August 20, 2008
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Norfolk Southern Corporation
Norfolk Southern Corporation, a transportation and logistics services company, is based in Norfolk, VA and employs over 30,000 people.
The company controls a major freight railroad, Norfolk Southern Railway Company, which operates approximately 21,000 route miles in 22 eastern states and DC, and connects with rail partners in the West and Canada. |
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BlueCross BlueShield of Western New York
BlueCross BlueShield of Western New York is a health benefits and information company that provides products, services, and technologies to improve the availability, quality, and cost of health care. The company employs 1,500 people and is headquartered in Buffalo, NY. |
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Share Best Practices
If your company, or other
companies you know of, have outstanding health and benefits programs in place and
you would like to share these best practice with other Business Group member
companies, please let us know. The
Business Group is currently looking for employer best practices in the following
areas:
- Communicating with
racial/ethnic diverse groups
-
Health plans and evidence-based medicine
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Telemedicine/E-visits
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Plan Design - Pay-based premiums
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Tools to aid employees in benefits decision-making
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Using social networking to communicate with employees
- Preventive
services
-
Tobacco cessation
-
Health disparities
-
Breastfeeding
-
Prematurity
Please e-mail membership@businessgrouphealth.org
if you would like the Business Group to contact you to learn more about your
best practice.
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Business Group Presented at National Behavioral Health Conference
Ronald Finch, Ed.D., Vice President of the Center for Prevention and Health Services at the National Business Group on Health, presented at
"Paving the Road Home: The National Behavioral Health Conference and Policy Academy on Returning Veterans and Their
Families" sponsored by HHS, SAMHSA, United States Department of Veterans Affairs, the National Association of State Mental Health Program Directors and the National Association of State Alcohol and Drug Abuse Directors. Dr. Finch spoke on two panels,
"What Works: Labor and Employment Strategies for Returning Veterans" and
"Their Families and Financing and Benefits Structures, Creating Fee Based Contracting for Mental Health/Substance Abuse Services for Returning Veterans and Their
Families". |
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Large Employers' Health Plan Designs: Results from NBGH's Annual Survey - Webinar
August 21, 2008, 12:00 - 1:00 pm ET
Do you know how your plan design changes compare with what other large
employers are doing in 2009? According to the National Business Group on
Health's report on Large Employers' 2009 Health Plan
Designs, sixty-eight percent of respondents
indicated that Consumer-Directed Health Care (CDHC) was important or critical to
their benefits strategy, compared to only 41% who indicated such in 2008. This webinar
discusses in
detail the results from our 2009 plan design survey.
Speaker:
Karen Marlo, Director,
Benchmarking & Analysis, National Business Group on Health
Please
click here to register for
this webinar. |
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Presidential Candidates' and Congressional Health Care Plans: Impact on Employers - Webinar
August 25, 2008, 12:00 - 1:00 pm ET
As the Presidential nominating conventions approach and the election gets
closer, both candidates will tout their health care plans. Barack Obama's and
John McCain's plans could have major impacts on employer-sponsored health
coverage. To find out more, plan to participate in this public policy
webinar.
Speaker:
Steve Wojcik, Vice President, Public
Policy, National Business Group on Health
Please click
here to register for this webinar.
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Introduction to the Newly Improved Solutions Online
August 27, 2008, 12:00 - 1:00 pm ET
Are you aware that the National Business Group on Health has an online system,
called Solutions Online, that houses the latest research and examples of innovative employer practices
around a variety of important benefit topics? Solutions provide the latest research
on point-of-care decision
support, financial incentives for wellness
programs,
onsite medical services and pre-65 retiree health
plans.
This webinar will introduce the newly enhanced
Solutions Online database and go over some of the exciting new features
and information we have included.
Speaker:
Karen
Marlo, Director, Benchmarking & Analysis, National Business Group
on Health
Please click
here to register
for this webinar.
To view Solutions Online prior to the webinar, please click here.
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22nd National Conference on Health, Productivity and Human Capital
Our
annual conference will take place in San
Diego, CA from December
8-10, 2008. Online registration is now
open. Early
registration discounts are available through November 8, 2008 and discounts are
offered for multiple member attendees from the same company. A
copy of the full conference brochure is available and will be mailed to all
members. Please
click
here
to
view the conference brochure online.
During
the Welcome
Address Co-Chairs Pamela Hymel MD of Cisco Systems Inc. and Wayne
Burton MD of JPMorgan Chase will introduce the Institute on Health,
Productivity, and Human Capital and its goals and vision.
Internationally
known psychologist, author, researcher and CEO advisor, Dr. Bob Rosen
will provide the Keynote Address. Dr. Rosen teaches
corporate leaders how to recognize obstacles and leverage the opportunities of
the new global economy.
In his address he will provide insight on Fortune 10 companies that have
implemented innovative health and productivity management programs.
For
further information, please visit our
conference
website or
contact Natashia McNair.
We
look forward to seeing you in San Diego!
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Conference Calls on CDHPs/HDHP/HSAs/HRAs
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September
4, 2008, 12:00 - 1:15 pm ET
This
year's conference calls on consumer-directed health care are scheduled for
every first Thursday of the month. This monthly series is open to all
HR/Benefits professionals who have implemented a CDHP at their company or will
roll out in 2009 or 2010. We will compile all member CDHP plan designs to guide
our monthly discussions.
Please contact Brenna
Haviland to submit your ideas for discussion topics for this or future calls. To participate in this
call, please register on the
CDHP
conference call page.
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Get ready for the next Employers' Summit on Health Care Costs and Solutions
January 14-15, 2009 in Atlanta,
GA
Some of the agenda
topics include:
- Health Care Trends:
2009-2010 Outlook for Employers
- 2009 Public Policy Outlook: What the
President and Congress Are Likely to
Do
- Improving Quality and
Efficiency through Innovative Care Management: The Time Warner
Story
Registration
will open in September.
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Updated: Summary of Cost Analyses of Employment Based Health Care
Recently
updated cost analyses matrix of employment based health care to include the
latest findings from the Hewitt Health Resource (HHR). HHR, which captures HMO
data for 160 large companies, estimates that HMO premiums are expected to
increase by 11.8% in 2009.
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Quick Employee Communication Tip
When communicating with employees about
how to get high quality care, employees may have beliefs that run
counter to what employers are telling them. For instance, some employees believe that
more care is better care. To employees, the idea that getting less care could
actually mean getting the right care is both unfamiliar and counterintuitive.
For more information on how to communicate with your employees about getting quality
care, please see our Communication Toolkit: Using Information to Get High
Quality Care.
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Open Surveys
- Quick
Survey:
On-site Medical Services for Small Populations
- 8/19/2008
- Survey:
Health Care Disparities - 7/30/2008
Seeks to
understand whether employers are aware of health disparities in their
workforce; what, if anything, they may be doing to address the problem; and
what role they see health plans playing in reducing disparities. Please participate in
this survey by clicking
here.
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New Member
The Global Health Benefits Institute welcomes
new member company, Medco Health Solutions, Inc.
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Pandemic Flu
The Business Group continues to synthesize
articles about pandemic influenza and preparedness initiatives. If you would
like to access the most recent Pandemic Flu Alert, please
click
here.
Please update your email preferences if you would like to
receive information about the pandemic preparedness initiative at the
Business Group or
participate in the Workgroup
calls.
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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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