Better outcomes, lower costs
We are committed to working with you to help provide excellent outcomes and a good patient
experience. At the same time, we have a responsibility to control costs by avoiding waste and
duplication in health care services. We’re reviewing evidence-based research and variations in
care with an eye toward:
- Reducing geographical variations in procedure frequency
- Ensuring medical appropriateness of procedures
- Improving members’ awareness of treatment options
- Cost-effective drug therapies
Our approach will include: member and employer education, benefit design, shared-decisionmaking
tools for elective surgery, prior authorizations and reimbursement mechanisms. We'll
keep you informed as further details become available.
Part of a national trend
A 2008 article from the New England Healthcare Institute, “Waste and Inefficiency in the US
Healthcare System,” concluded:
"There is a compelling need to address waste in healthcare for three reasons. First, the cost
savings associated with eliminating waste are likely to be very large. Second, collaborative
efforts to control waste could spur an emphasis on evidence based practice that could lead
to long term quality improvement. Third, beyond economic arguments, wasteful spending
may actually decrease the quality of health care. Unnecessary procedures and medicines, for
example, expose the population to significant health risks, complications and even death. In
addition, waste associated with failure to follow accepted treatment protocols not only costs
money, but decreases productivity, reduces quality of life and may cause death."
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