May 5, 2008
Contents:
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2009 Plan Design Survey
Please take a few moments to participate in our
annual survey on plans for 2009 in medical and pharmacy benefits, consumer-directed health plans, medical management initiatives and retiree health. The preliminary results of this survey will be presented at the next
Employer's Summit on Health Care Costs and
Solutions, June 17th at the Ritz Carlton in Arlington, VA. A final report of the findings from this survey will be available in the summer.
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Institute on Health, Productivity and Human Capital Holds Inaugural Meeting
The Founding
Board of Directors of the Business Group's new Institute on Health, Productivity
and Human Capital will hold its first meeting at the Business Group's offices in
Washington, DC on May 22, 2008. The Institute is co-chaired by Pamela
Hymel, MD of Cisco Systems and Wayne Burton, MD of JPMorgan
Chase. Other Business Group member companies
participating on the Institute's Founding Board include: Cigna
Healthcare, FedEx, General Electric, General Mills, General Motors, HEB Grocery,
Hewitt Associates, IBM, Lockheed Martin, Medtronic, Pfizer Health
Solutions, Pitney Bowes, Starwood Hotels and Resorts, Unilever, Watson Wyatt and
Wellington Management.
There
has never been a more important time to make the investments needed to ensure
that we have a healthful, productive, engaged and resilient workforce. Please
join us in this new Institute.
For more information please contact Ron Finch at finch@businessgrouphealth.org.
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Benchmarking Teleconferences
We are developing
a series of benchmarking teleconferences for members. Each
teleconference will focus on one topic of importance to
members. All members will be asked to share their experiences on the call.
If you have an
interest in participating in a benchmarking call with other employers or
suggesting a benchmarking topic,
please email your idea to benchmarking@businessgrouphealth.org.
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Business Group in the News
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Business Group staff and programs are cited
in many national, local and
trade publications on a wide scope of issues
we cover. A sample of citations include:
- Big
business vows to leave sizable imprint on health
Employee
Benefit News - Thursday, May 1, 2008
- Power
to the Patient
Human
Resource Executive -
Thursday, May 1, 2008
- Employers
Almost Universally Hate Universal Health Care
Workforce
Management
- Wednesday, April 23, 2008
- Health
Care Cost Hikes Are Significantly Lower for Companies With High Enrollment
in Consumer-Directed Health Plans
Inside
Consumer-Directed Care
- Tuesday, April 22, 2008
- B
of A leads the way in health-care shift
Financial
Week - Monday, April 21, 2008
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Premature Birth and Infant Healthcare Costs: New Data, New Strategies - Webinar
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May 7, 2008, 12:00 - 1:00 pm ET
While the exact cause of prematurity is unknown, experts
believe that it is possible to prevent a substantial number of preterm births
through health promotion, education, and proven preventive interventions. The
March of Dimes, the Business Group, and member company CVS/Caremark, will
explain opportunities employers have to address preterm birth, including recommendations
on preconception and prenatal care benefits, communication and engagement
strategies, and consumer education tools on pregnancy and childbirth.
Speakers:
Steve Abelman, MBA, CHE, Director of
Worksite Wellness Programs, March of Dimes
Kathryn Phillips Campbell, MPH, Manager,
National Business Group on Health
Claudine Reilly, RN, MA, CHES, Wellness Manager,
CVS Caremark.
Please click
here to register for
the webinar.
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State and Local Health Reform: A Public Policy Webinar
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May 15, 2008, 12:00 - 1:00 pm ET
What is the latest on health reform in
Massachusetts and the "pay or play" ordinance in San Francisco? What other
states and localities will employers have to deal with? Will court challenges on
ERISA grounds succeed? Will Congress grant ERISA waivers to states for reform?
What is the future of state and local health reform? Find out the latest in the
second in a series of public policy webinars planned by the Business Group
during this election year.
Speaker:
Steven Wojcik, Vice President, Public Policy, National Business Group
on Health
Please click
here to register for the webinar.
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EMPAQ Data Submission
The EMPAQ data submission period is now
open and accepting 2007 plan year data. We invite you to participate in EMPAQ
and utilize this special member benefit. The data submission period is open from
April 15 - June 15, 2008 and may be accessed at www.empaq.org.
If you have any questions, please contact the EMPAQ
Helpdesk. |
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Conference Calls on CDHPs/HDHP/HSAs/HRAs
June
5, 2008 from 12:00-1:15 pm ET
Calls on consumer-directed health care are scheduled for
every first Thursday of the month. Members can submit topics for
discussion or a specific question to poll the group prior to the call.
This
series is open to all HR/Benefits professionals who have implemented a CDHP at
their company or are on schedule to roll out for 2009 or 2010.
For
more information and to participate in these calls, please visit the CDHP
conference call page or contact Brenna
Haviland.
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Leadership Summit on Health at Work: Changing Environment, Behavior, Culture
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May 12-13, 2008
The
Fairmont Hotel, Washington,
DC
We are delighted to announce
that Acting US Surgeon General Rear Admiral Steven Galson will
address the Leadership Summit on his national campaign to fight childhood
obesity. In addition to Rear Admiral Galson,
new keynote speakers include The
Biggest Loser winner Bill Germanakos, a Quest Diagnostics
employee, on his remarkable achievement resulting in a 170 pound weight loss
Our panel of Best Employers for
Healthy Lifestyles 2008 winners features:
- Intel
Corporation
- The
Volvo Group (including Mack Trucks, Inc.)
- Wal-Mart
Stores, Inc.
For
more information and to register, please
click
here.
This
meeting is hosted by the Board of the Institute on the Costs and Health Effects
of Obesity and is open only to Board member companies, Corporate HR, Benefits
and Wellness/Medical professionals, and invited guests/speakers.
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Employers' Summit on Health Care Costs and Solutions
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"Controlling Medical Spend: Coping with a Recession"
Register Now for the Employers'
Summit on Health Care Costs and Solutions
at The Ritz Carlton, Pentagon
City
on June 17 -
18, 2008.
Join
your peers who are already registered from Advance
Newspaper Group; FedEx; Intel;
Medtronic; Nissan; Pfizer; Silgan
Containers; Target; Visant; Watson
Wyatt; and Wellington Management Company.
Interactive
benchmarking/best practice sessions feature topics such as Medical Tourism;
Plan Design 2009;
Convenience Care and Onsite Medical Clinics; and Health
Improvement Strategies.
Learning sessions will feature topics on: Evidence-Based Benefit Design;
Health Care Navigators; and Ideal Deployment Strategies for CDHPs.
Kathryn
Phillips, Ph.D., Professor of Health Economics & Health Services
Research at University of California, San Francisco will deliver the keynote "Pharmacogenomics:
What Employers Should Cover and Under What Conditions".
Please
click
here to register and view the full agenda.
This
event is open to corporate HR and Benefits professionals only.
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Health Risk Assessment Toolkit: A Road Map for Employers
This toolkit is a resource for members interested in HRAs or modifying their approach to HRA administration. Components include HRA basics, HRA administration, data collection process and vendor selection guidelines and effective communications strategies and techniques to maximize employee participation. |
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The Business Case for Better Medication Adherence - Health Tip
The World Health Organization estimates that only 50% of patients take their medicine as prescribed for long-term therapy. This health tip focuses on barriers to medication adherence and provides tips for employers to help improve adherence among employees. |
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Benchmark with your Peers
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We continue to track member-requested Quick
Survey responses and the member participating in the most Quick Surveys from Dec. 2007 - May 2008 will receive a complimentary registration to our Employer Summit in June of 2008.
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Open Surveys
- Quick
Survey:
Skin Cancer Screening/Prevention - 4/28/2008
- Quick
Survey:
Rewards Programs - 4/24/2008
- Quick
Survey:
Inventory Database for International Benefits - 4/15/2008
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Survey Reports
- Quick
Survey Report:
Short-Term
Disabilities
3/20/2008
Investigates what types of short-term disability benefits employers are
offering and how they are evaluating the success of their programs.
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What To Do About Obesity In Your Workforce - Webcast
May
14, 2008
2:00 PM - 3:30 PM ET
Obesity
costs U.S. companies billions of dollars each year. The Conference Board's
recent report, Weights & Measures: What Employers Should Know
about Obesity - featured on NPR and CNBC - outlined the financial
and ethical reasons why companies should care about obesity. This webcast
addresses how companies can act to address this costly epidemic.
This
webcast will discuss:
- What
your competitors are doing about their employees' obesity.
- Wellness
programs and the bottom line.
- The
effectiveness of cash incentives in fighting obesity.
Associate Professor in Department of Nutrition, Foods and
Exercise, Director of the Virginia Tech Center for Translational Obesity
Research
Moderator:
Linda
Barrington, Labor Economist and Research Director, Co-Author Weights
& Measures: What Employers Should Know about Obesity
Please
email any questions or call 212-339-0345 for more information. To register for this event, please click
here.
Members
of the National Business Group on Health can request a participation code to
receive the Conference Board member rate by contacting Joneyse
Gatling.
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If you need additional help with a password, Quick Survey, or any other service, please contact Monika Facchina at 202-585-1809, facchina@businessgrouphealth.org .
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