.”

Wellness Program at APi Group


Shannon Swanson, Director of Benefits and WellnessCompany: APi Group Inc.Headquarters: St. Paul, Minn.Website: www.apigroupinc.comNature of Business: An energetic organization providing leadership to a

diverse family of companies dedicated to delivering innovative solutions to the construction industry.

No. of Employees: 2,800Key Executives: Lee R. Anderson, Sr., Owner and Chairman; Russell

Becker, President and CEO; Gregory J. Keup, CFO and TreasurerKey Solution Providers: Aon Hewitt, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of

Minnesota, Mayo Clinic, Jellyvision


MOST EFFECTIVE POPULATION HEALTH MANAGEMENT AWARD

Three straight years of improved employee benefits and no increase in payroll deductions for employees and their families is a major feather in the cap of Buffalo Exchange Human Resources Director Jennifer Forster, who knows the company’s implementation of a

comprehensive health and wellness program has been a success. Buffalo Exchange, a nation-wide resale fashion company based in

Tucson, Ariz., has 700 employees located at 43 stores all over the country. In addition to selling new and recycled fashions, the company has proven conclusively health care consumerism is not just for large companies. Forster remembers coming to Buffalo Exchange and experiencing how the big-name insurance companies were treating the small companies.

“I knew we were small in their eyes and I knew there was a way to do things better,” she recalls. “I simply became unwilling to accept the status quo of discussing higher rates with lower benefits every year.”

Forster and Buffalo Exchange owners, Kerstin and Rebecca Block, used a focused, well-organized plan to bring increased wellness responsibility and accountability to their organization. Kerstin and Rebecca both matched

Forster’s passion for finding a better way to do benefits. In 2010, Buffalo Exchange began developing a full-replacement

consumer-directed health plan. Among large companies, only 13 percent have full replacement plans. This strategy put Buffalo Exchange directly on the leading edge of the health care consumerism megatrend, and implementing the new plan couldn’t have been easier.

“Employees were happy to hear there would be no rate increase,” Forster says. “Once we could give them that news, it was easy to keep the conversation positive and get people thinking about keeping themselves healthy and being aware of health care costs.”

Buffalo Exchange’s employee population loved that their actions had a direct result on the quality of their health care plan.

But Forster and the company owners didn’t stop there. Implementing a CDHP wasn’t enough; they wanted to wage a full-fledged crusade for better health and better benefits for the company’s employees. They implemented a health reimbursement account (HRA) contingent upon employees and their adult family members completing a biometric screening.

“We very carefully selected the HRA amounts based on what we knew about how much health care our employees used,” Forster adds. “Based on this information, we were able to select a funding amount that would be the most advantageous to most of our employees.”

Forster and the HR team implemented a comprehensive program, including: rewarding employees by depositing $750 to $1,500 into their

personal health care account for completing the annual biometrics and health risk assessments; paying 100 percent for generic preventive medications and enhanced benefits for preventive brand drugs; conducting monthly and quarterly wellness campaigns and clinical health coaching with a focus on positive lifestyle management. They also established a fitness center in the central office, where employees can use exercise equipment and weights on a daily basis.

At Buffalo Exchange, the benefit plan is not a one-day-a-year enrollment meeting but a culture of promoting a health lifestyle.

“We talk about benefits all year long,” Forster said. To further a culture of well-being, the company established a “Benefit

Corner” in each store to post important information and enrolled employees in a monthly health newsletter, Personal Best, which includes topical articles in each issue of the company’s monthly publication. Buffalo Exchange also instituted a smoke-free campus.

The company couldn’t have fostered a culture of well-being without Benefit Commerce Group (BCG), the Arizona-based employee benefits brokerage firm and fellow HealthCare Consumerism Superstar. When the two organizations first met, it was quickly apparent they were on the same page when it came to health care consumerism strategies. Both were determined to change the paradigm of how people thought about employee benefits.

Forster and other company leaders were asking the right questions: Why can’t our previous broker do better for us? Why are the reasons for renewal rates a “big secret?” How do we get a carrier to care about a smaller employer?

Buffalo Exchange really wanted its benefits program to make a difference at the company and for its employees’ lives.

“The biggest thing they [BCG] have brought is that we now think of benefits strategically with the long term in mind,” Forster says of the partnership. “We think about several years ahead rather than just the current year.”

Two years ago, Buffalo Exchange implemented 100 percent preventative care. Health care payroll deductions are at a standstill, and engagement in the wellness program has never been higher. But for Forster, the success of the program can be measured by just looking at her employee population.

“I see our employees every day: healthier and happier because of the programs we’ve put in place for them,” Forster says.


Jennifer Forster, HR DirectorCompany: Buffalo ExchangeHeadquarters: Tucson, Ariz.Website: www.buffaloexchange.

com Founded: 1974No. of Employees: 700+Nature of Business: Vintage

clothing retailerKey Executives: Kerstin and

Rebecca Block, OwnersKey Solutions Providers: Benefit

Commerce Group

“Employees were happy to hear there

would be no rate increase. Once we could

give them that news, it was easy to keep

the conversation positive and get people

thinking about keeping themselves healthy

and being aware of health care costs.”



In 2004, Sabre Holdings, the Texas-based travel technology operating the popular online travel agency, Travelocity, was facing a health care crisis. Over the past three years, health costs had increased 53 percent, and with 10,000 employees, this was leading to devastating effects on the company’s

bottom line.Plan designs were inefficient and complex, leading to wasteful spending

and low employee engagement in the decision-making process. Seventy-five percent of the employee population had three or more health risks; 23 percent had five or more. Perhaps most importantly: Sabre’s employees largely held the perception that health care costs were the company’s problem and nothing could be done.

In 2005, Matt Robbins joined Sabre as benefit manager. He immediately began to think about changing the way Sabre thought about health and benefits. Under the relatively dire circumstances of Sabre’s health and benefits management at the time, he understood change wouldn’t—couldn’t—be typical. Even a more traditional wellness or health coaching program, wouldn’t be enough to reverse the inertia of negative trends.

Robbins thought anyone can start a wellness program, but delivering meaningful results to the employee population’s health, requires intensive effort to develop a culture of health. After convincing management that a comprehensive benefits overhaul was necessary, Robbins developed a multi-year strategy to implement an effective health and wellness program that educates, energizes and engages employees, identifies their health risks and provide targeted clinical intervention programs to address those risks.

However, there were some initial struggles. Sabre has two distinct populations: professional, technology-savvy employees, and call center employees. An international company, Sabre also has many foreign nationals on assignment in the United States. To be successful, the wellness program needed to appeal to everyone—from management to clerical staff and from elite athletes to non-exercisers with multiple health risk factors. The program also needed to take into account the demographic differences across the company’s different business units.

Sabre began with an incentivized, activity-based wellness program designed to educate and encourage participation. Employees could earn points by participating in a wide spectrum of activities, such as seminars, nutritional challenges, physical challenges, and interdepartmental competitions. As part of Sabre’s corporate commitment to community involvement, Sabre employees are given time each quarter to volunteer in their communities. The wellness program supports this core value by offering points for participation in commu-nity events and charities. Next, biometric screenings were added to objectively measure the population’s risks, as well as to create individual awareness. Based on the results of the screenings, clinical intervention programs were evaluated, proposed, piloted, and implemented, or expanded/revised as needed.

Robbins sought to increase engagement by ensuring the activity-based wellness program challenges were fun. Wellness committees (enticed with incentive points) were established at headquarters and remote locations to spread the word and encourage participation. Interdepartmental challenges were established. Participation was incentivized by providing employee contribution discounts for reaching identified objectives—the most points

being awarded for completion of the activities most valuable to Sabre’s goals. Initially, completion of the health risk assessment was targeted. In subsequent years, participation in biometric screenings was most rewarded. As employees became more comfortable with the program, the screenings, health fairs, and challenges truly became part of Sabre’s wellness culture. Employees were invited to post their success stories on the wellness site to encourage others.

An out-of-the-box thinker, Robbins opted not to offer traditional chronic condition management and health coaching programs. Instead he thought it would be more effective to provide targeted interventions addressing the company’s highest risks, combined with a wide range of programs impacting employee quality of life. When putting together the EHM program, he decided Sabre would get the best cost savings by focusing on engaging employees who want to work on their health issues rather than providing programs designed to engage the entire population. He did not believe it was in the best interest of Sabre to spend money on programs used by a small percentage of the population. He believed Sabre would be more successful by creating a wellness program focusing on building a culture of health rather than on risk reduction. His vision was a culture of health over time would contribute to engagement and the best selection of appropriate programs to meet the needs of the population.

The wellness strategy Robbins implemented has been a huge success. How health benefits are perceived—from the employee population to the executive team—have been revolutionized. Robbins moved the perception of health care from treatment of disease to prevention of disease. This strategy has directly affected Sabre’s health care costs, evidenced by Sabre’s 2008 through 2011 gross per-employee-per-month rolling 12-month medical and pharmacy trend was 1.2 percent, which is well below the national average of 9.3 percent. Sabre has controlled its health care cost without significant plan design or contribution changes that impact employee costs.

Robbin’s work is not limited to his role at Sabre. He has been very important in the general advancement of the benefits profession in his home state of Texas. Robbins is president of the Dallas-Fort Worth Business Group on Health (DFWBGH), where he has been an active member since 2006, serving on the board until his recent appointment.

DFWBGH represents 250,000 employee lives via 60 employers in the DFW marketplace. Through his involvement with the organization, Robbins has mentored numerous companies. As president, he is leading an initiative to evaluate quality and transparency issues in the DFW marketplace among hospitals, physician practices and provider networks.

Matt Robbins, Benefits Manager Company: Sabre Holdings Headquarters: Southlake, TexasWebsite: www.sabre.com Founded: 1960No. of Employees: Approx. 10,000Nature of Business: Travel technologyKey Executives: Sam Gilliland, Chairman &

CEO; Thomas Klein, President; Paul Rostron, Executive Vice President, Human Resources

Key Solutions Providers: Alere Health

Robbins, Sabre Holdings Challenge Conventional Wellness to Soaring Results




Allegiant Travel Company has long been a vehicle for wellness. A leisure travel compa-ny with world-class destinations to Hawaii, Las Vegas, Phoenix. Palm Springs and

Myrtle Beach just to name a few, customers of the Las Vegas-based air carrier are focusing on vacation-ing and leaving the stress of work behind them.

Allegiant Travel Company is focused on linking travelers in small cities to world-class leisure destinations. Through its subsidiary, Allegiant Air, the company operates a low-cost, high-efficiency, all-jet passenger airline, and offers other travel-related products such as hotel rooms, rental cars, and attraction tickets through its website, allegiant.com.

While the company was focused on the well-being of its customers, the employee population of the organization, which ranked ninth this year in Forbes’ Best Small Companies, was struggling with its health and benefit management.

When Charity Trujillo started as manager of benefits and compensation at Allegiant, the company’s medical renewal increases were around 50 percent. Knowing those increases were unsustainable for the future of the company, president Andrew C. Levy focused on changing the culture of Allegiant to one that embraces wellness and healthy behaviors.

Levy challenged Trujillo to change the company’s approach to health care and in turn save the air carrier’s bottom line.

Trujillo and her team were in it for the long haul. Knowing this would not be an overnight solution, Trujillo designed a long-term strategy focusing on health management and employee engagement.

The first step happened two years ago when Trujillo’s team introduced a consumerism concept to the air carrier’s health and benefits plan by debuting a low-cost, health savings account (HSA)-based consumer-directed health plan offering alongside the traditional PPO plan.

To help incentivize employees to participate in the new health plan, the company offered to contribute to each employees HSA if they completed a health risk assessment or a biometric screening. The HSA contributions also had a matching component. The company matched $2 for every $1 contributed by lower-paid employees. This spurred significant growth to employee accounts and also increased interest among the workforce in the new offering.

In the first year of the new plan, Allegiant’s participation in the CDHP and those earning health incentives were more than 80 percent of the 1,300-plus employee population.

In 2012 or the second year of the two-year strategy, Allegiant, dropped the traditional health plan and offered only two HSA-based CDHPs to team members and introduced an outcomes-based biometric incentive approach. Approximately 60 percent of the air carrier’s population earned incentives.

To further change the culture of the organization, Allegiant began sponsoring wellness competitions, such as Biggest Loser, healthy contests and encouraging to eat healthy meals.

In the second-year of the project, Trujillo and her staff have managed to take a company facing a 50 percent increase medical plans to medical increases averaging just below 5 percent.

They also have transformed lackadaisical workforce attitudes toward health into a population who is aware, informed and taking charge of their health, while reducing their risk factors.

“Charity Trujillo and her vision and execution of Allegiant’s programs has brought a positive change to the organization,” says Sander Domaszewicz, principal with Mercer Health & Benefits.

Prior to joining Allegiant, Trujillo worked as the HR operations manager for Bechtel SAIC Company, LLC., the largest construction and engineering company in the United States that also ranks as the fifth-largest privately owned company in the nation.

Bechtel, which helped build the Hoover Dam, employs 52,700 workers on projects in nearly 40 countries, which made sharing benefit information with a global employee population a daunting task. Trujillo’s challenge became even more difficult with a small HR staff.

“I worked with Charity at Bechtel SAIC,” says Steven Gauthier, former QA specialist at Bechtel. “She was a proven, professional and dedicated employee. Most importantly, Charity was the picture of calm, professional competence in some very difficult circumstances at a unique and challenging project. Charity helped guide her department through painful staff reductions while maintaining and displaying a rare empathy for her fellow employees while providing key leadership through many challenges. Simply, Charity is the personification of the skills needed in today’s challenging work environments.”

Trujillo Helps Travel Company Embrace Wellness, Healthy Behavior


Charity Trujillo, Manager of Benefits & CompensationCompany: Allegiant Travel CompanyWebsite: www.alegiantair.comNo. of Employees: 1,300Nature of Business: A leisure travel company focused on providing travel services

and products to residents of small, underserved cities in the United States.Key Executives: Maurice J. Gallagher, Jr., CEO, Chairman; Andrew C. Levy,

President; D. Scott Sheldon, CFO, Senior Vice PresidentKey Solution Providers: Mercer Health & Benefits

Charity helped guide her department

through painful staff reductions

while maintaining and displaying a

rare empathy for her fellow employees

while providing key leadership

through many challenges.


FINANCIAL WELLNESS AWARD

In 2011, Dana Hammonds faced a very difficult, highly unique situation. Some 2,200 people—mostly in their early 20s and already massively wealthy—were about to lose their jobs. And as director of player affairs & development for the NFL Players Association (NFLPA), Hammonds was

tasked with preparing them for unemployment. As the Green Bay Packers’ Super Bowl celebrations were finally dying

down, NFL owners and players had still not settled a number of labor disputes that had been lingering for years. The collective bargaining agreement would end in a month, and the fact thousands of athletes would be out of work was becoming a very real possibility. As the problem headed to the U.S. federal court system and pay was halted, Hammonds was still hard at work applying a series of innovative financial wellness programs that—with great foresight—she had begun preparing years earlier.

Hammonds’ employee population is quite the unique group when compared with other organizations. Most of the athletes are young and have already acquired significant wealth in a very short period of time. The average NFL career is a scant three years, and due to the rigorous nature of the sport, serious, career-ending injury can occur at any time on the field. Additionally, many players feel pressure from the media, the public, family and peers to live an extravagant lifestyle. Needless to say, instituting any sort of financial wellness program—and getting the players to listen—was going to be an uphill battle.

However, Hammonds had an impressive team ready to help her fight the battle. Her partnership with Financial Finesse, the nation’s leading provider of unbiased financial education programs, was crucial to her success. The company customized a financial education program for the NFLPA and offered players a multi-platform online tool to gauge their “lock-out preparedness” and plan accordingly. Yet, despite an innovative set of tools and programs, initial response was slow. Two years out, players didn’t feel the immediacy of the lockout.

Hammonds’ efforts were, if anything, defined by her persistence. Through her meetings with players and co-workers, she began to institute a veritable culture of financial wellness. Locker room discussions between

players began to increase. In addition to the online programs, which began to pick up steam and attract the players’ attention, Hammonds and Financial Finesse revealed a comprehensive program of financial wellness, including: workshops for players and their wives, bi-weekly e-blasts, podcasts and videos featuring players, and a contest for the players of what do to with $54,896, the amount of money that caused the labor controversy.

In addition to the potential loss in salary, Hammonds also was tasked with preparing players and their families for a loss of benefits, including health care.

“The communications strategy was also utilized to help players prepare for the loss of health insurance,” Hammonds explains. “We conducted webinars and podcasts on the various strategies they could use to ensure they were covered by insurance in the event of a lockout.”

Players and their wives became adamant supporters of the financial wellness programs, and the topic of health care became one of the most popular topics.

Overall, the results of Hammonds’ efforts were groundbreaking. More than 1,000 players—about half of the NFL—participated in the award-winning program. Based on the results of a lockout preparedness assessment, 48 percent of players saved at least 20 percent of their annual earnings in preparation for a potential lockout in 2011. To further show the truly impressive success of the program, for most players who participated, their savings were sufficient to cover basic living expenses for the duration of a lockout.

Hammonds recalls the success of the program was built on the foundation of a strong, team effort. In addition to her key partnership with Financial Finesse, she really credits Team NFLPA with the program’s success.

“While it was my job to implement and manage this initiative together,” she says, “the entire organization had a hand in making it a success.”

From key executives to co-workers to the players themselves, Hammonds built and maintained a culture of financial wellness in an industry not exactly known for it. Her innovative, comprehensive communication plan sets the bar for future companies—regardless of industry—looking to augment a wellness program with a financial aspect.

Dana Hammonds, Director, Player Affairs & Development

Company: NFL Players AssociationHeadquarters: Washington, D.C.Website: www.nflplayers.com Founded: 1956No. of Employees: Approx. 2,200Nature of Business: Professional football

labor organizationKey Executives: Domonique Foxworth,

President; DeMaurice Smith, Executive Director

Key Solutions Providers: Financial Finesse

Fourth and Long: How Hammonds Coached the NFL Out of a Dire Situation and Into Financial Wellness


From key executives to co-workers to the

players themselves, Hammonds built and

maintained a culture of financial wellness

in an industry not exactly known for it. Her

innovative, comprehensive communication

plan sets the bar for future companies—

regardless of industry—looking to augment a

wellness program with a financial aspect.


FINANCIAL WELLNESS AWARD

Wellness has been a very hot topic in human resources and benefit management for years. According to a survey published earlier this year by the International Foundation of

Employee Benefits Plans, seven in 10 employers offer a workplace wellness program.

Needless to say, many employers could do much better to make their wellness program more efficient and effective. Wellness has become somewhat of a buzzword. After all, it makes perfect sense: lower the health risks by creating healthier employees and that lowers the company’s health spend.

Mental health—including depression, anxiety and stress—also has slowly made its way into the wellness programs of several innovative employers. These employers understand these medical conditions effect absenteeism and must be addressed in order to have a healthy employee population.

But what about financial stress?

In 2007, while monitoring calls to the 401(k) Retirement Plan Call Center, Carol Klusek, Aetna’s head of retirement & financial benefits, and her team started noticing a trend. It seemed more people were calling in to make withdrawals. There also seemed to be a sense of urgency in the calls.

“What was unusual,” Klusek remembers, “was that employees seemed to have more serious concerns about their financial situations.”

Klusek knew financial stress could cause reduced work productivity and seriously impact a person’s overall physical health. At that time, her peers at Aetna were developing a physical wellness program.

“The financial component was a natural fit to complement our wellness benefits at Aetna,” Klusek says. And now, it is one part of Aetna’s comprehensive, three-pronged wellness approach: Physical, Financial and Emotional.”

Aetna teamed with financial wellness expert, Financial Finesse, and the program was off, delivering a multi-channel approach, hoping to reach employees in whatever manner they feel comfortable. There are interactive webcasts, videos, workshops, one-on-one financial planning sessions, an online financial wellness assessment center and personalized retirement counseling to help employees achieve financial wellness.

Klusek’s instincts were correct about the need for the program. The

employee population immediately took to the new financial wellness benefit, and the reputation of the materials available began to spread by word-of-mouth around the company’s offices. An impressive 99 percent of employees, who participated in the services, say they are better prepared to make a financial decision, and 99 percent say they would recommend the program to a co-worker. The same percentage considered the financial wellness program an important employee benefit.

The program was so robust along all mediums that nearly 90 percent of Aetna employees have used some aspect of the financial education at some point. Through November 2012, 269 workshops have been conducted, reaching 6,018 employees; 1,046 Personal one-on-one consultations; 7,548 financial assessment tool users; and 32,332 hits on financial videos. The high amount of users also resulted in significantly higher 401(k) deferral rates than those using the program sporadically or not at all. The average percentage increase nearly doubled when users interacted with Aetna’s program five or more times.

The variety of communications available for employees to receive financial information has been one of the most important and necessary aspects of the program. People learn in different ways, and when dealing with a potentially sensitive subject, like personal finance, discretion is very essential. Use of the programs is quite varied and based on the need and personality of the employee. But online tools, due to the privacy of the medium, are by far the most popular.

“Almost all of our employees watch our online videos and ‘quick tips’ and use at least one of our online tools,” Klusek explains.

Wellness programs have proven time and time again to provide companies with a positive return on investment. A survey published this year by International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans (IFEBP) shows savings of $3 or more for every dollar spent for employers. Some of the more efficiently run wellness programs result in higher savings.

Wellness is definitely part of the future of health and benefits, and companies that are not using some sort of wellness program are being left behind. With their total, comprehensive approach to wellness, Klusek and her peers at Aetna have set the bar even higher. This approach may very well shape future wellness programs. Other employers: take note.

Aetna’s Three-Pronged Approach to WellnessBY JONATHAN FIELD » MANAGING EDITOR » THE INSTITUTE FOR HEALTHCARE CONSUMERISM

Carol Klusek, Head of Retirement & Financial BenefitsCompany: AetnaHeadquarters: Hartford, Conn.Website: www.aetna.com Founded: 1853No. of Employees: 33,000+Nature of Business: Managed health care Key Executives: Mark T. Bertolini, Chairman, CEO &

President; William J. Casazza, Senior Vice President; Jeff D. Emerson, Senior Vice President

Key Solutions Providers: Financial Finesse, Aon Hewitt, ING

“The financial component was a

natural fit to complement our

wellness benefits at Aetna. And now,

it is one part of Aetna’s comprehensive,

three-pronged wellness approach:

Physical, Financial and Emotional.”


PUBLIC POLICY LEADERSHIP AWARD

Since the inception of the health care law in March of 2010, Democrats and Republicans have been launching salvos across the aisle of Congress in either support or in an attempt to undermine the implementation of The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.

The Supreme Court declared the law constitutional, much to the chagrin of Republicans, and the Democrats won again in November when President Obama was re-elected. It assured “ObamaCare” would be implemented as planned.

While the two parties bicker over the law, both agree perhaps one of the wisest men in bringing common sense solutions to the health care industry is Dr. John C. Goodman, president and CEO of the National Center for Policy Analysis. He is widely known as the “father of health savings accounts,” and Modern Healthcare named him as one of four people who have most influenced the modern health care system.

“The Affordable Care Act contains no cost control,” Dr. Goodman says. “The ACA mandates that individuals have health insurance—the price of which is growing at twice the rate of their incomes. Large employers are required to provide employee health benefits or pay a fine if they do not. As insurance premiums rises, employers and individuals on their own will look for ways to reduce costs. Increased cost sharing is a trend that’s been going on for some time. High-deductible plans are increasingly common. I expect this to continue well into the future. People with high-deductible plans need a way to save for their day-to-day medical needs. A health savings account (HSA) or health reimbursement account (HRA) is an ideal way to do this.”

Dr. Goodman has drawn criticism and admiration from both sides of the aisle for his critique of the health care law.

He is a frequent editorial writer for The Wall Street Journal, the Health Affairs blog, and Townhall.com., and author of the new book, Priceless: Curing the Healthcare Crisis.

The new book has drawn both praise and criticism from Republicans and Democrats.

“John Goodman has long been the clearest and most insightful health care thinker we have,” says Indiana Republican Governor Mitch Daniels. “Now that our perverse, accidental ‘insurance’ system has reached its inevitable crisis, it’s time we acted on his common sense, fact-based wisdom in Priceless.”

Dr. Goodman freely shares his opinions and innovative thinking with regular appearances on the FOX News Channel, CNN, FOX Business Network and CNBC, and his health policy blog, featured at The Institute for HealthCare Consumerism (www.theihcc.com), is one of the most popular health policy blogs.

Dr. Goodman, the lead expert in the NCPA’s grassroots public policy campaign, “Free Our Health Care Now,” an unsurpassed national education effort to communicate patient-centered alternatives to a government-run health care system that resulted in the largest online petition ever delivered to Capitol Hill, has a major concern with the medical loss ration regulations and what it may do to HSAs. The medical loss ratios standards require that insurance companies spend at minimum percentage of premium dollars collected on medical claims. The minimum loss ratio for policies sold to individuals and small employers is 80 percent.! The minimum loss ratio for policies sold to large employers (greater than 50 employees) is 85 percent.

Companies that do not meet or exceed the loss ratios must pay rebates to consumers who purchased their policies.

“The Affordable Care Act does not ban HSAs, but many of us fear that the medical loss ratio regulations limiting the amount of administrative spending will affect high-deductible plans disproportionately,” Dr. Goodman says. “The Administration could easily let HSAs wither on the vine.”

Dr. Goodman still believes a consumer-directed health plan is the best method to curbing rising health care costs, and employers should look into implementing a CDHP their health and benefits strategy as opposed to looking for the exchanges for answers.

“The first thing I’d do is give my workers the appropriate incentives by offering them high-deductible plans with an HSA; however, what I’m afraid many firms will do is increase their proportion of part-time workers who won’t qualify for health coverage,” Dr. Goodman says. “I expect to see more firms fragment into low- and high-wage firms. Employers of below-average-wage-workers will find it advantageous to disband the employee health plan, pay the fine and direct workers to the health insurance exchange.! Employers of above-average-wage-workers will find it advantageous to provide health insurance directly. Also, high-wage firms will contract out low-wage tasks to smaller firms that aren’t required to provide health coverage.”

In his health policy blog, Goodman says federal exchanges have a double whammy against them. States, which resist exchanges, need not fear that the federal government will step in and operate one for them.

At press time, 13 states had passed pro-exchange legislation, leaving the rest of the states at the mercy of the federal government. However; as Dr. Goodman points out, there are two clauses in The PPACA that prevents the federal government from establishing an exchange at the state level.

The first clause pointed out by Dr. Goodman is federal exchanges will not be able to funnel the gusher of refundable tax credits to individuals who enroll in them. The gist of the argument is the law only allows state-established exchanges to funnel the tax credits. If a state fails to establish an exchange, then the federal government will do so for them.

“Costs will continue to grow,” Dr. Goodman says. “Obama didn’t create this problem; it’s been going on for 40 years. I think you have to deal with the problems.”

Dr. John Goodman, President and CEO

Company: National Center for Policy Analysis (NCPA)

Headquarters: DallasWebsite: www.ncpa.orgFounded: 1983Nature of Business: The National

Center for Policy Analysis (NCPA) is a nonprofit, nonpartisan public policy research organization. Its goal is to develop and promote private, free-market alternatives to government regulation and control, solving problems by relying on the strength of the competitive, entrepreneurial private sector.

Key Executives: Barry Asmus, Ph.D., Senior Economist; Former Governor (R-Del) Pete du Pont; Bob McTeer, Ph.D., Distinguished Fellow.

Dr. Goodman’s Common Sense Approach to Health CareBY TODD CALLAHAN » EDITORIAL DIRECTOR » THE INSTITUTE FOR HEALTHCARE CONSUMERISM


MOST INNOVATIVE PARTNER/CONSULTANT AWARD

When David Blanchard joined Digital Benefit Advisors, he saw a great opportunity to do something different to meet his client’s needs.

As a seasoned veteran in the broker world, Blanchard uses his knowledge to help his clients, their employees and their families to develop effective benefits solutions, especially with the rise of health care consumerism and the growing importance of integrated voluntary benefits.

Blanchard places a high value on the analysis and economics of health care cost and consumption. He prides himself in being extremely responsive and a trusted partner and advocate in a complex industry. Better decision-making and improved outcomes for both the employer and employee are the natural result of these relationships.

Blanchard showcased the skills that make him an innovative broker while working with the City of Danville, Va., on redesigning its health and benefit strategy for the more than 1,200 city employees.

“One of the biggest challenges was finding a way to improve the benefits package, while actually reducing budget costs,” says Blanchard, principal at Digital Benefit Advisors in Glen Allen, Va.!“The key was integrating a suite of voluntary benefits into the plan offerings.!This new approach would improve the options for service and protection to the employees—and since the voluntary products would be paid for by the employees themselves, the city’s budget would not increase.”

However, adding a suite of voluntary benefits was not going to be the only strategy Blanchard would use to get the former capital city of the Confederacy back on track economically.

The city is in an area of the state that had been hard hit by the economic downturn and the unemployment rate was high.!The city is one of the area’s largest employers, and it had struggled to maintain a competitive benefits package with shrinking city revenue and rising health care costs.

The city’s benefits package had evolved over time to a single medical plan design with few ancillary opportunities, and employee feedback indicated that improved plan choice, alternative price points and additional product options were key.!

Blanchard began by responding to a request for proposal from Danville. He highlighted the capabilities of Digital Benefit Advisors, a division of Digital Insurance, and pointed out the analytical approach to evaluating existing plan designs and carrier contracts.

After several meetings, Blanchard was asked to help the city manage and implement its benefit plan.

Using the analytics of Digital Benefit Advisors, Blanchard, over the next few weeks, helped the city evaluate its existing plans and made some recommendations that were adopted by the city.

Digital Benefit Advisors was hired with the hope that it could help improve the city’s benefits package and employee engagement, while stabilizing or reducing the overall benefits budget. Blanchard believed the best way to

accomplish this was to introduce a consumer-directed health care plan.“Health care consumerism is a term that has been in my lexicon for quite a

while,” Blanchard recalls.!“The goal of improving transparency and engagement in the health care purchasing world is key to our work.!I actively consult with my clients to improve employee benefits education and how they seek care.”

The introduction of a high-deductible health plans and associated health savings accounts are key vehicles to this goal, and Blanchard felt this concept would be ideal for Danville’s employee population.

Moving forward, Danville added an HDHP paired with its existing traditional medical option through Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield.

The initial reaction by employees was typical: Why in the world would I buy a $3,000 medical option when I have an option to buy a $500 plan?

The solution to this reaction was realized through sound education, teaching employees to be active consumers of care, showing them how to shop for imaging services, prescription drugs and even surgeries using any and all available informational tools. Like all of Digital Benefit Advisors’ clients, they know their renewals are closely tied to their utilization patterns, and by being good stewards of their health care dollar, renewals will be more favorable, as will their out-of-pocket spending.!

“We worked hard, in collaboration with the team at the city, to unveil the new benefits package to the population with multiple group educational meetings and then followed up on the campaign with all enrollment managed through individual face-to-face meetings using enrollment counselors,” Blanchard recalls.!“It was during these group and individual meetings that the education really paid off.!We were able to clearly illustrate the per-pay savings one would achieve by transitioning to the HDHP option, as well as the contribution the city was going to provide in each HSA bank account on behalf of the employees.”

The savings outweighed the possible exposure for a large number of the employees, and while Blanchard hoped for a modest enrollment of approximately 5 percent into the HDHP plan option in the inaugural year, the plan achieved an 8 percent enrollment.!

Blanchard also added two dental plans through Delta Dental, a vision plan through Uni-Vision, a whole life plan through Transamerica and an accident plan also through Transamerica—and ultimately reduced the city’s budget by almost $1 million through other efficiencies.!

“The partnership with the City of Danville has been a very positive one, and one that I look forward to maintaining for many years to come,” Blanchard says.

Blanchard Helps Struggling City Become Better Health Care Consumers


David Blanchard, PrincipalCompany: Digital Benefit AdvisorsHeadquarters: AtlantaWebsite: www.digitalbenefitadvisors.comNature of Business: Digital Benefit Advisors Inc. provides employee benefits

solutions. The company offers strategic planning and cost management, customer advocate, integrated, quoting and analysis, and wellness solutions.

Key Executives: Tim O’Shea, Managing Principal; Bruce Goin, Managing Principal; Wally Dawson, Managing Partner.

Key Solution Providers: Delta Dental, Uni-Vision, Transamerica, Anthem.



In the chaotic and often turbulent world of the broker business, innovative and out-of-the-box thinking makes all the difference in the world between being a successful firm and closing the doors and looking for another career."In an industry with an unclear future, we can’t afford to not be the

most innovative consultants in the game," says Liz Frayer, employee benefit specialist with the Atlanta-based consulting firm Strategic Employee Benefit Services of Georgia (SEBSGA).

She couldn't be more correct. With monumental changes set to hit the health benefits industry over the next few years thanks to the passage of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA); the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to uphold the constitutionality of the law and the re-election of President Obama, now more than ever, it has become essential for companies to work with brokers and consultants, who are constantly innovating and reinventing themselves along with the changes in the marketplace.

At SEBSGA, Frayer and her team have "taken preventative measures to a whole new meaning,” according to one client. As true believers and practitioners of consumerism and wellness, SEBSGA aims to reduce health costs long before the claims hit. SEBSGA's team of benefit experts is well-versed in the latest consumer-directed health plans and wellness trends.

In SEBSGA’s search for what works best in the work place, the firm’s employees have been subject to several pilot programs to ensure the success of a project before bringing it to their clients. This is part of Frayer’s commitment to “the ultimate service experience.” She constantly has her team personally test new programs, so they have the first-hand experience when they have to explain it to a client. Education, especially when dealing

with a new, innovative plan that an employer may not be familiar with, is key.Similarly, Frayer is always looking for new ways to help reduce her

clients’ health care costs, and she has been successful in implementing many of these new techniques. In recent years, Frayer has begun implementing telemedicine into many of her plans, and her clients’ employees have begun to truly notice the benefits of the new programs.

“Many of our clients are seeing more praise and appreciation for what they are offering rather than what has historically been a source of criticism,” Frayer says.

Consulting clients to achieve a more sustainable health care policy is about more than just giving the client a plan, it's a process of educating the client and their employees to better understand the plan and ensure its success.

“When we see the shift that occurs when employees have their ‘aha’ moment is when we feel we have done our job” Frayer says.

Going forward with the PPACA, it is essential brokers understand the intricacies of the legislation and can relay this clearly to their clients. Health care innovators, like Frayer and her team, will be needed to help guide businesses through the bundles of new compliance burdens associated with the health care law.

Although the!PPACA does have draw backs in the sense of compliance regulations, Frayer believes it also offers benefits with its “emphasis on wellness and how it relates to employee contribution.”

SEBSGA’s focus on consumerism and employee wellness will help companies that are looking to keep costs down and offer competitive benefits on the new health care stage created by the PPACA.

For Frayer, health reform is just another welcome challenge.“More than anything,” she says, "health reform has brought us a

renewed passion to make sure our clients are well-represented in the rapidly changing landscape."

It is this drive and determination to always stay ahead of the curve that has taken Frayer and her team to the top of their field. Their diligent work has garnered tremendous commitment from their clients.

Liz Frayer, Employee Benefit Specialist

Company: Strategic Employee Benefit Services of Georgia, Inc.

Headquarters: AtlantaWebsite: www.sebsga.comFounded: 1984No. of Employees: 15Nature of Business: Employee

Benefits Consulting Key Solutions Providers: Aetna,

Cigna, Flex Plan, Delta Dental, Kaiser Permanente

Staying Ahead of the Curve: Frayer, Broker Team Welcome Challenges of New Health Care Arena

BY KELVIN HOSKEN & JONATHAN FIELD » THE INSTITUTE FOR HEALTHCARE CONSUMERISM

Consulting clients to achieve a more

sustainable health care policy is about

more than just giving the client a plan, it’s

a process of educating the client and their

employees to better understand the plan

and ensure its success.

“When we see the shift that occurs when

employees have their ‘aha’ moment is

when we feel we have done our job”

Frayer says.



As organizations face skyrocketing health expenditures, employers have scrambled to find ways to control costs. A lifesaver has been workplace health centers as a means to cut costs while controlling and preventing

chronic conditions. On-site health and wellness centers make visiting the doc-

tor more convenient for employees who typically neglect basic care or delay treatment. Health centers are full-service clinics servicing qualified members covered under an employer health plan, which could include employees, dependents and retirees.

Members pay no copay, which keeps utilization of the health and wellness centers high. In addition to primary care, the clinic services typically include free generic drugs, x-rays, screenings, disease management and wellness services for plan members visiting the health and wellness center.

“We’re essentially lowering health care costs by enhancing employee benefits and offering on-site health and wellness centers for employees,” says Ray Tomlinson, president of Crowne Consulting Group, which collaborates with Tennessee-based CareHere LLC to operate more than 25 on-site health centers throughout Florida.

CareHere is a national corporation operating more than 100 health centers in 23 states. Tomlinson and Crowne Consulting Group provide executive over-sight and direction for CareHere’s Florida operations from the initial presentation stage through implementation and ongoing operations. Tomlinson works with medical teams in providing counsel, recommendations and reporting metrics for public and private employer-sponsored medical clinics.

Outside of the streamlined operations and the cost-containing solutions—Crowne and CareHere’s on-site health care model has actually gotten people to better manage their health. Their innovative solutions are rooted in providing an effective means to get people to the doctor, to manage their chronic conditions, and to schedule their wellness visits easily around their busy work schedules.

In addition to operating during hours convenient for employees, the patient-centric medical services allow for 20 minutes with clinic physicians as opposed to the average seven minutes. Crowne and CareHere also ensure employee engagement produces an ROI for services.

As third-party operators, they ensure employee medical services remain confidential and HIPAA compliant. Sensitive employee information is kept separate and away from employers’ records. In addition to maintaining patient information according to HIPAA laws, they often assist with administering the employers’ workers’ compensation matters and drug testing.

“Our mission is to bring innovative solutions that meet the fiscal respon-sibility of employers and maximizes investments in human capital,” Tomlinson says.

Tomlinson brings more than 25 years research and developmental experience from the management consulting, health care insurance, human resource settings and nearly 12 years of experience as an investigator for governmental agencies. This experience helps Crowne Consulting Group provide a range of solutions beyond health and wellness centers, including consumer-driven plans, health reimbursement arrangements, self-funded plans, risk management and human resources consulting.

Crowne Consulting Group Inc. began by specializing in human resources and insurance consulting. Crowne’s offerings, however, quickly expanded to

serve an array of clients as an employee benefits consulting firm, providing employer solutions and personal lines of insurance.

Crowne’s team started investigating the operation of worksite centers in 2004, because they noticed the trend of employers in other states considering worksite clinics. It was another two and a half years before they landed the first client. They spent two years researching clinic operators before launching a partnership with CareHere.

Crowne’s recent achievements have been in serving Florida’s public sector employers such as school boards, city and county government, as well as private organizations. Florida newspaper archives are riddled with reports on Crowne’s client successes, and the firm has managed to exceed a 50 percent growth rate every year since 2007.

This trend throughout Florida emerged as boards began seeing that employee health centers in neighboring governments had produced huge success rates in cost savings. To name just a few clients, the City of Ocoee, City of Ocala, City of Sanford, Lake Schools, St. Johns Schools, and Charlotte County are benefiting from on-site medical care for employees. Some client results have included:

within one year of launching on-site care.

during a four-year span.

health costs nearly 5 percent – saving more than $2 million in one year.

“Crowne Consulting Group and CareHere have been outstanding in setting up and operating our health centers,” says Mary Tillman, director of employee Benefits for Pasco County Schools, which opened its health care centers in early 2011 to enhance health care for its more than 8,000 employees. “They provided orientations for our employees, and they even offered a prize drawing incentive to encourage utilization.”

Despite being able to access care through their current health plan, nearly half of Pasco County School’s employee population visited the worksite centers within the first year of opening, totaling more than 26,000 medical visits and benefiting from programs such as nutrition and smoking cessation.

“With chronic disease accounting for the majority of all health spending, these medical centers can identify risks early, which helps employees and employers avoid serious costs down the road,” Tomlinson says.

Easier access to preventive care has ensured that risks could be uncovered before becoming high-dollar medical claims. In turn, on-site health care has been a win-win for employers and employees.

Working On-site to Enhance Employee CareBY CHANDRA PRICE » THE INSTITUTE FOR HEALTHCARE CONSUMERISM

Ray Tomlinson, PresidentCompany: Crowne Consulting GroupHeadquarters: Ocoee, Fla.Website: www.crowneinc.com Number of Employees: 15 at Ocoee Offices; 122 CareHere Medical

and Administrative Nature of Business: Onsite Employee Health & Wellness Centers and

Benefits ConsultingKey Executives: Ray Tomlinson, President : Brian Branham, CFO;

John Watson, Director of Strategic Development


MOST INNOVATIVE BROKER AWARD

Johnny Angelone often refers to Benefit Commerce Group, the Scottsdale, Ariz.-based benefits consulting firm, as a superagency. It’s not so much gloating as a presentation of fact

and a result of a life-long commitment to the industry. Before Benefit Commerce Group, Angelone had

owned and operated a full-service employee benefits consulting agency, Angelone & Associates, for more than 20 years.

However, in 2006, he began bringing together some of his best competitors in the marketplace and other industry experts to develop Benefit Commerce Group. The results were impressive. The intellectual capital this roundtable of industry experts possessed allowed them to center on the client and focus on both short-term and long-term objectives. They had both the experience and innovative mindset to offer employers “the big picture.”

Going back 25 years, Angelone was an early adopter of and crusader for technology and how to integrate technology into organizations to eliminate redundancy, increase efficiency and, most importantly, improve the employee experience while streamlining operations for employers/HR departments.

He sees technology as a vital part of implementing and administering an effective program and making it as efficient as possible. This is an important reason why most of Angelone’s clients have been with him for 10 to 20 years.

“By bringing technology into the mix,” one client said, “he shows clients that he is more than just a benefits vendor; he is a consulting partner with clients, helping them integrate and educate all levels within the employer organization.”

Going above and beyond is the norm and that clients experience huge savings on administrative costs is another reason clients are singing the praises of Angelone and his peers.

“Over the years we have created a positive, productive experience for clients beyond just benefits and vendor negotiation and selection,”

Angelone says. “In addition, we are able to cut by 70 percent the annual implementation and administrative cost to run a benefit program.”

Benefit Commerce serves more than 300 employer group clients, and average first-year savings for new clients during the past three years have exceeded $1,700 per employee. Savings are achieved through strategic planning and consumer-driven programs, not from raising deductibles or lowering benefits. Angelone’s success stories have left a trail of employers and HR departments that save money on employee benefits. They are more efficient, with fewer redundancies and are able to focus more staff time for other critical HR functions.

Essential to Angelone’s success is his approach to benefits and his clients. He takes a holistic approach as he helps clients develop strategies and integrate platforms that will serve them well, not just for the present, but the foreseeable future. Rather than focusing on the traditional view of insurance as a “commodity,” Angelone focuses on the underlying issues impacting health care costs: consumers’ behavior and their health and well-being. He designs strategies that focus on these issues, and he educates employers and employees on how to address them.

“Our goals early on were to reduce budgets, eliminate redundancy, increase efficiency and, most importantly, improve the employee experience,” says Angelone, who aims for his firm to be more than the traditional brokerage firm. “To accomplish this, we needed to step above the typical broker and get involved in the work flow by streamlining the entire HR process and employee life-cycle with intuitive and easy-to-use technology and information. This requires a completely different relationship than the typical benefit broker-client relationship of the past.”

Angelone enthusiastically states, “We are the new school broker!” Despite the nearly 100 years of collective experience between Angelone

and partners Scott Wood, Chris Hogan and David Spellicy, they really are. Not only do they get it; they are leading the way. Not only have they fully embraced consumerism and technology, they have re-wired the traditional broker-client relationship and are leading the industry toward lower health costs and healthier employees.

Johnny Angelone, PrincipalCompany: Benefit Commerce GroupHeadquarters: Scottsdale, Ariz.Website: www.benefitcommerce.comFounded: 2006No. of Employees: 25Nature of Business: Benefits ConsultingKey Executives: Scott Wood, Principal; Chris Hogan, President;

David Spellicy, Vice President, Senior Benefits ConsultantKey Solution Providers: Cigna

Contemporary Health Care WorldBY JONATHAN FIELD » MANAGING EDITOR » THE INSTITUTE FOR HEALTHCARE CONSUMERISM

“Our goals early on were to reduce

budgets, eliminate redundancy, increase

efficiency and, most importantly, improve

the employee experience. To accomplish

this, we needed to step above the typical

broker and get involved in the work flow

by streamlining the entire HR process and

employee life-cycle with intuitive and easy-

to-use technology and information.”



With rising health care costs, the Supreme Court decision this summer over The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) and the re-election of President Obama, employers are scrambling to find answers and make sure their employee

health plans are compliant with the health care law.In addition to helping curb health care costs, most employers are

expecting more from their employees in terms of trying to stay healthy, thus limiting future health insurance costs and increases.!Many now embrace the concept of a culture of wellness as the best tool in this effort. !

Chris Clark, the vice president of employer services with Atlanta-based The McCart Group, has successfully helped his clients save money by implementing wellness plans that create a healthier and happier workforce.

With a plan to increase efficiency and introduce wellness, Clark was able to win the business for Lowndes County government in south Georgia.

“It is always difficult to convince an employer to ‘write a new check,’ especially in a bad economy,” Clark says. “Most employers are operating with very tight budgets, but the public sector has also been hit with an increased demand for services. I try to create some savings elsewhere in a client’s benefits program first and get them to utilize a portion of those savings to fund wellness. I then try and partner with existing local resources to maximize the value of the client’s wellness funds. I also look to utilize a third-party wellness program manager who shares this philosophy.”

Lowndes County, famous for producing perennial high school powerhouse football teams at Lowndes High and rival Valdosta High School, has about 500 employees in its self-funded medical program. The goal was to find a way to cut costs and be able to fund a wellness program.

Clark and his creative team at The McCart Group reviewed the county’s medical, pharmacy and stop loss vendors, crunched the numbers and made some changes to increase the efficiency. The changes resulted in an estimated $300,000 in savings for 2012 without reducing benefits.

The county agreed to utilize a third of the savings to fund a wellness program, and Clark hired Jack Curtis, president of Corporate Health Partners, to be the wellness program manager.

The community had several local resources, such as South Georgia Medical Center, Valdosta State University, Wiregrass Georgia Technical College, the local YMCA and a local pharmacy that agreed to help in the wellness program. Corporate Health Partners also was able to hire local health coaches.

The program connects with the health promotion capabilities from the local hospital and the YMCA in the county to provide a calendar of wellness events that are inexpensive.

While the community had the resources to create a wellness program, it needed the support of the county’s senior staff in order to get the program off the ground and be successful.

“The county commissioners reviewed the proposed program carefully and asked several questions before giving formal approval,” Clark says. “The local partnerships and the knowledge that most of the dollars would remain in the community were key. “

Paige Dukes, County Clerk, spearheaded the effort internally. The County Manager, Joe Pritchard, and Suzanne Pittman in Human Resources, were very involved. Mr. Pritchard had key expectations that we worked into the program.

Lowndes County is one of more than 100 clients The McCart Group services, and many have wellness programs in various stages of development.

“We provide wellness assistance to our clients based on their stage of readiness, culture, resources and several other factors,” says Clark, a former professor at Georgia State University in the Risk Management and Insurance Department, who taught both undergrad and graduate courses in employee benefits. “We are also working with several clients on on-site clinic strategies, seeing more serious commitment from clients around outcomes-based wellness programs and having more interest in price and quality transparency tools.”

In addition to having clients talking about decision-support tools, consumer-directed health plans and more traditional health management strategies, Clark finds himself addressing clients’ desires to move toward self-funding and defined contribution approaches.

“There is a renewed interest in self-funding and hybrid-funding options for employers traditionally considered too small for such approaches,” says Clark, who believes many employers with less than 400 employees should now consider self-funding. “With community rating on the horizon for insured plans, and the premium load expected to accompany that, employers willing to focus on health management for their employees have the potential for dramatic savings. We’re having less discussion around DC strategies, but we are seeing a renewed interest in association-based health benefit programs, such as the Georgia Health Plan Trust, a non-profit solution for members.”

Many employers have been hesitant to begin preparing for compliance issues under the health care reform law. Clark and his team have helped their clients to remain compliant with PPACA since the law’s creation.

“Many employers expected the presidential election to go differently,” Clark says. “We’ve had some new business success with a PPACA Audit project we developed that reviews historical compliance, go-forward compliance, cost impact and readiness of staff.”

The project gets employers, who were procrastinating, to get up to speed quickly and allows senior management to know their organization is prepared to be compliant with the heath care law.

Clark Develops Innovative Wellness Program for South Georgia Community


Chris Clark, Vice President of Employer ServicesCompany: The McCart GroupHeadquarters: AtlantaWebsite: www.mccart.comNo. of Employees: 100+Nature of Business: The McCart Group has grown to become

one of the most respected insurance and risk management-consulting firms in the southeast, serving local, regional and global companies in a wide variety of industry sectors.

Key Executives: Joe McCart, Chairman; Jeff McCart, President; Steve Needle, President of Employer Services

Key Solution Providers: Corporate Health Partners



To say Matt Kleymeyer took the unconventional road to becoming a broker would be an understatement.A graduate from Depauw (Ind.) University with a degree in communications, and a first-place winner of the 2009 Indianapolis Star

Travel Photo Contest in the “People” category, for a photo he took during his trip to China, Kleymeyer worked for two years in the university’s development office before entering the health care industry.

In Sept. 2006, Kleymeyer became the director of health care and business development for Lauth Property Group, a privately held company that is one of the nation’s largest health care real estate developers. Kleymeyer managed the business development efforts for the 10-state Midwestern Region. But he was looking for a new challenge, which he found through the help of some childhood friends.

Kleymeyer grew up with Alex Tolbert, founder of Bernard Health, and his brother Brian Tolbert. He had always been fascinated with what the Tolberts were doing in Nashville and in December 2009 Kleymeyer joined the team. He had the distinction of being the first employee and Market Leader for Bernard’s Indianapolis office. His main function is to guide the business development efforts and day-to-day management for the Indianapolis office of Bernard Health. He has been with Bernard for three years and has excelled at his position of Market Leader.

“The timing worked out well in that I was finishing up business school and looking for new opportunities at the same time that they were looking to expand the business nationally,” Kleymeyer says. “It made complete sense to join the team.”

After completing the Butler University night-MBA program in May 2010, Kleymeyer was able to spend all of his time and energy toward helping small- to medium-size employers help understand the best way to implement a health savings account (HSA) into a health benefit plan and to increase enrollment in an HSA-eligible plan design.

“I think that not having any past experience in the industry has been a ben-efit,” says Kleymeyer, who had dreams of being a sportscaster as a child. “The industry is quickly changing and the best strategies for employers and individuals to pursue when making health insurance purchasing decisions today is different than what it was years ago. Not having any preconceived notions for how things had been done in the past has allowed us to focus our time and energy on how things should be done today. As the industry evolves, Bernard Health plans to evolve with it. !We’ll continue to work hard at providing our clients with strategies that make the most sense for today’s environment, not yesterday’s.

Arguably Kleymeyer’s most successful campaign was getting the prestigious Indianapolis law firm, Bose McKinney & Evans to replace its traditional health plan with an HSA.

The firm introduced the HSA plan in 2010 with Kleymeyer’s assistance. The result was poor engagement rates, as only the firm partners enrolled in the new health plan. The following year the traditional plan was facing another 15 percent increase and the firm knew something had to be done because the status quo was not going to work financially.

“Over the past year, some employers were content to take a ‘wait and see’

approach to their benefit planning barring the outcome of the Supreme Court decision on ACA as well as the presidential election,” Kleymeyer says. “This uncertainty created a sense of paralysis in decision making.”

The firm recruited Kleymeyer to help strategize a way to get more employees of the firm to adopt the new HSA health plan.

The focus of Kleymeyer and Bernard Health is to spend 100 percent of their energy on the “front lines,” working directly with groups and individuals to best explain and support a new strategy utilizing HSAs.

“At Bernard Health, we take great pride in our ability to hire new producers and provide them with the tools, resources, and support to become successful - with success being measured by the number of business and individuals they are able to help save money and achieve peace of mind by transitioning to a consumer driven health plan strategy, like an HSA-based plan,” Kleymeyer says.!

The result with Bose McKinney & Evans was a 100 percent employee enrollment in the HSA option, as 120 associates and staff employees, who were initially hesitant to enroll, followed Kleymeyer’s advice and chose the HSA option.

A total of $362,000 was saved in premiums over the eight remaining months of 2012 and the firm was allowed to contribute a total of $201,000—$1,200 for individual and $2,400 for families in an HSA account. The bottom line was the firm saved $161,000 for a partial year of moving to full-replacement.

The $200,000 in HSA contributions is now a fixed cost for the firm, and the company is no longer subject to annual carrier increases. In the projected five-year

“Matt has single-handedly been able to earn the trust of over 20 employer groups,” said Brian Tolbert, owner of the Nashville-based Bernard Health. “He has helped these employer groups make the transition to HSA-eligible plan strategies. Furthermore, his expertise on plan design, cost structure, implementation and employee communication has resulted in an average employee enrollment above 80 percent in the HSA option.”

Matt Kleymeyer, Market LeadCompany: Bernard HealthHeadquarters: NashvilleWebsite: www.bernardhealth.comNumber of Employees: 16Nature of Business: Bernard Health spends

100 of its energy on the “front lines,” working directly with groups and individuals to best explain and support a new strategy utilizing HSAs. The company aims to help its clients by being the steady, reliable voice when it comes to planning how to pay for health care expenses.

Key Executives: Alex Tolbert, Founder; Matt Kleymeyer, Market Lead (Indianapolis)

Key Solutions Providers: Anthem BCBS, United, Advantage Health, Medical Mutual, Assurant, Humana, Guardian, Unum, Delta Dental, VSP, MetLife, Lincoln, Colonial

Kleymeyer has Eye for Photography, Saving Clients Money with HSAs


INDUSTRY INNOVATORS


Dental health planning is a valuable part of staying healthy, but it’s also a financial investment helping employers and individuals save money. Nicholas Kavouklis DMD, president and CEO of Argus Dental Plan (www.argusdental.com), emphasizes that anyone concerned about financial health should be ensuring employees have incentive for oral care.

“Prevention and early detection makes a major difference in financial and clinical outcomes,” said Dr. Kavouklis, who maintains a general practice in Tampa and is founder of two dental insurance plans that have serviced more than a million policyholders. “Beyond protecting oral health, our goals are to design innovative plans to mitigate risks, reduce sick-time, and control health care costs.”

A graduate of the University of Florida College of Dentistry, Dr. Kavouklis’ clinical expertise has positioned Argus Dental Plan to provide quality-based Prepaid Dental Plans, Dental Discount Plans, Dental PPO, as well as packages for individuals, families, employer groups, governmental agencies, associations, and large HMO Medicare/Medicaid recipients.

Offerings don’t stop there, however, the Argus team also blazed a new trail in dental plan options. In 2012, they announced the launch of the Dental Saving Account (DSA), a dollar-based plan design offering better freedom of choice for patients while helping dentists, employers, and patients manage health costs. The Florida Dental Association provided the seal of approval for Argus Dental Plan to bring DSAs to market in the summer of 2012, thus, adopting a brand new plan design to compete with traditional PPOs and bringing an opportunity for overall lower fees in dentistry.

“When the basics of dental coverage have been stagnant for decades, with obvious disadvantages, it was past time to create consumer-driven options,” said Dr. Kavouklis, who coined the phrase “Dental Saving Account.”

The DSA maximizes patient premium dollars by utilizing a Preferred Dentist Network. Benefits include maximum annual contributions, maximum fees for dental procedures, fund rollovers, and simple transparency.

In addition to innovations in plan designs, Argus Dental Plan became the first dental plan in the U.S. to receive accreditation from the AAAHC (Accreditation Association for Ambulatory Health Care), which affirms that Argus Dental Plan meets nationally recognized standards for quality of care, customer service, and business management.

Argus Dental Plan is licensed through the Florida Department of Insurance and has a network of thousands of providers conveniently located throughout Florida. Contact Argus Dental Plan at 813-445-4568 or [email protected] for more information.

Company: Argus Dental PlanHeadquarters: TampaWebsite: http://www.argusdental.com/Founded: 2007Nature of Business: Dental Benefits, Plans, Dental Saving Account, Dental

PPO, and HMOKey Executives: Nicholas Kavouklis DMD, President and CEO; Angel Cuervo,

VP of Sales

Med-Vision LLC’s vice president, Connie Gee, is using health data analytics to lead the way in wellness. Gee, whose primary functions at Med-Vision (www.med-vision.com) include analyzing health plan data and determining actionable solutions for employee wellness, incorporates the latest innovations into strategic wellness and disease management programs.

Gee holds a MBA from the University of Tampa and has over 20 years of experience in developing employee health promotions for major hospitals, corporations, school districts, and county governments.

As lead wellness strategist and health data analyst at Med-Vision, she orchestrates initiatives to help large employers achieve higher levels of performance. Her team’s efforts empower people to create and maintain a balanced lifestyle, which results in better health, improved job performance, increased energy levels, and a drive to succeed. For employers, healthy employees translate into greater workforce productivity, increased morale, lower turnover rates, and decreased absenteeism.

In 2012, Gee helped Med-Vision launch a proprietary healthcare data analysis tool, Med-View (www.Med-View.net), to help employers more effectively identify and mitigate health risks.

“You can’t change what you can’t measure,” said Gee. “That’s why the Med-Vision team worked with leading-edge developers to create a powerful new tool that magnifies health claims data so that our clients can effectively implement solutions to minimize costs.”

In one instance, Med-Vision’s experts identified an ineligible member

surgery costing $700,000, while another instance pointed to $250,000 in medication abuse. Other client examples of cutting costs include:

Beyond helping clients save millions of dollars, Gee traveled the nation in 2012 presenting wellness seminars and workshops, focusing on how to achieve higher levels of performance of a wellness mission by understanding the “big picture” including the economic and organizational logic important to decision makers.

A dynamic presenter and one of the first 90 certified Wellcoaches, Gee is in the business of helping others discover cutting-edge techniques for engaging employees and igniting their energy to improve health and productivity.

Company: Med-Vision LLCHeadquarters: TampaWebsite: http://www.med-vision.com/Founded: 2005Nature of Business: Health Plan Risk Management, Health Data Analytics,

and Wellness StrategiesKey Executives: Connie Gee, Vice President; Dan Ross, President


INDUSTRY INNOVATORS

“Is it just a cold or perhaps the flu? I don’t know, but I do know I can’t take time off from work to go see my doctor.”

That is a sample conversation employees are having. They want to consult a physician, but getting an appointment that doesn’t require taking time off work is nearly impossible to find.

Since the patient can’t come to the doctor, the innovative company, Teladoc, is conveniently bringing the primary care physician to the employee. The nation’s first and largest telehealth provider, Teladoc offers an innovative complement to non-emergency primary care by providing accessible, high-quality care at an affordable cost to more than 4 million members.

The company, founded in 2002 with a vision to tackle the three biggest issues in health care: access, cost and quality, connects members to a U.S. board certified physician located in the same state 24/7 via phone or secure online video.

The Teladoc physician treats a variety of routine, non-emergency conditions, such as colds, sinus problems, respiratory infections, allergies and flu symptoms.

A member can request a consultation and a doctor will call the patient back within an average of 22 minutes. The consultation costsn on average $38 and there is no time limit for the consultation. The consultation consists of a comprehensive review of the patient’s electronic health record, and with approval, Teladoc can send a record of the consultation to the patient’s primary care physician. The Teladoc physician also can write short-term prescriptions, if medically appropriate.

In addition to being convenient and cost-effective, Teladoc aids regions where there is shortage of physicians. Teladoc also works with health plans, employers, unions, associations and consumers to provide convenient, cost-effective care.

When working with an employer, Teladoc begins by providing a break-even analysis for redirection of visits based on the company’s specific data. Teladoc, which boasts a 97 percent satisfaction rate among patients, also follows up on a quarterly basis to determine the company’s actual ROI, based on redirection and productivity. Teladoc also analyzes the data and targets high utilizers in order to redirect them to more cost-effective services.

By delivering fast and convenient access to quality of care, without a patient having to leave the office, Teladoc improves employee productivity and reduces the use of more costly alternatives. This saves both the employer and the employee money.

Company: TeladocHeadquarters: Dallas and Greenwich, Conn.Website: www.Teladoc.com or www.TeladocConnect.comFounded: 2002Nature of Business: The nation’s first and largest provider of telehealth

servicesKey Executives: Jason Gorevic, CEO; Richard Boxer M.D., chief medical

officer

Anyone who has faced a health care choice knows how challenging and overwhelming the process can be. Yet, patients are increasingly expected to play an active role in decision-making and to repeatedly engage in the very thing that they find challenging. As the health care consumerism movement has grown even greater importance is placed on supporting patient’s private and shared health decisions as patient decisions not only impact their personal health and well-being but also impact costs for every player in health care – employers, health plans and providers.

WiserTogether is addressing the patients’ challenge in innovative ways. The company’s highly engaging, personalized and data driven decision support platform—Wiser Health—helps patients choose the right care at the right time. The company’s product provides transparency into treatment options for high cost health conditions. Patients are able to evaluate and choose treatments based on key decision criteria such as clinical evidence, treatment popularity & effectiveness, speed, side effects, personal preferences etc. Furthermore, Wiser Health enables patients to access cost transparency, provider quality or provider search tools after they have understood their best fit treatments or care options.

WiserTogether’s innovative approach consists of three elements:Clinical evidence for treatments presented visually using color codes that

helps an average consumer apply scientific proof in evaluating their optionsComparison of treatment effectiveness based on real world experiences of

40,000 patients and 10,000 doctors (as patients) Simple user interface that allows patients to apply their financial situation,

plan coverage and personal preferences in making educated decisionsUsing Wiser Health patients are able to achieve better health and out-

of-pocket cost outcomes through more effective utilization of the health care system, saving payers money in the process. WiserTogether sells its highly scalable shared decision support platform to employers, health plans and providers. Today, more than 1.5 million consumers across the US have access to Wiser Health.

In every launch at a client company, WiserTogether has beaten existing employee/member engagement records and adoption. Getting employees/members to take action is a difficult challenge, but the WiserTogether shared decision support platform gets patients to take action five times more often than traditional phone based support programs.

Company: WiserTogetherHeadquarters: Washington, D.C.Website: http://www.wisertogether.comFounded: 2008Nature of Business: Healthcare Decision Support.

The company’s award-winning products help consumers evaluate and choose the right care at the right time saving payers money.

Key Executives: Shub Debgupta, Founder & CEO; Praveen Mooganur, Co-founder & COO; Gregg Rosenberg, Chief Product Officer; Erik LaBianca, Chief Technology Officer

INDUSTRY INNOVATORS


!A leading independent investment advisor and consultant in the health savings account industry, Devenir has always been a true innovator when it comes to providing investment solutions for the consumer-driven health care market.

!That trend has continued, as Devenir has authored, what many experts have coined the HSA industry’s standard research report in 2012 that has taken data points on HSAs to the next level.

!The survey data was collected in July and consisted of the top 50 HSA providers in the health savings account market, with all data being collected for the June 30, 2012 period dating back to June 30, 2011.

!“As we continue to research the HSA marketplace, we are pleased with the credible and insightful data provided regarding HSA usage and adop-tion at an industry level,” says Eric Remjeske, president and co-founder of Devenir.

!The comprehensive report revealed HSAs are estimated to have grown to more than $14.1 billion in assets representing 7.1 million accounts.

Other key findings revealed, average account balances in the first half of 2012 experienced a 10 percent increase, growing to $1,996 from $1,807 at the end of 2011. The average rose to $2,176 when identified zero balance accounts were eliminated. The survey also showed across the industry, HSA account-holders retained 30 percent of their contributions so far in 2012, an increase from 24 percent a year ago.

HSA investment assets also reached an estimated $1.3 billion in June,

a 35 percent increase since the end of 2011 and a 51 percent increase from June 30, 2011.

“We continue to be very interested in understanding how HSAs are being funded and used, finding that both employers and employees are playing a significant role in contributing to HSAs to help save for future medical expenses,” said Jon Robb, lead research associate with Devenir, who authored the research report.

Devenir projects the HSA market will surpass $15 Billion when it releases the year-end 2012 results and may reach $25 billion in assets by the end of 2015, with HSA investment dollars growing rapidly as health savings account user’s balances become larger, representing almost 19 percent of all HSA assets by the end of 2015.

Company: DevenirHeadquarters: MinneapolisWebsite: www.devenir.comFounded: 2003Nature of Business: Devenir is a leading independent investment advisor and

consultant in the HSA industry.! As an early entrant into the HSA market and with its primary business focusing on investment solutions for the CDHC market, Devenir has developed a passion and expertise surrounding the HSA industry and the needs of HSA custodians.

Key Executives: Eric Remjeske, Co-founder, President; Lori Hansen, Senior Vice President, Corporate Services; Jon Robb, Investment & Research Associate

When American Institute for Preventive Medicine’s President and CEO Dr. Don Powell initially got involved in wellness, more than 35 years ago, the emphasis was on conducting group classes to help employees/members quit smoking, lose weight, manage stress and exercise more frequently.!

While those are still important aspects of a successful wellness programs, the American Institute for Preventive Medicine has shifted to empower consumers to make wiser health care decisions and live a healthier lifestyle, while helping organizations create a culture of health.

It has identified six key areas that should be included in a company’s total health management solution. It’s the CALMER™ approach: Communication, Assessment, Lifestyle Enhancement, Medical Self-Care, Education, and Reporting. !

Behavior change programs are now available in self-help, telephonic, and online formats, freeing people from the need to attend group classes in our “time deprived society.” Self-care guides, wise consumer products, health coaching, disease management programs, and nurse advice lines are widely used – all designed to help people improve their health and well-being.

Dr. Powell is a leading developer and provider of health and productivity management programs and self-care publications. He is internationally recognized for his ability to present health information in a format that is easily understood by employees. The message also energizes the employees and gets them engaged in participating in a wellness program.

The American Institute for Preventive Medicine develops and packages its products and services in novel ways to educate, motivate and change behavior.

Just as no two populations are the same, no two wellness programs should be the same either. This helps in the reduction of absenteeism, presenteeism and health care costs.

The Institute offers arguably the most extensive series of medical self-care guides of any publisher and Healthier at Home® has set the standard by which all self-care publications are judged. Its’ Health Risk Assessment (HRA), HealthyLife Newsletter, Online Wellness Challenges, Permafolds®, Posters and Quicktakes, HealthTrackers™, CareKits®, Be Well Cards®, and Action Steps to Wellness calendars are health education products for health fairs, employee giveaways, lunch and learns, direct mail campaigns, information holders, and incentives.

The Institute also has developed a complete, low cost, year-long program called Total Health™ for organizations wanting to implement a wellness program, but don’t know where to begin.

Company: American Institute for Preventive MedicineHeadquarters: Farmington Hills, Mich.Website: www.healthylife.comFounded: 1983Nature of Business: To promote positive health behaviors by developing and

distributing effective self-care and wellness programs, publications, and products.

Key Executives: Don Powell, Ph.D., President and CEO; Hope Lawless, Vice President


INDUSTRY INNOVATORS

In creating a wellness program, employers focus on their employees being active, either participating in a walking program, joining a gym or providing an on-site workout facility.

However some innovative companies are going a step further and focusing on what foods employees are putting into their body. Helping companies create a healthier lifestyle is Gourmet Everyday, an innovative company offering a personalized, convenient, high-quality, healthy, all natural and delicious solution for prepared meals.

Gourmet Everyday prepares and delivers healthy-eating meals on a national scale. The company has a team of nutritionists, physicians and award-winning chefs, who combine gourmet meals with scientifically tailored nutrition to support a nutritionally intelligent lifestyle. Gourmet Everyday delivers meals every Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday during the afternoon, and all meals are delivered the same day they are prepared.

Gourmet Everyday offers a variety of on-site and off-site programs to promote healthy choices and wellness for families, co-workers or friends. Additionally, the company offers a lunch-and-learn educational curriculum for local companies implementing wellness programs in the workplace. The program is in compliance with the American Heart Association’s for worksite wellness program. Gourmet Everyday also provides healthy snack baskets to help employees avoid the candy bars, chips and sodas in the vending machine.

“Companies could and should be using this as a way to reduce their health insurance costs,” says CEO Michelle Kobernick, who was a personal chef

prior to founding Gourmet Everyday. All ingredients in the prepared meals are fresh and do not include

processed flour or sugar, and the company provides several meal programs, including an a la carte option. The programs are available in 1,200, 1,500 and 2,500 average calories per day, and the meals are suitable for those with chronic diseases such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol, type-2 diabetes, obesity and heart disease.

Gourmet Everyday provides other features such as Healthy Meal programs, which caters to dieters. The program also collaborates with local gyms, wellness outlets, studios and personal trainers, who cater to delivering a healthy eating message.

Other featured programs are Prescription Meal program, which focus on the prevention and treatment of chronic diseases.

Company: Gourmet EverydayHeadquarters: DetroitWebsite: www.gourmeteverydaydelivery.comFounded: 2005Nature of Business: Gourmet Everyday focuses on using

hyper-local and organically grown ingredients to prepare and deliver the nutritionally balanced prescribed diet for people who are following a healthy eating lifestyle.

Key Executives: Michelle Kobernick, Founder and CEO

!For those looking to cut health care costs, many innovative employers are looking beyond the U.S. borders and are taking advantage of global health benefit options.!

With years of experience in administering medical travel programs, IndUShealth has emerged as an industry innovator to help drive patients on a global journey to access high-quality affordable care.!

Founded in 2005, IndUShealth pioneered successful employer-oriented medical travel programs, focusing on! providing patients the best medical outcome and overall experience.!

IndUShealth’s hospital network in Costa Rica and India emerges as a unique global health care option as medical tourism trend evolves to capture the interest of U.S. corporate decision makers. These medical facilities have been carefully selected based on their ability to work closely with IndUShealth to deliver high-quality care at state-of-the-art facilities with highly skilled doctors at the best possible rates.

A growing number of U.S. companies are now taking advantage of this global health care option, seeking quality medical care in other countries that offer top-notch physicians, services and facilities at a fraction of the cost. In fact, companies can expect to reduce hospital-related health care benefit expenses by 15 to 20 percent per year or more. By importing competition from state-of-the-art medical facilities, employer groups are reporting savings of $400,000 per 1,000 employees, coupled with excellent outcomes and a very high level of patient satisfaction.!

Employers also are beginning to benefit from their local providers taking

notice and initiating measures to help reduce costs and improve quality. Keesling’s premise is health care in the U.S. should no longer be a zero-sum game of cost-shifting and bending the utilization curve in a manner that only serves to worsen the overall health and productivity of the employee population by reducing access to an innovative health care system.

IndUShealth also provides consultative support to employers that are interested in estimating the potential cost savings that can be achieved when it’s program is offered to plan participants in an organization’s employee health benefit plan. IndUShealth’s online corporate savings calculator offers a rough estimate of annual cost savings realized based on a typical company’s demographic spread. The corporate savings calculator is based on actuarial statistics provided by a wide range of self-insured employers across the country and takes into account the typical range of covered procedures for which participants opt for IndUShealth’s Global Health Option.

Company: IndUShealthHeadquarters: Raleigh, N.C.Website:!www.indushealth.comFounded: 2005Nature of Business:!IndUShealth is a global health care benefit management

service that links American employers and individuals to affordable, high-quality medical care in!India and Costa Rica.

Key Executives:!Tom Keesling, Co-founder, President; Rajesh Rao, Co-founder, CEO; C. Franklin Church, M.D., Chief Medical Officer.!

INDUSTRY INNOVATORS


The Affordable Care Act (ACA) is not going away. With the Supreme Court decision and the re-election of President Obama implementation and enforcement of ACA regulations are leaving Human Resource team leaders and compliance managers struggling to get it all done.

One of the many stipulations already implemented by the ACA is the Summary of Benefits & Coverage (SBC) and Uniform Glossary. These materials are required to be available to participants enrolling in group health plans.

To help HR teams wade through the massive amounts of new requirements, Industry Innovator HighRoads is leveraging its proven technology platform to automate the creation, management, distribution and reporting of the new SBC, keeping organizations compliant with ACA and ERISA.

“HighRoads has briefed the Departments of Health and Human Services, Labor and Treasury on our automated benefits compliance solution,” said Michael Byers, CEO of HighRoads. “Organizations relying on traditional, manual methods to achieve compliance, will very likely fail to meet deadlines, and most importantly, fail to provide families with critical information they can use to make plan decisions.”

Byers noted HighRoads technology has already been used to create and distribute thousands of distinct SBCs for some of the nation’s largest employers and health plan providers.!

“These organizations are ahead of the game in terms of meeting com-pliance deadlines, controlling costs, and in providing plan participants with

accurate, up-to-date information they can use during the open enrollment period,” Byers said.

In addition to allowing HR management teams to focus attention on other aspects of benefit management and serving the employee population, HighRoads’ technology can update SBCs, track employee access to the document and track electronic notifications and print distribution to individuals.

According to Pew Research, 80 percent of adult internet users in the U.S. go online to look for medical information. HighRoads has developed a compliant SBC mobile app enabling individuals to view their SBCs on a Smartphone.

“Clearly, health care costs are going in the wrong direction. But, by using available technology such as online compliance portals and mobile communica-tion, insurance providers can take a significant step towards broader cost con-trols, participant empowerment, while assuring ACA compliance,” said Byers.

Company: HighRoadsHeadquarters: Woburn, Mass.Website: www.highroads.comFounded: 2000Nature of Business: HighRoads helps organizations spend less energy on

mundane HR tasks so they can get back to engaging and helping their plan participants. We do this with the industry’s only technology to automate the benefits management process, controlling HR costs and compliance.

Key Executives: Michael Byers, President, CEO; Lori Dustin, CMO; Cynthia Weidner, VP, Consulting

A key issue benefit managers face during open enrollment, and frankly during the rest of the year as well, is effectively communicating their benefits package to employees. In the same vein, managers must engage the employee population to participate in offerings such as wellness programs, retirement benefits and voluntary coverage.

Usually, the mountain of information an employee receives prior to enrollment or as a new hire reads about as well as those detailed instructions for installing electronic equipment. The end result is employee confusion, low participation rates and higher benefit costs for employers.

“Most people would rather drink gasoline than learn about insurance, at least the way it’s usually communicated,” The Jellyvision Lab, Inc. founder Harry Gottlieb once shared. Well, he is correct. Speaking at The Institute for HealthCare Consumerism FORUM West, Gottlieb also said in his How to Make Your Benefits Communication a lot more Engaging presentation, “The only one thinking this information is important is usually the benefits manager. Employees largely think benefits are important only when they actually need them.”!

When it comes to enrollment season or it’s time to plan for the year ahead, employees have other things on their mind.! The endless amount of jargon and legalese that employees are given only serves to enhance the disengagement rate. This problem is then compounded by the fact that poor benefits selection and lack of program utilization hits the employer’s bottom line…and not in a good way.

The solution to this problem is simple. That is just it: keep the communication plain and simple.

To assist benefits managers, Gottlieb and his Jellyvision Lab team created ALEX®, the Jellyvision Benefits Counselor, a product that simplifies the confusing jargon of benefits communication and empowers employees to choose their best-fit health care plan. In turn, this kind of engaging experience benefits both the employee and the employer’s pocket books.

Since its launch in 2009, ALEX has become a game-changer in the benefits communication space. Employers have been quick to recognize how the tool’s potent blend of humor, intelligence and benefits know-how enables and empowers employees to better understand and appreciate their benefits and the value of the employer-sponsored plans.

This innovative tool is available to over one million employees in more than 80 of the nation’s most progressive and forward-thinking companies today, with recent enhancements around mobile capabilities, Spanish-language support and wellness program education.

Company: The Jellyvision LabHeadquarters: ChicagoWebsite: www.jellyvisionlab.comFounded: 1996Nature of Business: The Jellyvision Lab, a company perhaps best known

for developing computer games like YOU DON’T KNOW JACK. Using its proprietary interactive communication platform, Jellyvision offers enterprises a cloud-based, virtual benefits counselor that is accessible to employees anytime, anywhere.

Key Executives: Harry Gottlieb, Founder; Amanda Lannert, CEO


INDUSTRY INNOVATORS

For a company less than half a year old, Catamaran Corporation is making a major mark on the pharmacy benefit management (PBM) industry. The product of! the July merger between SXC Health Solutions Corp. and Catalyst Health Solutions Inc., Catamaran marks the union of two of the industry’s fastest growing PBMs and is the fourth largest in the country by prescription volume.

“Catamaran is the most viable alternative for organizations who are struggling to solve the health care cost challenge, and we’re eager to put our enhanced resources to work for them,” said Mark Thierer, chairman and CEO of Catamaran at the inception of the company. “We have the skill and scale to deliver compelling financial results and the clinical intelligence to deliver sustainable improvements in the health of members.”

The new name was selected to reflect the nimble, flexible approach of the company to help clients navigate today’s turbulent health care environment to contain costs and enhance the well-being of its members. Catamaran’s clients include the broadest, most diverse base of any PBM, comprising large employers, health plans, government entities, unions, workers’ compensation, TPAs, long-term care, hospice and PBMs.

The company offers an alternative to the status quo of PBM services. Catamaran’s claims processing system, RxCLAIM, is the technology engine that powers the innovative programs the company delivers to the marketplace, solving many of the challenges of health care payers.

Catamaran’s Enhanced Coordination of Benefits focuses on delivering increased savings to its clients through a reduction in fraud, waste and abuse,

while also focusing on quality of care improvements for its members.Coordinating benefits is a long-standing practice, ensuring the most

appropriate payer is paying for the covered service when a member has multiple insurance plans. In sharp contrast to medical insurance where claims lag by two or more months, Catamaran’s enhanced coordination of benefits! processes the pharmacy claims and assesses for other insurance at the point of sale.

It assigns the correct payer to the claim to deliver dramatic, immediate and real-time savings. By analyzing prescription claims data in real-time, Catamaran is able to identify at-risk plan members who are receiving multiple prescriptions from multiple prescribers. The company’s exclusive access to unique data sources and ground-breaking use of technology delivers real-time client savings with an emphasis on reducing fraud and waste while also increasing member safety.

Company: Catamaran CorporationHeadquarters: Lisle, IllWebsite: www.catamaranrx.comFounded: 2012 !!Nature of Business: Catamaran, the industry’s fastest-growing pharmacy benefit

manager, helps organizations and the communities they serve take control of prescription drug costs. It manages more than 250 million prescriptions each year on behalf of 25 million members.

Key Executives: Mark Thierer, Chairman, CEO;! Jeff Park, EVP and CFO

With new rules and regulations put forth by the health care reform law, many employers are left scratching their heads, wondering how to continue to provide employee benefits without going broke and staying compliant.

Luckily health Partners America has taken an extraordinarily complicated issue of benefit management and simplified it, allowing companies of any size to continue to provide competitive benefits for their employee populations and taking advantage of strategic tax and legal structures.

Company President Josh Hilgers and his team have created a model, which is essentially a private exchange. Over the past five years, Hilgers has become one of the leading authorities on the strategic use of tax and legal structures of benefit plans, plan designs and private exchanges.

Since 2007, Hilgers has been pioneering the concept of defined contribution plans to help minimize risk, increase profits and provide tax-free raises to employees without any costs to the employer.

“Mr. Hilgers has been a leading force in the marketplace to provide a defined contribution solution to the economic catastrophe of providing affordable employee benefits,” said Allan Chappelle, president of Chappelle Consulting Group Inc. “In the time that I have known and worked with Josh, I am more impressed with every opportunity we have to work together. He is truly and agent for change which has been sorely needed.”

Long before the Affordable Health Care Act was in place, Hilgers’ visionary strategies have contributed to what experts in the health care consumerism space believe is a tipping point in how employers think about

providing benefits to their employees, not unlike what was witnessed with employee retirement plans with the introduction of 401(k) plans.

A regular contributor to HealthCare Consumerism Solutions and a mem-ber of The Institute for HealthCare Consumerism’s League of Leaders, Hilgers is helping to lead the market-training concept of defined contribution plans.

“His approach is to grow this concept through training – having trained over 10,000 insurance professionals, financial advisors and benefits experts in the past three years through courses, videos, live presentations and webinars,” said Nitra LaGrander, the vice president of strategic marketing for Evolution1. “As an organization who is working with several different partners, who are all trying to do similar things to what Josh is doing, we haven’t found anyone with the unique vision and capacity to execute on the that vision, as what we’ve found with Josh”

Company: Health Partners AmericaHeadquarters: Birmingham, Ala.Website: www.healthpartnersamerica.com Founded: 1983Nature of Business: HPA is a subsidiary of Southland Benefit Solutions LLC,

and administers employee benefit solutions and has pioneered the defined contribution health plan market and turned its expertise into a training system to benefit all insurance producers.

Key Executives: Josh Hilgers, Founder, President; Kate Murphy, Vice President, Operations

INDUSTRY INNOVATORS


Approximately 35 million Americans are covered by a flexible spending account (FSA), which are employer-based programs that allow consumers to set aside tax-free dollars to purchase medical products and services—from Band-Aids to smoking cessation programs and tens of thousands of products and services.

The FSAstore.com was founded on the idea it should be easy and convenient for consumers to use their FSAs. So company president and founder Jeremy Miller created the only one-stop show exclusively dedicated to selling more than 6,000 FSA-eligible products. This helps eliminate guessing games as to what is and isn’t reimbursable which is what consumers face every time they walk into a drugstore.

In addition to the list of products, the site also offers a national provider database of FSA-eligible services and an FSA Learning Center, which provides abundant information on any FSA-related questions. The learning center also is interactive and user friendly, providing a key educational tool.

The learning center recently updated customers on eligibility changes to their FSAs by highlighting several over-the-counter products, which will require a prescription to be reimbursed.

To add more convenience to the consumer, FSAStore.com accepts all FSA-debit and major credit cards, offers 24/7 customer service, one-to-two-day turnaround and free shipping on orders more than $50. There also is no need

to submit receipts for consumers who purchase products at the FSAstore.com using an FSA card. It is all conveniently tracked, making it simple and convenient for its customers to use their FSA.

The FSAstore.com, which partners directly with FSA Administrators (TPAs) to make a wide range of health products, tools, and services directly available to FSA holders, also received an early Christmas present in October when it received more than $2 million in financing from Originate Ventures, Point Judith Capital and Columbia Business School Lang Fund and additional angel investors.

“We are thrilled that Originate Ventures, a leading early stage investor in the healthcare sector, is joining our existing investors in our latest financing round, which will provide us with the resources necessary to expand our operations to meet the rapidly growing demand for our products and services,” Miller said.

Company: FSAstore.comHeadquarters: New YorkWebsite: www.fsastore.comFounded: 2010Nature of Business: FSAStore.com Inc. operates an online shopping Website

for flexible spending accounts.Key Executive: Jeremy Miller, Founder/President.

!Carena Inc., is bringing back the doctor house call using modern-day technology. The visionary platform is becoming a big hit with both employees and employers.

Carena delivers medical care by phone, webcam and house call and provides employees convenient access to quality health care. It also saves the employer money, as employees avoid costly trips to the emergency room and can seek care immediately rather than delaying treatment until the illness becomes much more serious, requiring costly treatment.

! Through the development of a virtual medicine program in 2009, employees can now access doctors and nurse practitioners on demand, either by phone or on the computer via webcam. Employees are happy and healthy and are missing less work. Employers also are pleased with the return on investment.

With the proliferation of high-deductible health plans, employees are able to use the virtual visits to lower out-of-pocket expenses by accessing affordable, fixed price care on-demand from anywhere. They are expressing their appreciation of the program, which boasts a 98 percent patient satisfaction rating. That is 28 percent higher than the patient approval rating of traditional medical care.

Carena’s clients include Costco, Microsoft and other local Fortune 100 companies, who are taking advantage of the benefits to lower costs and improve employee satisfaction.! Carena! offers fully customizable, integrated benefits services for health plans seeking cost control by providing better 24/7 medical care options.!And, Large organizations can reduce health care costs by providing timely access to primary care outside of the ER. Carena, which is meant to compliment a primary care physician, removes the barriers to

employees getting care early. Since the primary care physician is not available 24/7, Carena fills the gap until a patient is able to see their doctor, providing treatment before things escalate to more costly conditions. It’s a high-value benefit that will actually save money.

For smaller groups, Carena offers a corporate version of its consumer plan called CareSimple. The service makes sense for both self-insured groups and those with high deductible plans. No matter which option a client chooses, they find their employees love having 24/7 access to doctors and nurse practitioners who can treat their urgent illness or injury by phone, webcam or house call—all from the comfort of their home.

Company CEO Ralph C. Derrickson and his staff at Carena have developed a cost-saving solution that not only provides increased health care access to employees, but also has helped aid the growth of consumerism, providing employees with the necessary knowledge and tools to make better health care decisions.

Company: Carena Inc.Headquarters: SeattleWebsite:!www.carenamd.comFounded: 2000Nature of Business:! Carena is a Seattle-based team of medical, technology,

and consumer service professionals committed to delivering the best possible healthcare experience to every patient. 24 hours a day. 365 days a year.

Key Executives:!Ralph C. Derrickson, President, CEO; Peg Carver, Executive Vice President of Service Delivery, Frances Gough, Chief Medical Officer, Eugene Kuerner, CTO, Amber Ratcliffe, VP Marketing and Business Development, Matt Thorne, Vice President of Finance and Administration.


INDUSTRY INNOVATORS

Troy R. Underwood has a talent for finding technological solutions for busi-ness problems. It is this talent and a keen entrepreneurial spirit which have led to incredible market growth, establishing benefitsCONNECT® as a market leader in the benefits administration space. The Software as a Service tools offered by benefitsCONNECT® have benefited hundreds of insurance brokers and benefits advisors, more than 9,000 employer groups, and has helped nearly 2 million people enroll in their benefits online and manage those benefits year-round.

Underwood was a software developer with IBM before setting out to become his own boss. In 1988, he founded FDI Computer Consulting Inc., which developed a patented web-based solution for electronic motor vehicle title administration, revolutionizing the way the Department of Motor Vehicles and financial institutions process vehicle title transactions. Underwood sold FDI in June 2007, but prior to the transaction, he was already moving to his next challenge of revolutionizing the health insurance and benefits administration industry in similar fashion.

In 2001, Troy founded Transcend Technologies Group Inc., a professional software development and computer network consulting firm in response to a request from a health insurance broker friend of his who was in need of an agency management solution. Since then, Underwood has immersed himself in the industry in order to better understand the broker world and the proper tools needed for success. A frequent speaker at industry events and a licensed agent in all 50 states, Troy stays active in various industry associations such as the National Association of Health Underwriters.

Underwood’s continuous innovation and his determination to bring powerful software solutions to the insurance industry have propelled benefitsCONNECT® to industry leading levels. benefitsCONNECT® seamlessly handles all aspects of eligibility and enrollment while facilitating voluntary benefits sales, enrollment, and administration.

benefitsCONNECT® is a year-round, real-time online benefits management software that simplifies, automates, and improves the benefit management process. Through a custom online portal, employees enroll in their benefits. Benefits consultants and HR administrators manage enrollment data, and employees and administrators make mid-year changes as they happen via the secure web-based system.

Underwood and his team have developed an affordable, flexible, and easy to use solution for streamlining the expensive and labor-intensive benefits administration process.

Company: benefitsCONNECT®Headquarters: Rancho Cordova, Calif.Website: www.benefitsCONNECT.netFounded: 2001Nature of Business: benefitsCONNECT® is a year-round, real-time online benefits

management software that simplifies, automates, and improves the benefits management process.

Key Executives: Troy R. Underwood, CEO, Founder. Ja’Nene Kane, President/COO

Since 1976, PMSI has been at the forefront of improving the quality of care for injured workers and helping employers contain workers’ compensation costs.

PMSI is one of the nation’s largest and most experienced companies focused on the workers’ compensation and liability markets, delivering solutions in pharmacy, medical services and equipment and settlement.

One of PMSI’s major differentiators is its clinical expertise. The company employs clinical staff with extensive experience in the pharmacological treatment of occupational injuries and conditions. Many staffers are doctoral-level pharmacists, many of whom have completed post-graduate and specialty residencies and have a vast amount of experience with injured worker care and drug therapy management.

! PMSI’s clinical department provides an integrated set of tools and consulting solutions as an all-inclusive service for PMSI’s workers’ compensation clients, who help manage the therapy of their injured workers.

!PMSI clients have learned that by looking at the history of pharmaceutical and medical prescriptions, they can provide an employer with a “score” for the company’s risk level in regard to the employer’s population of injured workers. This strategy could lead to targeting individuals within that population, who are at-risk for some level of intervention.

! This proactive approach predicts potential high-risk situations and alerts payers so that intervention can occur. This risk-profiling methodology can uncover situations that might go unnoticed at the individual prescriber or pharmacy level.

! Using its MedAssess Risk IS® analytical engine to screen the injured worker population, the Targeted Intervention level of care identifies high-risk, high-cost injured workers and reaches out to prescribers and/or claims professionals to improve care. This type of proactive identification of risk from a clinical perspective is unprecedented in the industry.

A major problem in the workers’ compensation arena is the abuse of painkillers, which can enhance the cost of the claim and turn an average com-pensation claim into a major headache for both the employee and the employer.

PMSI’s Clinical Department plays a major role in addressing issues of abuse of narcotics such as OxyContin, Vicodin and Percocet for its clients and injured workers. It makes clinical oversight a valuable tool in helping the injured worker as well as cutting costs for the employer.

Company: PMSIHeadquarters: TampaWebsite: www.pmsionline.comFounded: 1976Nature of Business: PMSI is a leader in developing solutions to control the

growth of medical costs in workers’ compensation.Key Corporate Executives: Eileen Auen, Chairman, CEO; Steven Palmer,

CFO, Lori Daugherty, President, Pharmacy; Pat Sullivan, President, Ancillary Services; Jay Krueger, Chief Strategy and Client Services Officer; Clinical Staff department lead: Dr. Maria Sciame

INDUSTRY INNOVATORS


!With the economy still sluggish and employees seeing their 401(k) bal-ances continue to fall, stress remains high among the employee population. So high in fact, it, is causing employers to seek new solutions to combat its negative effects on their employees’ health. Countless studies show financial stress is a leading cause of serious disease and chronic illness which in turn, is leading to average higher health care costs for employers and negatively impact an employee’s productivity and morale. Because of this, employers are turning to a solution that targets stress at its roots and are offering employees robust financial wellness and education programs to help decrease their financial stress. What they’ve found is that these programs are not only a solution to decreasing stress, but can also provide significant costs savings in many other areas that impact their bottom line and provide an average return on investment of 3:1.

Today, close to 40 percent of companies are offering financial education as an employee benefit as a way to combat the most common major issues human resources teams are grappling with, such as retirement preparedness for their employees, benefits planning and overall financial wellness. Financial Finesse CEO Liz Davidson and her team designed a turnkey program for their clients that could be customized to specific workforce needs. The program drew upon behavioral finance studies to motivate change in employees’ financial habits and behaviors and aimed to build awareness around the importance of financial wellness. It encouraged employees to complete a personal financial wellness assessment to gauge their own wellness through the company’s patent-pending

online Financial Learning Center.For the employer, the program featured a workforce financial wellness

assessment and recommended education plan from aggregated data provided by employees in obtaining their personal financial wellness assessments. This data report and plan offered employers invaluable information to design their financial wellness programs based on their workforce’s specific financial issues and concerns. Employers were also able to use the financial wellness assess-ment tool to regularly benchmarking employee financial wellness and retirement preparedness as a way to measure the success of their programs.

The result of the innovative campaign was 80 percent of companies partici-pating with more than 25 percent of their respective employee population utilized the tool. Average participants returned two to three times per week to work on improving their financial wellness. !

Company: Financial FinesseHeadquarters: El Segundo, Calif.Website: www.financialfinesse.comFounded: 1999Nature of Business: Financial Finesse is the nation’s leading

provider of unbiased financial education programs to corporations, credit unions and municipalities with over 400 clients across the country.

Key Executives: Liz Davidson, CEO

Employers are in an unsustainable position when it comes to offering health insurance benefits to their employees. Insurance costs keep increasing, and as the workforce ages, their health care needs are increasing, too. It’s no wonder that employers are trying to manage their spending in this category by engaging their employees in the quest for affordable health care. And it’s no wonder that consumer-directed health (CDH) plans provide the platform for employers and employees to come together in a win-win: both save money with a CDH plan.

So, why don’t more employees choose CDH plans? Because they just don’t understand why they should! But it’s obvious – they save money!

That’s a rational point of view, but real people make decisions on emotional factors and beliefs, too . Financial services and consumer product marketers have known that for years, and now, their attitudinal segmentation schemes are being applied to healthcare, thanks to our Industry Innovator, Roger Travis, President of ExperienceLab, Inc.

Travis is a recognized leader and serial entrepreneur in the marketing industry. He was a former president of the largest direct marketing agency in the US. And he has learned how to identify consumer segments and get them to take action. Through hundreds of engagements with Fortune 100 companies, Travis’ work proved that consumers don’t always make rational or price-driven decisions. His segmented communications achieved breakthrough results by addressing how different sets of consumers were motivated by complex attitudes to make a decision in a process that considered far more than price.

In 2007, Travis launched a national research study to determine if his concept of attitudinal segmentation principles, which worked well in simplifying the decision-making process in financial services, would work well for health

care. Travis tested more than 150 variables to determine the needs, attitudes and behaviors driving consumer-directed health plan choice and usage. The research showed that there are, in fact, seven unique personality profiles for health care consumers, and they can be identified with statistical accuracy by asking five simple questions. The segments are: Undisciplined but healthy; confident, financially sophisticated; closed minded and content; knowledgeable but insecure; satisfied and confident; moderate advice seekers and worried, insecure and unknowledgeable. When Travis began testing his messaging by segment, he saw that he was achieving results up to 8X the norm. He created CDHCentric, a patented communication program based on the segmentation that saves employers money by increasing employee adoption and engagement with consumer-directed health plans.

The research proved why one-size-fits all messaging that costs a lot of money often doesn’t work, while Travis’ innovative approach does work to enhance CDHP adoption and engagement, saving both the employer and the employee money.

Company: ExperienceLab Inc.Headquarters: Bozeman, Mt.Website: www.experiencelab.comFounded: 1998Nature of Business: ExperienceLab helps employers transition their workforce

from traditional health plans (e.g. PPO, HMO, POS) to any plan that requires an employee to take more responsibility for their own health care decisions and expenses. These new plans, often called “consumer-directed” plans, include CDHPs and high-deductible health plans (HDHP).

Key Executives: Roger Travis, CEO; Ann Christensen, Chief Marketing Officer


INDUSTRY INNOVATORS

For more than 15 years, The Karis Group has been an advocate for health care consumers by working directly with health benefit plan members to negotiate or mediate medical bills with hospitals, doctors and other health care providers.

It is believed the work of The Karis Group has saved consumers more than $20 million a year on members’ medical bills. Staff members of the group speak with hundreds of people to help them navigate the complex waters of the health care system.

Consumers need someone in their corner, taking responsibility to help the patient find answers to problems that arise from the mounds of paperwork, bills and research options in the health care system.

To help the consumer, The Karis Group developed Kare360 in October 2011. Kare360 is a subscription-based offering that provides members with unlimited access to Kare360 Advisors. These advisors help members with the questions and challenges that come up from day-to-day interaction with the health care system. The service saves members time and rescues them from overwhelming.

Anyone in the United States can sign-up, whether he or she is uninsured, covered by a group or individual health plan or somewhere in between. Subscription plans for individuals, couples and families are available by visiting the Kare360 website.

“Our team is extremely excited about the Kare360 product,” said Mike Martin, CEO of The Karis Group.” Attentive and thorough service has been our hallmark. We are looking forward to solving more problems and answering more questions.

At the beginning of the Kare360, the company relied on word-of-mouth referrals including social media channels such as Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn to help broadcast the message.

Soon consumers discovered Kare360 was a convenient tool to help resolve billing errors or claim denials from insurance companies.

Consumers can visit the Kare360 website to become a member and begin enjoying the benefits of having a Kare360 Advisor only a click or call away. The site includes an introductory video and a live chat to help consumers understand the service and get questions answered. Kare360 also can be found on Facebook or Twitter.

Company: The Karis GroupHeadquarters: Austin, TexasWebsite: www.thekarisgroup.comFounded: 1996Nature of Business: The Karis Group improves benefit plans by helping plan

members with medical bills not fully covered by their benefit plan.Key Executives: Tony Dale, Chairman and Founder; Mike Martin, CEO

!With new government regulations set to take effect, the world of health insurance and employee benefits is making a radical shift.

As a result, there is a growing demand for benefits administration technology to handle new benefit models, while reducing administrative costs and complexity.

!Couple this with the continued rise in health care costs, the industry—and consumers—are finding a fundamental shift under way as the health benefits space moves to a defined contribution model, meaning more involvement for consumers.

!For employers looking to offer a defined contribution plan to employees, an exchange is necessary. Launched by health plans, brokers or employer groups, these private exchanges include a fixed employer contribution toward benefits and a variety of products for consumers to choose from, based on personal needs. Employees use the employers funds to customize a mix of benefits most suitable for their individual needs.!

The key to success for the individually-selected benefit model is consumer-friendly technology, such as the Workable Choice exchange platform, developed by Workable Solutions. Founded and headed by Terry McCorvie, Workable Solutions is a technology provider and full-service, third party benefits administrator, providing everything from exchange technology to COBRA administration and consumer-driven plans.!

Workable Solutions has been in the health insurance exchange business since the late1990s. It’s exchange client list includes Connecticare, CFBTA and Brooklyn Healthworks. Several additional exchanges are launching in 2013.

McCorvie understands the complexities associated with the exchange

niche. Sensing a need for a technology solution to administer and manage benefits, McCorvie’s team launched its first exchange product in 1999. Early on, they recognized the coming shift from defined benefit models to defined contributions and began developing the technology to support the new marketplaces. Fast-forward to today, and the latest version of Workable Solutions’ Workable Choice product surpasses every other online marketplace solutions available. It is a one-source, end-to-end solution for exchanges, from plan recommendation to consolidated billing.

Having been reviewed by industry peers, Workable Solutions’ technology has highly resilient technology stacks. The platform has the ability to automatically scale up. The technology also securely tracks and disburses more than $200 million annually between employers, insurance carriers and brokers.

Workable Choice also is integrated with Evolution1, a heavyweight in health care IT, which serves eight million customers. McCorvie has been working with Evolution1 for more than a decade and is now partnering with them to support defined contribution exchanges. !

Company: Workable SolutionsHeadquarters: Orlando, Fla.Website: www.workablesolutions.comFounded: 1997Nature of Business: Workable Solutions is a credible and reliable partner,

helping clients deliver flexible, value conscious benefits using technology and expertise that save our clients time and money. Our goal is to help our clients succeed.!

Key Executives: Terry McCorvie, President and CEO; Ray West, CIO

INDUSTRY INNOVATORS


Medtronic, the global leader in medical technology, was the original large-scale employer group to pioneer an innovative service that brings health care into the homes and offices of its employee members.

Having launched the first-of-its-kind Online Care Anywhere, which is a web-based telehealth platform, Medtronic allows its 10,000 Minnesota employees to have online doctor visits using the Web or the telephone.

Online Care Anywhere was launched in May 2010 and connects Minnesota Medtronic employees with hand-selected licensed doctors. The employees log-in online and ask questions, receive diagnoses and prescriptions. The offering brings health care to the employees where and when they need it most, whether it be at home, at work or on the go.

However, Medtronic hasn’t stopped there in its mission to empower employees to charge of their health. Led by Gen Barron, senior manager for global wellness, the Medtronic leadership decided to offer online care visits to all Minnesota employees and their family members at no charge.

Employees are thrilled with the ability to address medical concerns conveniently, cost-effectively and for the option of health care that actually fits into their daily lives, not vice versa. The Online Care Anywhere prevents employees from having to take time off, take long lunches or come into work late or leave early to address medical issues.

With a focus to bring awareness to each and every Minnesota Medtronic employee about Online Care Anywhere, the company hosted several Online

Care Anywhere launch events. All Minnesota employees were invited to attend on-site enrollment drives at multiple locations. Here they could set up an account, ask questions and see demos of Online Care Anywhere.

In an effort to continue to spread the word, Medtronic issued quarterly marketing campaigns, both electronically and in print, to continue to engage employees to use the online tool.

Medtronic also designed and built Virtual Online Care Rooms, similar to on-site employee health clinics but with significantly less overhead, throughout their main buildings. The low-cost, but useful rooms are complete with a computer, webcam, phone, printer and even Life Clinic machines. The rooms contain everything an employee would need and more for a meaningful Online Care visit. It also adds an element of privacy for the employee.

Company: MedtronicHeadquarters: MinneapolisWebsite: www.medtronic.comFounded: 1949Nature of Business: Medtronic develops and manufactures

innovative medical device technology and therapies to treat chronic disease worldwide.

Key Executives: Omar Ishrak, Chairman and CEO; Gen Barron, Senior Manager of Global Wellness

UMB Healthcare Services, an industry leader in the administration of health savings accounts, has developed an innovative Business Partner Portal. This online tool was created to help business partners, including brokers, agents and consultants, better serve their employer clients.

The portal, developed by vice president and national sales director Kevin Robertson,! includes a convenient dashboard view of account information, enhanced reporting functionality and sophisticated data analysis, allowing brokers/agents to create a customized approach for each employer’s HSA program.

The portal has an intuitive design that provides brokers with real-time access to their employer groups’ account information. A broker can view detailed account information for each employer group, such as open, pending and future-dated accounts. The broker can also access detailed monthly reporting for every group, as well as run custom aggregated reports.

“Our ultimate goal is to offer a tool that makes data reporting and analysis a seamless process, while providing additional resources to our clients such as communication and educational resources,” said Dennis Triplett, CEO of UMB Healthcare Services, a division of UMB Financial Corporation (UMBFC). “This portal helps enhance the visibility of our business partners and the services they offer, while demonstrating our commitment to better equipping partners and the employers they serve.”

Allowing business partners to take a more strategic role with their employer groups was the top priority in designing the portal. Business partners now have immediate access to extensive marketing resources, such as award-winning accountholder materials and benefits communication toolkits. UMB’s Benefits Communication Toolkits provide tools and resources to help employers

increase HSA program participation through employee education and well-planned communication.

Robertson envisioned the portal, which was launched on Oct. 11, would make the broker a more valuable partner to their employer client and empower the business partner to play a more integral part in the delivery of HSAs to the employer groups and end users.

He wanted UMB Healthcare Services to provide brokers with unique tools that would make it easier for them to secure and retain clients. With Robertson’s vision, the support of UMBFC executive management, and the technical expertise of the UMB HSA Support and MIS teams, the portal has become a valuable tool and brought the employer and the broker closer together.

It is the only such tool that allows brokers to enhance their visibility and answer a client’s question with a click of the mouse. The portal also helps the broker and the client to communicate year-around. This also helps the employer better educate and engage their employee population about new cost-saving benefit products.

Company: UMB Healthcare ServicesHeadquarters: Kansas City, Mo.Website: hsa.umb.com/index.htmlFounded: UMB Financial Corporation – 1913Nature of Business: UMB Healthcare Services is one

of the leading providers of health care payment solutions including health savings accounts (HSAs) and health care spending accounts.

Key Executives: Dennis Triplett, CEO; Kevin Robertson, Vice President and National Sales Director; Ben Morris, Senior Vice President, Sales Manager for Wholesale Partnerships


INDUSTRY INNOVATORS

MedServ Global’s integrated offering is truly innovative as it addresses the challenges arising from health care reform and chronically rising costs. These challenges demand a comprehensive approach to education and engagement, access to high quality, affordable health care providers, real cost transparency, and effective wellness components. By incorporating each of these facets in programs tailored for individual companies and their employees, MedServ drives maximum adoption and cost savings.

Leveraging behavioral sciences in programs and member interactions, patient engagement and program adoption are maximized. Through a multi-channel approach to engagement, coupled with incentives offering the power of choice, MedServ’s health and wellness programs can strategically address each organization’s objectives in the most effective manner.

These turnkey, incentive-based solutions reduce overall costs and improve long-term health and wellness across a range of factors. They motivate employees and their families to pursue and maintain positive, healthy, productive and cost-saving choices.

The rising cost of health care has resulted in a lack of personal ser-vice and minimal support for providing useful health related information to

patients and their families. MedServ Global’s FIVE-STAR Personal Patient Services™ and member support provides a unique, first quality, end-to-end health and wellness experience to organizations and their members. Combined with its high quality networks of affordable, accredited domestic and international health care providers and wellness solutions, patient advo-cacy provides a high-touch experience to employees and their families while providing significant cost savings.

MedServ’s integrated Global MedPass™ and HealthShare Library™/HealthShare Rewards™ platforms provide access to real cost-saving options.!

John Linss, Chairman and FounderCompany: MedServ GlobalHeadquarters: AtlantaWebsite: www.medservglobal.comNature of Business: Integrated Health and Wellness SolutionsKey Executives: John Linss, Chairman and Founder; Gordon Church, CEO

Treatment Selection & Shared Decision Support Platform

Web + Mobile

www. .com [email protected]

heart health

muscle, bone, and joint issues

pregnancydiabetes

respiratory issues

mental health

WWW.THEIHCC.COMWHO’S WHO PROFILES


HSA/HRA/FSA TECHNOLOGY: ADMINISTRATION & MANAGEMENT

TSYS Healthcare® provides end-to-end strategic payment solutions for consumer directed healthcare. We partner with benefits administrators, financial institutions, health plans, and software providers to navigate all aspects of HSAs, HRAs, FSAs, transportation accounts, cash reimbursements, and lines of credit. TSYS Healthcare cards offer participants the security they expect along with the ability to conveniently access funds from multiple accounts and manage their benefits payments with simplified single-card access. Clients and partners benefit from simplified processes, reduced paperwork and cost savings that can contribute to improved return on investment.

“We built the TSYS Healthcare platform to meet the market demand for reliable, configurable and intelligent solutions. Understanding the dynamic U.S. healthcare market, our customers rely on our option-driven system to prepare them for the future.”

! Trey Jinks, Group Executive, TSYS Healthcare

TSYS [email protected]

HSA / HRA / FSA ADMINISTRATION AND FINANCE

Evolution1 and our Partners serve more than 8 million consumers, making us the nation’s largest electronic payment, on-premise and cloud computing healthcare solution that administers reimbursement accounts, including HSAs, HRAs, FSAs, VEBAs, Wellness, Transit and Defined Contribution Health Plans.

It is the only solution that offers a single end-to-end user experience, provides innovative auto-substantiation technologies, and automates workflow for Partners, employers, and consumers. It does all this on one technology platform comprised of Lighthouse1™, PayDirect®, the Benny® Benefits Debit Card, Lighthouse1 OneCard™ and integrated web portals. Evolution1 and our Partners are dedicated to delivering value, reducing costs and simplifying the business of healthcare.

EVOLUTION1, [email protected]

“The combination of our innovative products will further our leadership position in a rapidly changing healthcare market. Together with our Partners we are committed to reducing costs and simplifying the business of healthcare.”

! "Je# Young"Chairman and CEO, Evolution1

HSA ADMINISTRATION & FINANCE

At HSA Bank, we’ve been helping businesses optimize their health care spending for over 15 years. We offer unmatched service and expertise when it comes to health-based savings accounts. You can count on our dedicated business relations team for turnkey solutions and ongoing support that help your business and workforce save for a healthy future. To connect with your regional representative, call 866.357.5232 or visit hsabank.com.

“When implementing one of the first Medical Savings Account programs in the country, I had a belief that health care could be fixed with free-market principles. I still do. By adopting flexible and transparent practices that manifest core attributes of consumerism such as private exchanges, defined contributions, and self-funding; we will reform health care in our nation.”

! Kirk Hoewisch, Co-Founder and President, HSA Bank, a division of Webster Bank, N.A.

HSA BANK605 N. 8th Street Suite 320Sheboygan, Wisconsin 53081United States of America

800.357.6246www.hsabank.com

WWW.THEIHCC.COM WHO’S WHO PROFILES


Since 1988, Flex has provided comprehensive, benefit reimbursement services to employers throughout the U.S. that are better, faster and more seamless than any in the marketplace. We are advocates of consumer-driven health plans and have fully-dedicated ourselves to the strategic concept of tax-advantaged and account-based programs. Our core portfolio includes: COBRA Administration Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs) Health Reimbursement Arrangements (HRAs) Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) – Employer & Individual Solutions! Transit/Parking Reimbursement Accounts (TRAs) And more!

Our robust, integrated resources provide everything employers need to integrate Flex Plans, including scalable features, simplified transactions/reimbursements, plan design expertise, education/ communication resources and online access.

Just Flex It™ today and discover how simple benefits administration can truly be.


FLEXIBLE BENEFIT SERVICE CORPORATION (FLEX)10275 W. Higgins Road, Suite 500 Rosemont, IL 60018

www.JustFlexit.com [email protected]

DataPath, Inc., is one of nation’s largest providers of CDH solutions specializing in account-based administration systems.

Since 1984, service providers using DataPath systems have provided administrative solutions for over 1 million participants of FSA, HRA, HSA, and COBRA. DataPath is the only solutions provider to design and deliver a full Suite of systems for handling 125, 105, 132, COBRA, HSAs, Credit and Debit Cards all delivered to account holders through a single Internet portal, myRSC.com.

“With the significant changes in healthcare today, our software solutions allow users to create custom plans for clients that benefit both the employer and employee. Not only have we created a single platform for all systems with myRSC.com, with the integration of our mySourceCard® Debit Card at Wal-Mart and other retailers, our clients are able to offer a hassle-free solution with 100% compliance.”

DATAPATH, INC.1601 WestPark Drive, Suite 9Little Rock, AR 72204

501.296.9990www.dpath.com


LifeSynch changes behaviors to improve lives. Our approach integrates care of the mind and body to enhance health, increase productivity and minimize unnecessary medical expenses. Built on a solid foundation of understanding human behavior and how to motivate behavior change, we deliver proven outcomes through:

“Whether it’s LifeSynch’s health coaching, EAP/Work-life, integrated medical-behavioral health or utilization management services, we integrate our behavioral health and behavior change expertise to ensure our members reach their goals and achieve sustainable, long-term improvements toward their health and well-being.”

– Sean Slovenski, President of LifeSynch,

LIFESYNCH2101 W. John Carpenter FrwyIrving, Texas 75063800-207-5101www.lifesynch.com

TOTAL POPULATION HEALTH MANAGEMENT

Proven methods that lead to increased engagement and sustained behavior change.

Clinicians and coaches who provide personalized attention and form trusted relationships with members.

Customizable programs that easily incorporate into existing benefits and services.

Scientifically proven best-practice guidelines to proactively manage care.

Scalable, user-friendly technology.

SUPPLEMENTAL HEALTH

Delta Dental leads the industry in designing innovative dental coverage programs that keep costs down and deliver quality care. Our diverse client list includes everyone from Fortune 100 companies to public agencies to individuals and families. Our customer’s satisfaction is based on our expansive dentist network, cost-saving mechanisms and superior customer service. We are part of the Delta Dental Plans Association that provides dental coverage to more than 56 million people in the US.

DELTA DENTAL1130 Sanctuary Pkwy, Suite 600Alpharetta, GA 30009

770-641-5196



FSA/HRA/HSA/TRANSIT/COBRA: ADMINISTRATION & MANAGEMENT

eflexgroup (eflex) is a nationwide administrator of pre-tax benefits and COBRA. Committed to providing fast answers, fast claims, and web self-service, we set the industry standards for service. With a customer focus and Lean Six Sigma methodology, we don’t talk about service, we prove it. See our metrics at eflexgroup.com.

“eflexgroup’s customer service department should be a model for ALL customer service departments. The courtesy, professionalism and knowledge surpass ANY customer service department I’ve encountered! I feel the outstanding, exemplary customer service of eflexgroup is simply the best!”

! Kimberly Adams, Southeast Energy Assistance [testimonial]

eflexgroup2740 Ski LaneMadison, WI 53713

877.933.3539 ext 300 [email protected]

HEALTH DECISION SUPPORT TOOLS

Castlight Health enables employers, their employees, and health plans to take control of health care costs and improve care. Named #1 on The Wall Street Journal’s list of “The Top 50 Venture-Backed Companies” for 2011 and one of Dow Jones’ 50 Most Investment-Worthy Technology Start-Ups, Castlight Health helps the country’s self-insured employers and health plans empower consumers to shop for health care. Castlight Health is headquartered in San Francisco and backed by prominent investors including Allen & Company, Cleveland Clinic, Maverick Capital, Morgan Stanley Investment Management, Oak Investment Partners, Redmile Group, T. Rowe Price, U.S. Venture Partners, Venrock, Wellcome Trust and two unnamed mutual funds.

Giovanni Colella, M.D.CEO and Co-Founder, Castlight Health

CASTLIGHT HEALTH85 Market Street, Suite 300San Francisco, CA 94105

415.829.1400www.castlighthealth.com

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Health Insurance 101: An Orientation is a new, flexible online course offered by AHIP.

It is designed to teach health insurance basics to those new to health care or individuals who wish to review the fundamentals. The course is formatted in short modules; you learn at your own pace and on your own time, moving through the materials as you choose. Plus, AHIP will customize the course to fit your organization’s specific learning requirements.

AMERICA’S HEALTH INSURANCE PLANS 601 Pennsylvania Ave., NWSouth Building, Suite 500Washington, D.C. 20004Lindsey Miranda Canaley

Tel: 800.509.4422Fax: 202.861.6354 [email protected] www.ahip.org/courses

Envision Pharmaceutical Services, Inc is a full service pharmacy benefits management company that delivers! We deliver because our business model is based on transparency and full disclosure, guaranteeing 100% pass through pricing of all pharmaceutical manufacturer rebates and administrative fees at the point-of-sale. Additionally, our affiliate, Envision Insurance Company, is a national Prescription Drug Plan which enables us to offer a variety of solutions for your retirees. Envision is truly a “different” PBM!

“Envision is pleased to be recognized by its clients surveyed by the Pharmacy Benefits Management Institute for three consecutive years as the top performer in virtually every category evaluated. This solidifies our leadership position in providing transparency and full disclosure to the PBM marketplace while continuing to find innovative solutions.”

! Kevin M. Nagle, President & CEO, Envision Pharmaceutical Services/Rx Options

PHARMACEUTICAL BENEFITS MANAGEMENT

ENVISION PHARMECEUTICAL SERVICES, INC.John Ewell, EVP Marketing

[email protected]



HEALTH INCENTIVES

MedEncentive offers a

patented, web-based

incentive system that’s been

independently validated

to control healthcare

costs. Doctors and patients earn financial rewards for

declaring adherence to best practices and healthy

behaviors, provided they agree to be accountable to

the other party for doing so. Easy to implement and

embraced by users.

MEDENCENTIVECecily HallExecutive Vice President

[email protected]

Transitions Optical, Inc. is the maker of Transitions® lenses, the #1-eyecare professional recommended photochromic lenses worldwide.

Transitions Healthy Sight Working for You® is an education initiative that helps HR professionals and benefits professionals communicate the value of the vision benefit to employees. More information and complimentary education tools are available at HealthySightWorkingForYou.org.

“Don’t overlook your employees’ healthy sight when thinking about your business goals. A vision benefit that includes an eye exam and sight-optimizing eyewear helps ensure that employees see their best, so they can do their best work, directly affecting your business.”

! Pat Huot, Director, Managed Vision Care

TRANSITIONS OPTICAL9251 Belcher RoadPinellas Park, FL 33782

800.533.2081 ext. [email protected]

SUPPLEMENTAL HEALTH

WeCare TLC is a medical risk management company that leverages onsite primary care clinics to provide solutions to rising healthcare costs while improving patient health and wellness.

Our holistic approach to care empowers the clinic staff to act as patient advocates, which increases compliance and decreases unnecessary expensive services.

“Healthcare is now a right and employers are faced with the challenge of truly managing their healthcare costs. We have created a unique medical home clinic model that properly addresses quality of care and cost. This requires constant, aggressive, creative, and directed attention to accomplish but it can be done.”

— Lynn Jennings, CEO, WeCare TLC

HEALTH ACCESS ALTERNATIVES

WE CARE TLC120 Crown Oak Centre DrLongwood, FL 32750

800.941.0644 [email protected]

ExperienceLab has created a breakthrough, patented communication program that saves employers money by increasing adoption and usage of consumer directed health (CDH) insurance plans among their employees. CDHCentric, sold on a subscription basis, delivers regular, multi-media communications that are tailored based on seven unique attitudinal segments developed from proprietary research.

Traditional health plans protect employees from having to learn the basic skills for making cost-effective healthcare decisions. Our segmentation research, which is based on 20 years of behavioral marketing, found 7 unique personality types, and each makes healthcare decisions differently. The result is that, when employee messages are correctly tailored to their personalities, employees become health care consumers!

! Roger Travis, President

CDHCENTRIC507 S. 8th Ave. Bozeman, Montana 59715


EMPLOYEE COMMUNICATION AND EDUCATION




MasterCard (NYSE: MA),

is a global payments and

technology company.

It operates the world’s fastest payments processing network,

connecting consumers, financial institutions, merchants,

governments and businesses in more than 210 countries and

territories. MasterCard’s products and solutions make everyday

commerce activities—such as shopping, traveling, running a

business and managing finances—easier, more secure and more

efficient for everyone.

MASTERCARD WORLDWIDE2000 Purchase St.Purchase, NY 10577-2509

HEALTH ACCESS ALTERNAT IVES

Carena provides 24/7, on-demand access to health care by phone, webcam, and house call. Seattle-based Carena is committed to delivering the best health care experience possible. Its technology-enabled care delivery model provides on-demand access to health care 24/7, via phone, secure video, and house call. Carena provides health care solutions to patients through employers, health systems and through its consumer service, CareSimple.

“People are paying more out of pocket for care than ever—through higher co-pays and deductibles, reduced benefits, and in the rising costs of goods and services. Taken together, health care has become more expensive and less accessible. Our goal is to make health care more affordable by providing the right care at the right time for the right cost; to help people live healthier lives by removing the barriers to people taking control of their health care.”

! Ralph C. Derrickson, President & CEO, Carena

CARENA, INC.1525 4th Avenue, Suite 300Seattle, WA 98101

800.572.2103www.CarenaMD.com [email protected]

TOTAL POPULAT ION HEALTH MANAGEMENT

Orriant helps businesses produce a better, more profitable product by creating a workforce that is healthier, more productive, and less expensive to insure.

Orriant’s proven strategy is to hold people accountable for improving their health as an integral part of your benefit strategy in a way that is fair and compassionate to all. “Employers can fight back to control rising health care costs. Orriant’s strategies have helped major employers from almost every industry cut the cost of health care, improve the health and productivity of their workforce, and push hundreds of thousands of dollars to their bottom lines.”

! Darrell Moon, Orriant CEO

ORRIANT9980 South 300 West Ste. 100Sandy, Utah 84070

801.574.2603 www.orriant.com [email protected]

HSA/HRA/FSA TECHNOLOGY: ADMINISTRATION & MANAGEMENT/PRIVATE EXCHANGE

Workable Solutions is based in Orlando, FL and provides a full array of employee benefit solutions including HSA, HRA, FSA and commuter accounts, COBRA administration, and benefits administration outsourcing. They offer a comprehensive benefit exchange application, Workable Choice, which provides plan selection assistance, comparison-shopping technology, eligibility management, enrollment, consolidated billing, and more. Workable also offers a myriad of defined contribution options, which allow employers to control their employee health care costs while giving their employees greater choice and flexibility. “As a small business, we understand first-hand what challenges a small business faces. At Workable Solutions, we can help you control the cost of employee benefits. Workable Choice is a private exchange solution that makes offering defined contribution and a multitude of consumer-driven products easy and affordable.”

! Terry McCorvie, President/CEO, Workabe Solutions, Inc.

WORKABLE SOLUTIONS, LLC7120 Lake Ellenor Dr.Orlando, FL 32809

800.946.6342Fax: 407.540.1749www.workablesolutions.com



BENEFIT ADMINISTRATION/PRIVATE EXCHANGES

Since 1988, CieloStar (formerly OutsourceOne) has helped brokers, employers and employees navigate the ever-changing world of benefits. Now, with the dawn of “Defined Contribution Health Care” we are again on the leading edge. With a team of industry thought leaders, CieloStar makes navigating healthand benefits choices easy for employers and employees by offering comprehensive benefits administration solutions with a high-touch, high technology model—most recently launching a proprietary private health insurance exchange.

“Fueled by the far-reaching impact and complexities of health care reform taking effect in 2013 and 2014, employers and employees increasingly find themselves in a ‘farmer’s market’ of benefits choices. Cielostar is uniquely positioned with enabling technology that helps purchasers and consumers make the best possible decisions and create a best-in-class benefits administration process. Our unique comprehensive approach to benefits offers everything from back room technology for enrollment, data, billing and call centers to complete solutions for COBRA, CDHP and health insurance exchanges.”

! John Reynolds, CEO, Cielostar

CIELOSTAR530 U.S. Trust Building730 Second Avenue SouthMinneapolis, MN 55402


HEALTH DEC IS ION SUPPORT TOOLS

FSAstore.com is the only one-stop-shop exclusively stocked with FSA eligible products and services. At FSAstore.com, consumers have access to more than 4,000 FSA eligible products, a national database of FSA eligible services, and much-needed information through the FSA Learning Center. FSAstore accepts all FSA and major credit cards, offers 24/7 customer service, one-to-two-day turnaround for all orders, and free shipping on orders over $50.

“Each year consumers lose hundreds of millions of dollars simply because they do not deplete all of the pre-tax funds available to them in their FSA. But this year, more consumers than ever are realizing that they can use that money to buy many of the daily health products they need, and without a prescription. FSAstore.com strives to make it easy for participants to use and understand their FSAs.”

! Jeremy Miller,"Founder and President, FSAstore.com"

FSASTORE.COM244 5th Avenue, Suite J-257New York, NY 10001

888.FSA.1450 (372-1450)

HEALTH DECISION SUPPORT TOOLS

Truven Health Analytics, formerly Healthcare at Thomson Reuters, delivers unbiased information, analytic tools, benchmarks, and services to the health care industry.

Hospitals, government agencies, employers, health plans, clinicians, and life sciences companies have relied on us for more than 30 years. We combine deep clinical, financial, and health care management expertise with innovative technology platforms and information assets to make health care better by collaborating with our customers to uncover and realize opportunities for improving quality, efficiency, and outcomes.

TRUVEN HEALTH ANALYTICS6200 S Syracuse Way, Suite 300Greenwood Village, CO 80111

734.913.3000

TOTAL POPULAT ION HEALTH MANAGEMENT

HeartSmart Testing uses new tools to evaluate employees’ cardiovascular healthHeart disease is the number one killer in the U.S. and costs millions of dollars in medical care and time lost from work. Detection and prevention is the key to heart health. HeartSmart Testing is an innovative program that, unlike conventional cardiology tests, provides new advanced technology testing and methods to detect and prevent the earliest signs of cardiovascular disease and encourage optimal health.

“The biggest problem with traditional cardiology is that it is not preventive—there isn’t a testing program to evaluate people who don’t have any symptoms of heart disease, but may be at significant risk. Drugs and surgery are offered to patients instead of lifestyle change programs and supplements.”

!Dr. Steven Helschien, Founder, HeartSmart Testing

HEARTSMART TESTING11722 Lightfall CourtColumbia, MD 21044

Dr. Steven Helschien, FounderSales: Penny Aleo, Executive [email protected]

If you use the services of our solutions providers, please tell them you saw their ad in ™.

ADVERTISING CONTACTS

AHIP ........................................................ 70

Best Buy Rewardzone ...................................5

Best Buy Gift Cards.............Inside Back Cover

Bravo Wellness ..........................................40

Carena .................................................. 7, 72

Castlight Health .........................................70

CieloStar ....................................................73

Cigna .........................................................16

Delta Dental ...............................................69

CDHCentric ............................................... 71

CodeBaby ................................................. 74

DataPath .................................................. 69

eflexgroup ................................................ 70

Envision Pharmaceutical Services ...............70

Evolution1 ..................................................68

Flexible Benefit Service Corporation ...........69

FSA Store ...................................................73

HealthStat ........................ Inside Front Cover

HeartSmart Testing .....................................73

HighRoads .................................................40

HSA Bank ............................................. 8, 68

IHC FORUM Save the Date ...................... 9-11

LifeSynch ...................................................69

MasterCard ................................................72

MedEncentive ............................................71

MedServ Global ..........................................36

Mercer .......................................................40

Orriant .......................................................72

Transitions ............................................... 71

Truven Health Analytics..............................73

TSYS Healthcare ................................. 20, 68

WeCare TLC ............................................. 71

Wiser Together ................................... 67, 74

Workable Solutions ....................................72

UnitedHealthCare .........................Back Cover

ADVERTISING INDEX

404.671.9551

CEO/PUBLISHER

Doug Field @

MANAGING DIRECTOR

Brent Macy

ACCOUNT MANAGERS

Joni Lipson

Rogers Beasley

Joe Tomaszewski

REPRINTS

Rogers Beasley

R E S O U R C E G U I D E



EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT TOOLS

Under the CIVA (CodeBaby Intelligent Virtual Assistant) brands of benefits and health advisor, CodeBaby improves the healthcare consumer experience and optimizes online self-service on any web-based platform or device with absolutely no IT disruption. Benefits advisor offers guidance and self-service options that help consumers and organizations alike to make better decisions about benefits selection. Health advisor engages new patient visitors on hospital or office websites or existing patients on wellness, prevention & disease management platforms.

“With the rapid changes in health care, our solutions provide organizations innovative ways to optimize their current platform while meeting the demand for an enhanced online experience. CIVA benefits and health advisor solutions are industry-leading models that help consumers and organizations more efficiently navigate complex health benefit exchanges and patient portals. “

-Dennis McGuire, CEO

CODEBABY CIVA111 S. Tejon St. Suite 107Colorado Springs, CO 80903877.334.3465codebaby.com/[email protected]

HEALTH DECISION SUPPORT AND COST-SAVING TOOLS

WiserTogether Inc., helps patients

choose the right care at the time. It

offers an innovative online treatment

selection & shared decision support

platform that helps patients make

evidence-based, cost effective

treatment decisions across musculoskeletal, cardiovascular, mental health,

diabetes, pregnancy and respiratory illnesses saving payers money. Currently

1.5 million members have access to the platform through employers and health

plans in the country.

WiserTogether was founded in 2008 and is based in

Washington, DC.

! Praveen Mooganur, COO

WISER TOGETHERPraveen Mooganur

202.276.3074

[email protected]

ADVERTISER: Best Buy AGENCY: SCHERMER AD TITLE: Health and Wellness PUB: CDHC Solutions TRIM: 8.125" x 10.875" BLEED: .125" SAFETY: .25"

NO FEES.NO EXPIRATION DATES.JUST HAPPINESS.™

BEST BUY® GIFT CARDS GIVE EMPLOYEES SOMETHING TO WORK (OUT) FOR

OFFER A LITTLE DESSERT WITH YOUR HEALTH AND WELLNESS PROGRAMThe secret to keeping your employees focused on their wellness is right in front of you. Best Buy Gi! Cards not only have the power to promote wellness programs like smoking cessation and weight loss, they’re also a great way to congratulate and say thank you, with stu" they really want.

Learn more at 877-370-1234 | Gi! [email protected] | CorporateGi! Cards.BestBuy.com/CDHC

BEST BUY, the BEST BUY logo and the tag design are trademarks of BBY Solutions, Inc. © 2011 BBY Solutions, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 10528

NO FEES.NO EXPIRATION DATES.JUST HAPPINESS.™

BEST BUY® GIFT CARDS GIVE EMPLOYEES SOMETHING TO WORK (OUT) FOR

OFFER A LITTLE DESSERT WITH YOUR HEALTH AND WELLNESS PROGRAMThe secret to keeping your employees focused on their wellness is right in front of you. Best Buy Gi! Cards and e-Gi!Cards, not only have the power to promote wellness programs like smoking cessation and weight loss, they’re also a great way to congratulate and say thank you, with stu" they really want.

Learn more at 877-370-1234 | [email protected] | CorporateGi!Cards.BestBuy.com/CDHC

BEST BUY, the BEST BUY logo and the tag design are trademarks of BBY Solutions, Inc. © 2012 BBY Solutions, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 10528

Engaging consumers to make informed health care decisions UnitedHealthcare’s consumer-driven health (CDH) plans were designed to get employees on the path to good health with improved lifestyle habits and use of the health care system, and greater transparency to help drive better decisions. !at’s why our plans o"er:

and even doctor; as well as expenses related to possible care paths

tools to implement and successfully maintain its consumer-driven health plans.uhctogether.com/CDH or call 1.866.438.5651.

myHealthcare Cost Estimator is currently available to many UnitedHealthcare members, and will launch in additional markets throughout the remainder of the year.©2012 United HealthCare Services, Inc. Insurance coverage provided by or through UnitedHealthcare Insurance Company or its affiliates. Administrative services provided by United HealthCare Services, Inc. or their affiliates. Health plan coverage provided by or through a UnitedHealthcare company. UHCEW506202-002

READY. SET. GROW HEALTHY. UHCTOGETHER.COM/CDH

HealthCare Consumerism Superstars 2012

Documents

Transcript of HealthCare Consumerism Superstars 2012