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A health plan or a car: health insurance for a family of four exceeds $20K in 2012

By on May 15, 2012 in Affordable Care Act, Health Consumers, Health Economics, Health insurance, Health insurance exchanges, Health marketing, Health Plans, Health politics, Health reform, Hospital finance, Hospitals, Pharmaceutical, Pharmacy, Physicians, PPACA

The saying goes, “you pays your money and you makes your choice.” In 2012, if you have a bolus of $20,700 to spend, you can choose between a health plan for a family of four, or a sedan for the same family. That’s the calculation from the actuaries at Milliman, whose annual Milliman Medical Index [...]

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Improving health care through Big Data: a meeting of the minds at SAS

By on May 11, 2012 in Bio/life sciences, Chronic care, Connected health, Electronic health records, Health at home, Health care information technology, Health Consumers, Health Economics, Health insurance, Health Plans, Health politics, Health Quality, Health reform, Hospitals, Medicaid, medical home, Medical innovation, Medical technology, Personalized medicine, Pharmaceutical, Pharmacy, Physicians, Primary care, Privacy and security, Public health, Retail health, Safety net and health, Telehealth, Telemedicine, Trust

Some 500 data analytics gurus representing the health care ecosystem including hospitals, physician practices, life science companies, academia and consulting came together on the lush campus of SAS in Cary, North Carolina, this week to discuss how Big Data could solve health care’s Triple Aim, as coined by keynote speaker Dr. Donald Berwick: improve the [...]

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Employers who offer more flexibility yield healthier workforces

By on May 2, 2012 in Business and health, Corporate wellness, Employers, Health Consumers, Health Economics, Health engagement, Health insurance, Health Plans, Prevention and wellness

The most flexible workplaces are good for worker’s health: they yield the most engaged workforces, greater job satisfaction, increased commitment to the firm, better mental health and lower indicators of depression. But not all firms are all that flexible, which is the top line of the Family and Work Institute‘s 2012 National Study of Employers (NSE), funded by [...]

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Your doctor’s appointment on your phone: out of beta and into your pocket

By on May 1, 2012 in Chronic care, Connected health, Employers, Health at home, Health care information technology, Health Consumers, Health Economics, Health Plans, Medication adherence, mHealth, Mobile health, Physicians, Remote health monitoring, Telehealth, Telemedicine

You can now carry a doctor with you in your pocket. Two top telehealth companies that support online physician-patient visits have gone mobile. This upgrade was announced this week at the 2012 American Telemedicine Association conference, being held in San Jose, CA. In enabling mobile physician visits, American Well and Consult A Doctor join Myca, which has offered mobile [...]

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The decline and potential renaissance of employer-sponsored health benefits: EBRI and MetLife reports tell the story

By on April 27, 2012 in Employers, Health Consumers, Health Economics, Health engagement, Health insurance, Health Plans, Prevention and wellness

Two reports this week suggest countervailing trends for employer-sponsored health benefits: the erosion of the health benefit among companies, and opportunities for those progressive employers who choose to stay in the health benefit game. In 2010, nearly 50% of workers under 65 years of age worked for firms that did not offer health benefits. The uber-trend, first, is that the [...]

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