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Make health care your competitive advantage
As the world of business becomes increasingly competitive, companies are searching for new and innovative strategies to gain an edge. One such strategy, often overlooked, is the health and wellness of a company’s workforce. An enterprise is only as strong as its employees.
According to a 2020 study conducted by the Integrated Benefits Institute, poor health costs the U.S. economy $575 billion per year, with 1.5 billion days of lost productivity from employee absenteeism due to both illness and presenteeism — which is when employees work while sick. The good news is that with the right health care partner, businesses can transform this liability into an asset.
Many businesses are not fully aware of the potential adverse effects of workforce health on their bottom line and competitive standing.
Healthy employees are more productive, engaged, and have lower health care costs. In contrast, unhealthy employees are absent more often, are less productive, and can be costly for the company in terms of health care expenses and lost productivity. This is why preemptively investing in employee health is not only beneficial, but necessary for any business looking to succeed in today’s competitive market.
There are some health plans designed to put businesses on a path to a healthier, more productive workforce by delivering care through an integrated system. In this system, doctors and care teams share information — medications, test results, surgeries, and more — through digital health records. Kaiser Permanente is an example of this innovative model of care.
This collaborative approach is fundamental to an integrated system and helps physicians make more informed decisions about their patients’ care — especially when it comes to the prevention and treatment of chronic conditions. At Kaiser Permanente, members’ care teams focus on preventive care, which includes frequent monitoring and early detection of illness.
For example, each member’s blood pressure and other vitals are checked at every care visit — which is why they lead the region in controlling 81% of members’ blood pressure. They are also tops in the nation for members who get screened for colon cancer (76%), cervical cancer (89%), and breast cancer (87%).1
And the results speak for themselves, with Kaiser Permanente patients having lower mortality rates from breast cancer (41%), lung cancer (50%), and colorectal cancer (35%).1
When illness and disease are caught early by screenings and other preventive measures, doctors can begin treatment sooner. This not only improves health outcomes and survival rates for employees but also lowers health care costs for businesses. Take cancer screening — early detection not only means less invasive treatment, more care options, and better chances of survival, but also lowers treatment costs by two-thirds.2 At Kaiser Permanente, their work to control diabetes in their patients has resulted in fewer ER visits, hospital stays, doctor’s appointments, and medications. This translates to per-patient savings of $4,057 in medical expenses each year.3 And consider this — if all people with diabetes in the U.S. received care from Kaiser Permanente, there would be a $23.4 billion total savings in health care dollars.4 That kind of saving could lead to reduced expenditures for everyone.
For those who suffer from chronic conditions like diabetes, hypertension, and chronic pain, it’s key that they remain committed to managing it — which is not as easy as it sounds. And it can be helpful for patients to know that they’re not facing their condition alone.
Health plans like Kaiser Permanente deliver care in a complete, coordinated system, which produces better health outcomes for their patients. Because their care teams are connected and have access to the patient’s medical history, it’s easier to help those patients manage their condition. This more holistic approach to overall health and wellness produces excellent results. When it comes to keeping patients’ blood pressure under control, Kaiser Permanente is 25% higher than the national average, and over 26% higher when it comes to keeping diabetic patients’ blood pressure under control.1 In fact, if other health plans controlled diabetes the way Kaiser Permanente does, the national diabetes mortality rate would be 32% lower.5
Kaiser Permanente’s support system is multi-faceted and, besides care teams, includes virtual care options, disease management programs, specialized programs and classes, and remote monitoring for real-time observation. Satisfaction with and utilization of Kaiser Permanente’s digital experience is high, with 85% of their patients using the digital tools6 they offer, and a satisfaction rating of 9.6 out of 10 for their virtual care.7 This means employees living with chronic conditions spend less time away from work and are more productive and engaged in the office.
Employers know the importance of workforce health — which means they know how critical it is for their employees to have access to high quality care. Health systems are only as good as the doctors who deliver care. Case in point — Kaiser Permanente’s system is supported by 1,800+ region-wide physicians recruited from the top medical schools in the country. Many are recognized as Top Doctors8 annually in local publications. Kaiser Permanente’s commercial health plan also received 5 out of 5 in 2023, the highest rating in the region.9 Having access to highly skilled doctors and top-rated care9 helps keep workforces healthier, so they can stay productive.
So, what’s the result when businesses partner with a health plan offering an integrated system of care like Kaiser Permanente? Simple: A healthier workforce that helps them outperform the competition and boost their bottom line.
1 The source for certain health plan measure rates and benchmark (averages and percentiles) data (“the Data”) is Quality Compass® 2024 and is used with the permission of the National Committee for Quality Assurance (“NCQA”). Any analysis, interpretation or conclusion based on the Data is solely that of the authors, and NCQA specifically disclaims responsibility for any such analysis, interpretation or conclusion. Quality Compass is a registered trademark of NCQA. The Data comprises audited performance rates and associated benchmarks for Healthcare Effectiveness Data and Information Set measures (“HEDIS®”) and HEDIS CAHPS® survey measure results. HEDIS measures and specifications were developed by and are owned by NCQA. HEDIS measures and specifications are not clinical guidelines and do not establish standards of medical care. NCQA makes no representations, warranties or endorsement about the quality of any organization or clinician who uses or reports performance measures, or any data or rates calculated using HEDIS measures and specifications, and NCQA has no liability to anyone who relies on such measures or specifications. NCQA holds a copyright in Quality Compass and the Data and may rescind or alter the Data at any time. The Data may not be modified by anyone other than NCQA. Anyone desiring to use or reproduce the Data without modification for an internal, noncommercial purpose may do so without obtaining approval from NCQA. All other uses, including commercial use and/or external reproduction, distribution or publication, must be approved by NCQA and are subject to a license at the discretion of NCQA. ©2024 National Committee for Quality Assurance, all rights reserved. CAHPS is a registered trademark of the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ).
2 Mariotto et al., Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention, 2020.
3 Kristina S. Boye, Maureen J. Lage, and Vivian T. Thieu, "The Association Between HbA1c and 1-Year Diabetes-Related Medical Costs: A Retrospective Claims Database Analysis," Diabetes Therapy, 2022; 2020 dollars adjusted to 2023 dollars, CPI; U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, "Consumer price index for Medical Care Services in U.S. City Average, All Urban Consumers, Seasonally Adjusted," Series ID CUSR0000SAM2, 2023. https://beta.bls.gov/dataViewer/view/timeseries/CUSR0000SAM2
4 Kristina S. Boye, Maureen J. Lage, and Vivian T. Thieu, "The Association Between HbA1c and 1-Year Diabetes-Related Medical Costs: A Retrospective Claims Database Analysis," Diabetes Therapy, 2022.
Study language on savings: “The primary outcome of interest was diabetes-related total medical costs. These costs, reported in 2020 US dollars, were defined as the total amount paid for all inpatient and outpatient services that had an accompanying diagnosis of diabetes and any outpatient prescription drugs filled for glucose-lowering agent (GLA) or diabetes supplies. In addition, costs were subcategorized into outpatient costs, acute care (inpatient and emergency room) costs, and drug costs. All cost measures were expressed as average per-patient annual costs in 2020 dollars, as adjusted by the medical component of the Consumer Price Index.”
2020 dollars adjusted to 2023 dollars, CPI; U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, "Consumer price index for Medical Care Services in U.S. City Average, All Urban Consumers, Seasonally Adjusted," Series ID CUSR0000SAM2, 2023. https://beta.bls.gov/dataViewer/view/timeseries/CUSR0000SAM2.
Diabetic Patients Blood Sugar Control: Comprehensive Diabetes Care - HbA1c Control (<8%), 2023 Commercial Ranking Quality HEDIS, National Committee for Quality Assurance, 2023.
Amanda Nguyen, Katie Mui, "The Staggering True Cost of Diabetes," GoodRx Research, April 2020, https://www.grxstatic.com/4f3rgqwzdznj/6Q5qUjkrhppOzC9nM23vhW/867883e7208f529a8f24f1e7da67993e/Diabetes-Cost-White-Paper
As of 2023, the average salary in the USA varies largely across industries, job positions, age groups, levels of experience, and educational backgrounds. However, the average salary nationwide in the US, according to Forbes, is $59,428. Average Salary By State In 2023 – Forbes Advisor
Outpatient visits saved = (Mean number of outpatient visits for diabetes patients 10.5 visits) – (KPMAS diabetes 2022 population analysis outpatient visits per member 4.5 visits) = 6 fewer in-person doctor visits/year
5 2016 National CDC Diabetes Mortality vs 2016 KPMAS Population Diabetes Mortality (crude mortality rate). Our diabetes mortality rate (which is the #/1000 patients for whom diabetes is main cause of death) is 16.9 versus the national benchmark of 24.8.
6 Kaiser Permanente 2022 Annual Report.
7 Kaiser Permanente internal data, December 19, 2023.
8 The physicians who practice at Kaiser Permanente are recognized as Top Doctors in Baltimore magazine (2024), Arlington Magazine (2024), Northern Virginia Magazine (2024), Bethesda magazine (2023), and Washingtonian magazine (2023).
9 In the NCQA Commercial Health Plan Ratings 2024, our commercial plan is rated 5 out of 5, the highest rating in the region.
