Milwaukee Biz Blog

With cold and flu season in full swing, companies are being stretched thin when employees come down with the many dreaded ailments sweeping the country. Workplaces are breeding grounds for viruses, as they often get passed from one employee to another. Because the Milwaukee community is already seeing the effects of lower worker productivity during the cold and flu season, it is important to implement workplace precautions to combat viruses, help prevent the spread of germs in the office, and prevent colds and flu as much as possible.

Well City Milwaukee, a coalition of local employers focused on workplace wellness, led by the City of Milwaukee, the Greater Milwaukee Committee (GMC), and the Metropolitan Milwaukee Association of Commerce (MMAC), stresses the importance of employee wellness, especially during cold and flu season, to prevent employees from being hit hard by this year’s common viruses, and to help employers stay productive throughout this time.

Here are a few examples of what Well City Milwaukee member employers are encouraging and taking action on,  to maintain a healthy workplace in the peak of cold and flu season:

• Stay hydrated – For many individuals, caffeine is an essential part of the workday, but it can lead to dehydration which makes your body more prone to illness. Consider switching to green tea and drinking plenty of water to keep your body hydrated. Alcohol is also a contributing factor to dehydration, so be sure to limit your intake to ensure your body is healthy enough to fend off viruses.
• Practice simple procedures – Cough into your elbow and sneeze into your sleeve. Also, remember to wash your hands frequently and thoroughly and use hand sanitizer often, especially after touching items and areas prone to germs. For example, at the Medical College of Wisconsin hand sanitizer “stations” are strategically placed at major hallway intersections and in large gathering spaces throughout the facility.
• Keep workspaces clean and sanitized – Germs spread rapidly, so keep frequently-used office items clean and sanitized. Items such as microwaves, door handles and phones are breeding grounds for germs and viruses. Encourage employees and coworkers to sanitize personal workspaces and keyboards.
• Stay home – If you are ill, stay home. Managers should encourage employees to stay home when they are ill to prevent the spread of germs to others and allow their team to be more productive throughout the season. According to John Horky, the “HR Guy”  at Kahler Slater, just about everyone has the capacity to work effectively from home for brief periods since much of their work is in “virtual space.”
• Promote wellness – Start a wellness newsletter and/or E-mail blast to provide wellness tips and motivation to maintain healthy lifestyles for employees. At SF Analytical Labs, awareness and educational posters inform employees of prevention tips. Regular wellness updates and tips will encourage wellness practices, as well as demonstrate the company’s interest in employees’ overall health and wellness. At Northwestern Mutual, the onsite health clinic provides direct access for employees to health professionals for their specific health needs.

These are just a few ways to combat illness during this year’s cold and flu season, keeping employees healthy and productive. These preventative measures encourage workplace wellness and work towards a broader goal of creating a more vibrant and productive workforce.

 

Janet McMahon is the executive director of Well City Milwaukee, which challenges local businesses to work together toward building healthier communities, starting in the workplace.  For more information, visit www.wellcitymilwaukee.org.

At the outset of the current health care reform process, the country was focused on addressing three things: expanding health insurance access, controlling health care costs and improving health care quality. Sadly, thus far Congress has focused almost exclusively on regulation and rulemaking, and not on addressing the underlying costs of medical care that are driving up premiums and pricing health insurance out of reach of too many businesses, families and individuals.

In fact, the reform bills crafted by both the House of Representatives and the Senate include provisions which do more to exacerbate, rather than correct, the country’s health care shortcomings.

For those who have yet to sort through the details of the reform proposals, here are eight reasons why employees and employers alike should be concerned about the bills being debated in Congress:

1. Employer requirements in the reform bills discourage employment. Both the House and Senate bills place additional requirements on employers that, in many cases, will increase employer costs for each person they employ. For example, the House’s bill includes an 8 percent employer payroll tax that is applied to employers that do not satisfy all of the new requirements. With unemployment at 26-year high, requirements that increase employer costs will only exacerbate the employment challenges in the United States. In fact, a study by the National Federation of Independent Business concluded that a national employer health care mandate would generate a net loss of more than 1.6 million jobs.
2. “Pay or play” mandate could encourage employers to drop coverage. Both bills give employers the option to either continue offering health insurance to employees or drop their existing coverage and pay a tax. Many employers will choose to pay this tax because it is cheaper than the cost of providing health insurance. The Senate tax for a failure to offer health insurance is $750 per year per employee; compare this to the cost of thousands dollars a year to provide health insurance. This means many employees will be forced to buy coverage on their own (which will likely be more expensive than employer-sponsored coverage) or face a tax penalty for not purchasing coverage.
3. Coverage will be more expensive for employees. Both bills will increase costs and reduce benefit flexibility by dictating what kinds of coverage options health insurers can offer businesses. These changes in benefit levels will lead to increased costs for employees.
4. New taxes in Senate bill will drive up the cost of coverage. A multi-billion tax on health insurers is not tax deductible and will result in higher premiums, driving up costs for employees.  Additionally, a new tax on high-cost insurance is based on a formula which will result in more and more employees having to pay the tax each year, including many union members who have bargained for robust health benefits.
5. Government-run plan in the House bill will likely under-pay doctors, hospitals and other medical care providers. Medicare already pays hospitals less than it costs to deliver care, resulting in unpaid expenses being passed on to individuals with private health insurance. A government-run health plan is likely to add to this cost shift, further increasing the cost of health insurance for those with private coverage.
6. A weak individual mandate in both bills, combined with the new insurance rules that will allow individuals to wait until they need medical care to buy insurance, will result in a less healthy insurance pool and higher costs for employees. The proposed reforms only work if all Americans are required to carry some kind of health insurance to ensure risks and costs are fairly distributed. However, the current proposals would allow individuals to purchase coverage only when they are sick or wish to receive health services. Allowing this kind of after-the-fact health insurance purchasing is like allowing someone to buy auto insurance after a crash and have that insurance policy pay for their cost of their car repairs.
7. Higher costs for states in all bills. Many state governments are already buckling under the financial pressure of public programs, and both the Senate and House bills place a partially-unfunded mandate on states to expand their Medicaid programs. Reform must provide cash-strapped states with the resources necessary for this expansion.
8. Weak cost containment in all bills. The focus of reform should be improving quality and controlling costs, yet neither bill makes substantive changes to improve efficiencies within our health care delivery system.

 

While people will differ on the exact details of how health care reform should be structured, no one is debating the fact that we must address the skyrocketing cost of health care before it bankrupts the nation. Yet, a year into this process, Congress has proven time and time again that it would rather tinker around the edges than deliver effective reforms.

My company, Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield, supports efforts to provide universal access to health insurance coverage, but firmly believes health care reform must be done in a way that is both reasonable and sustainable. The bills in Congress fail on both these fronts and run counter to the basic concept of “bending the cost curve” to achieve affordable, sustainable care.

There is still time for Congress to correct the flaws in its health care reform proposals, but it will take the voices of all Americans - from the assembly line worker to the corporate executive - to convince our elected officials to correct course and deliver the kind of reform the country agreed to at the beginning of this process.

Larry Schreiber is the president of Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield in Wisconsin.

Just like in your business, it is important for us at BizTimes Milwaukee to know our customers. That’s why we periodically post survey questions for readers of the BizTimes Daily to answer.

Most of the time, those survey results come back much like we expected, based upon our conversations and other interactions with readers, who tend to be fiscally and socially conservative, with a streak of libertarianism, but with some notable and very forthright progressive exceptions.

For instance, the following unscientific survey results fell pretty much just as we would have presumed they would:

 

• Should the mayor of Milwaukee be allowed to take control of Milwaukee Public Schools? (Yes 67 percent; No 33 percent).
• Do you expect any more layoffs at your company? (Yes, 44 percent; No, 56 percent).
• Will you get vaccinated for the H1N1 virus? (Yes, 45 percent; No, 55 percent).
• When the vaccine for the H1N1 virus becomes available, will your company pay the costs to have employees vaccinated? (Yes, 33 percent; No, 67 percent).
• Are you worried about the financial health of your bank? (Yes, 37 percent; No, 63 percent).
• How much business travel will your company be doing in 2010? (More than in 2009, 47 percent; Less than in 2009, 53 percent).
• How much will your household spend on holiday gifts this year? (More than we did last year, 9 percent; Less than we did last year, 48 percent; About the same as we did last year, 43 percent).

 

Then there are those outlier responses, the ones that seem a bit counterintuitive:

• Should Milwaukee’s Hoan Bridge be replaced? (Yes, 53 percent; No, 47 percent). Comment: I don’t understand the business community’s lukewarm response to defend what has become a major link between downtown and the airport, much less a viable alternative to the freeway congestion. The Hoan also accommodates Milwaukee’s harbor for commerce. Considering the lack of development in the Park East corridor, I would have expected more support for keeping the Hoan Bridge as it is.
• Which airline would you prefer to use the next time you fly? (AirTran Airways, 71 percent; Midwest Airlines; 24 percent; Northwest Airlines, 1 percent; and “other,” 4 percent.) Comment: It is astounding to see how quickly and aggressively AirTran has solidified a customer base here, and it shows the work Republic Airways needs to do to restore Midwest’s brand. (Note, this survey question was asked before Southwest Airlines launched service in Milwaukee.)
• Should marijuana use for medical purposes under the direction of a physician be legalized in Wisconsin? (Yes, 80 percent; No, 20 percent). Comment: This one floored me. Must be that libertarian streak shining through.
• Do you think operation of the Milwaukee County Zoo should be transferred from the county to an independent nonprofit organization? (Yes, 59 percent; No, 41 percent). Comment: I’m a big fan of “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it,” and the county-run zoo and General Mitchell International Airport don’t seem to be broken in any way. In fact, they’re world class.
• Do you believe that access to basic health care in America is a privilege or a right? (It’s a privilege, 36 percent; It’s a right, 64 percent). Comment: This was the most surprising poll result of all. The answers imply overwhelming support for a health care system that provides universal care. My guess is that many readers, like me, would feel uncomfortable arbitrarily deciding which sick American kids go to bed sick tonight untreated and which ones will get medicine and treatment, simply based upon their parents’ level of insurance coverage.

 

Steve Jagler is executive editor of BizTimes Milwaukee.

The Democratic-controlled U.S. House of Representative approved a landmark health care reform bill Saturday night by a 220-215 vote.
President Barack Obama, who went to Capitol Hill earlier on Saturday to lobby moderate Democrats who were wavering, said, "I look forward to signing it into law by the end of the year."
The bill will now go to the U.S. Senate.
BizTimes Milwaukee collected reactions about the legislation from Wisconsin's Congressional delegation and others. Their comments follow. More comments from other officials may be added during the day, and readers are invited comment at the end of the blog:

 

Rep. Tammy Baldwin (D-Madison)
"This is an historic moment for our nation. House passage of H.R. 3962, the Affordable Health Care for America Act, marks the first step toward ensuring health care for all Americans. I truly believe that we'll look back years from now and view the passage of this Act to be as significant as the passage of the Social Security Act in 1935 and the Medicare and Medicaid Act in1965. The bill the House passed today will cover 35 million Americans who currently have no health insurance. This legislation will end the abusive practices of the insurance companies. Your coverage will no longer be denied because of a pre-existing condition. The bill will end the despicable practice of retroactively cancelling your policy at the moment you most need care. It will place caps on out-of-pocket medical expenses so that families dealing with a serious illness will no longer face the prospect of bankruptcy or financial ruin. And it will offer a multitude of other reforms to make our health care system more efficient, less costly, and more effective in preventing illness, restoring, and maintaining good health for you and you family. Health care for all is the issue that brought me into politics and has been a driving force in my work ever since. I am proud of the role that I played in crafting this groundbreaking legislation and will continue to work on improving and strengthening this measure to send the strongest bill possible to the President's desk."

 

Rep. Steve Kagen (D-Appleton), who is a medical doctor
“Tonight, we have taken a bold step forward towards securing the health and safety of all of our families. Working together, we are beginning to fix what is broken in our health care delivery system, guaranteeing that no family will lose their home or need to hold a bake sale just to pay for life-saving treatment. The bill we passed will immediately help senior citizens by beginning to close the Donut Hole in Medicare Part D and eliminating deductibles and co-pays for preventive services in Medicare. It will help everyone in Wisconsin by increasing the number of primary care physicians; securing continued coverage for workers who, through no fault of their own, have lost their jobs; providing immediate help for the uninsured and expanding community health centers ... As someone who has been paying medical malpractice insurance premiums for three decades, I know that we need to fix this problem and strike the right balance. This issue came up frequently in our town hall meetings this summer, and I delivered that message to my colleagues in the House. I listened, came back and helped to write a better bill."

 

Rep. Ron Kind (D-LaCrosse)
"Comprehensive health care reform is long overdue because the current system is unsustainable. The Affordable Health Care for America Act not only makes health care more stable and affordable for those who already have health insurance, but it guarantees access to health insurance coverage for the uninsured, protects consumers, provides security for seniors, and reforms the way we pay for health care from one that is volume driven to one that is value driven. The health care reform bill builds on what works and fixes what doesn’t, offering stability and security to families who are satisfied with their health insurance and providing choices for those who aren’t, without leaving a legacy of debt to our children. Although it’s not perfect, the bill is a good start. As promised, it’s completely paid for. In fact, it reduces the national deficit by $109 billion over the next 10 years and will reduce the cost of care moving forward. I am proud to support the bill. Our current system pays for the number of procedures ordered instead of the quality of care provided; resulting in $700 -800 billion, approximately one third of health care costs, in wasteful spending each year that doesn’t help the patient. We need a value-based reimbursement system that rewards quality and cost-effectiveness. I’ve worked with health care providers in Wisconsin to correct the unfairness of Medicare reimbursement rates that they have been subjected to for so long. Our region is among the lowest reimbursed in the nation, forcing health care providers to shift costs to private plans, resulting in higher costs for patients. We’re fixing that flawed system with this bill, through negotiations I led, to include provisions for historic payment reform that reward the value of care delivered instead of the quantity of care provided. This bill will lead to a more cost effective way to pay for and deliver health care in our country and lower costs in the long run, making health care more affordable for all Americans. I have been assured by Mayo Clinic, Gunderson Lutheran and other health care providers that they will continue to work with me and other Members of both the House and Senate to achieve a final product that moves Medicare toward a model that rewards value. They understand that more of the same is not an acceptable option."

Rep. Gwen Moore (D-Milwaukee)
"With the passage of the House version of health insurance reform legislation, we recognize the government has a moral responsibility to make sure its citizens have access to quality and affordable health care. The health of a country’s population is absolutely critical to its productivity, and it’s about time that the United States got in the game. In my district, the Affordable Health Care for America Act will improve employer-based coverage for 354,000 residents, and provide credits to help pay for coverage to up to 192,000 households. This bill will improve Medicare for 87,000 beneficiaries, including closing the prescription drug donut hole for 6,200 seniors. It will allow 14,600 small businesses to obtain affordable health care coverage and provide tax credits to help reduce health insurance costs for up to 12,300 small businesses. This legislation will create a right to health care that many Americans have never had before, but it also creates a responsibility that all Americans get insurance so that everyone has some skin in the game. At some point, everyone in America accesses the health care system, and whether or not they have insurance, that care is not free. This bill brings 96 percent of Americans into the health care system – 36 million additional people. This is nothing short of transformational."

Rep. Tom Petri (R-Fond du Lac)
"I think the vote was a tragedy. The bill, when it is finally implemented, will be a killer of jobs and of economic growth. It is going to mean our unemployment will be higher rather than lower, and I think people are going to be shocked when they learn how much more they are going to be paying in premiums for the insurance that they get - especially young people and middle-aged people. There will be real increases in the cost of health care for an awful lot of Americans. Now, I think one thing we have to remember is that this is not final passage. The bill goes to the Senate and will have to go to a conference. There are many hurdles that still have to be passed."

Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Janesville)
"I firmly believe that this is the most consequential vote each of us will take in our service here in Congress. When you expose this bill’s budget gimmicks, does it increase the debt and deficit? Yes. Will it take coverage away from seniors, raise premiums for families, and decrease health care innovation? Yes. Will it raise taxes on small businesses and workers, and cost us nearly 5.5 million jobs when our unemployment rate is 10.2 percent? Yes. Does this bill mean the government will take over running our health care system? Yes. But what is worse is this bill replaces the American Idea with a European-style social welfare state. This bill – more than any other decision we are going to make in this body – will lead to millions of Americans becoming dependents on the state rather than being dependent upon themselves. This is not about health care policy – if it were, we could pass a bipartisan bill to fix what’s broken in health care without breaking what’s working in health care. This is about ideology. “The choice is not whether or not you’re going to stick with your party leaders. The choice here is what side of history do you want to be on? Will you be on the side of history where you stick with the people and the principles that built this exceptional nation? That is the choice we face."

Rep. F. James Sensenbrenner (R-Menomonee Falls)
"The U.S. Constitution declares 'we the people,' not 'we the government.' Yet, with tonight's late night passage of H.R. 3962, the House voted in favor of a government takeover of health care that will raise taxes, cut health care services, and perhaps most alarming, set our nation on a dangerous path in which the government encroaches on our lives even more. In the last few days, we've learned the government couldn't foresee the real cost of Cash for Clunkers and the stimulus package did little to stimulate job growth - and now, the same leaders who brought us these programs are taking over health care with more red tape, increased taxes and additional mandates. Like these programs, with health care, we don't know when the spending will end or how high the final costs will go beyond the estimates. Health care needs to be reformed in our country, but Speaker Pelosi's 2,000 page health care overhaul bill is the wrong way to do it. H.R. 3962 is the wrong prescription for America. This bill makes care more expensive and less available, while hurting Wisconsinites and harming Wisconsin businesses. This legislation chips away at the independence our Founding Fathers fought for, and replaces it with citizens being dependent on their government for care. I hope Senators Kohl and Feingold have a better understanding of the principles of democracy when they consider health care legislation on the Senate floor."

Susan Eckerly, senior vice president of the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB)
"Small business owners are outraged that their elected representatives voted to pass a health care bill that fails to lower costs, increase choice and provide real competition for America’s small businesses.  Instead, this bill will actually make things worse, not better. With unemployment at a 26-year high, the punitive employer mandates and atrocious new taxes will force small business owners to eliminate jobs and freeze expansion plans at a time when our nation’s economy needs small business to thrive. There is no question that this bill will have devastating consequences for small business owners, their employees and the country’s economic recovery. As we have said since its original introduction, H.R. 3962 is not the kind of reform America’s small businesses need or want. Small businesses have long supported reform that provides more affordable and accessible healthcare options for them and their workers. Instead of listening to small businesses, the House passed a bill that will actually make things worse for small firms. Punishing small employers with employer mandates, payroll taxes and a new government-run program paid for on the backs of small businesses, will not fix our broken healthcare system. H.R. 3962 represents a failed opportunity to help small business owners with their No. 1 problem – skyrocketing health care costs. As the health care debate moves to the Senate floor, NFIB hopes senators will consider legislation that actually makes addressing the needs of small businesses a top priority. This begins with enacting
responsible insurance market reforms and increasing competition in the small group and individual private market by creating an exchange modeled on the SHOP Act. It means allowing national benefit plans to be purchased across state lines – something long supported by small business. And, it means making certain that they do so in a way that doesn’t increase the cost of doing business for our small businesses. We have said repeatedly that we remain committed to trying to support reform efforts that will provide more affordable and accessible healthcare options for small employers and their workers. No one needs reform more."

 

Bruce Josten, U.S. Chamber of Commerce
"With the passage of H.R. 3962, the health care bill, the House missed a significant opportunity to advance reasonable and meaningful health reform that fundamentally changes how the health care system operates and changes the overall upward trajectory in spending.  American employers and employees want an improvement in the nation's health care system, not an unsustainable, unaffordable overhaul. Friday's news that unemployment has reached double digits for the first time in 26 years should have been a wake-up call for those considering job-stifling tax increases and employer mandates included in the House health care bill. Expanding coverage is an imperative; it is also imperative that the nation is moving on a credible and sustainable fiscal path. Unfortunately, in addition to the massive new tax burdens on individuals and small business owners, the health care reform bill just passed by the House of Representatives fails the crucial test of reducing the soaring cost of health coverage for businesses or individuals. We urge the Senate to listen to the American people and reject the House’s partisan approach to health care."

Robert Kraig, executive director of Citizen Action of Wisconsin
"It is very rare that a vote can be called 'historic,' but the vote Saturday night certainly was. Despite health care reform efforts that go all the way back to Theodore Roosevelt, this is the first time that any comprehensive health care reform bill has ever been passed by either house of Congress. By a narrow margin that would have been shifted by a change in 3 votes, Congress has taken a great step for the people of Wisconsin in passing the Affordable Health Care for America Act. Those who voted yes proved they were on the side of the American people and not the big insurance companies and special interests that have been working overtime to try and kill meaningful health care reform. Because of the strong support from members of the Wisconsin Congressional delegation to do what is right for their constituents, we can look forward to having more affordable health coverage with good, comprehensive benefits, and true choice and competition in the health insurance marketplace."

Erin Musgrave, Small Business Majority
"The passage today of H.R. 3962 by the US House of Representatives was historic. We are finally within reach of effecting real change—change that has been hard fought, is long overdue and essential to small businesses’ survival.  Providing America’s 28 million small business owners with high-quality, affordable healthcare got one huge step closer to becoming a reality today. Small business owners have been mired in a healthcare system that burdens them with inordinate costs, threatens their competitiveness and discourages entrepreneurship. Economic research we released in June shows that without healthcare reform, small business owners will pay nearly $2.4 trillion over the next 10 years to provide health insurance for their employees. Clearly, the cost of doing nothing is too high, and failing to pass healthcare reform legislation this year is unacceptable. We’re pleased to see adjustments to the bill that will benefit small businesses in particular. These include short-term relief through a high-risk pool set to start in 2010, requiring insurers to justify premium increases to discourage price gouging, a requirement that health plans spend at least 85 percent of premium dollars on medical care and individual plans available in the exchange that would save the 22 million self-employed 25 percent on their premiums in 2016. These provisions, along with tax credits, a robust national exchange and strong market reform—specifically the elimination of preexisting condition rules—will go a long way toward getting small businesses the relief they desperately need. With that said, there’s still more work to do. As we await the final Senate bill, it is imperative that all stakeholders remain constructively engaged and focused on enacting comprehensive healthcare reform this year. There are good provisions in the Senate bill that can be merged with H.R. 3962 to improve the final bill—specifically additional measures to lower costs. Today was a good day for small business and America, and we must maintain this momentum if we are to succeed. We’ve come too far to stop now."

 

Robert Nesse, M.D., president and CEO, Franciscan Skemp Healthcare (La Crosse), Mayo Health System
"The status quo is not acceptable. What we see in health care right now in the United States is tremendous amounts of duplication of services that are not necessary. About 30 percent of the money we spend on health care could be saved if we were all practicing at the best standards of quality and efficiency. The House bill’s provision calling for an Institute of Medicine study and recommendations will move us in the right direction. I look forward to continue working with Congressman Kind to achieve a final product that moves Medicare toward a model that rewards value."

 

David Newby, president of Wisconsin AFL-CIO
"When the House of Representatives passed the Affordable Health Care for America Act, working families found out who their real friends are, and Rep. Moore is at the top of the list. Residents of the fourth congressional district can be proud that Rep. Moore cast one of the deciding votes to put us closer than we have been in the last 60 years to achieving real health insurance reform. Rep. Moore has been a champion for health care reform. In voting for the Affordable Health Care for America Act, Rep. Moore stood up to the insurance company fat cats who have fought so hard to maintain the status quo. She said 'no' to insurance company denials and discriminations due to pre-existing conditions. She said 'no' to the insurance company stranglehold on 94 percent of the markets and told insurance companies they now have to compete. Rep. Moore said ‘yes’ to fairness, competition, security and stability in our health care system. She voted for a plan that provides health insurance to 96 percent of Americans, pays for itself, and reduces the deficit. Saturday’s vote was a rare vote of conscience that distinguished which members of Congress truly represent the will of the people. We thank Rep. Moore for standing with the working men and women who sent her to Washington and we will honor her commitment by continuing to stand with her. It is very exciting that we are so close to winning genuine health insurance reform and we will redouble our efforts to finish the job."

 

Derrick Plummer, Democratic Party spokesman
"It's disappointing, but not surprising that Rep. Ryan chose to stand with the insurance companies instead of Wisconsinites. Today, Rep. Ryan voted against a historic bill which will protect Wisconsinites from unfair insurance company practices and will provide coverage for millions of Americans. But standing on the side of insurance company CEOs and the far right wing or the Republican Party isn’t just bad policy, it’s bad politics. Rep. Ryan can be rest assured that after voting against health insurance reform today, the people of the 1st Congressional District will not be voting for Rep. Ryan next November."

 

Barry Rand, CEO of AARP
"AARP is pleased that the House has passed the Affordable Health Care for American Act. This bill meets our goals of improving Medicare's benefits and making critical health insurance market reforms that make coverage more affordable. Our nation is now closer than ever to a health care system that actually works for all Americans. For too long, insurance companies have taken advantage of discriminatory practices to cherry pick the most profitable customers. And for too long, the high costs of prescription drugs have forced seniors to choose between their medications and other necessities. We must fix this broken, inequitable system. This legislation protects Medicare and ensures that it will be there for today's seniors and for the future generations. The bill makes prescription drugs more affordable for people in Medicare by closing the program's dangerous gap in drug coverage and allowing Medicare to negotiate lower drug prices. It adds cost-free preventive services like cancer screenings and cracks down on waste and fraud to protect and strengthen traditional Medicare benefits. In addition, the legislation provides benefits to help seniors and people with disabilities live in their own homes and communities by establishing the Community Living Assistance Services and Supports (CLASS) program. For all Americans, especially those age 50 to 64 who often struggle to find affordable insurance, this plan strictly limits how much more insurance companies can charge based on age, and stops insurers from denying coverage based on a person's health history or gender. For those who still cannot find affordable coverage on their own, this bill offers help so they can purchase insurance. We thank those representatives who voted for this landmark legislation, and we urge those members who did not support health care reform tonight to reconsider the needs of their constituents when this issue returns to the House for a final vote."

 

J. James Rohack, M.D., president of the American Medical Association
"The AMA hails the passage of the House health reform bill, which will help improve the health system for patients and physicians and calls for swift passage of H.R. 3961 to secure the stability of the Medicare program. Passage of the House health reform bill is a big step forward as we work for comprehensive health reform this year. The AMA will continue its work with Congress and the administration to strengthen and improve health reform legislation as the process continues for patients and physicians. The bill will significantly expand health insurance coverage to Americans; empower patient and physician decision making; institute meaningful insurance market reforms; make substantial investments in quality; institute prevention and wellness initiatives; provide incentives to states that adopt certificate of merit and/or early offer liability reforms, and reduce administrative burdens. As Congress considers new coverage commitments to the American people through health reform, it must ensure that commitments already made are fulfilled through passage of the Medicare Physician Payment Reform Act of 2009 (H.R. 3961). This bill will permanently repeal the broken physician payment formula and preserve access to care for seniors, baby boomers and military families."

Out of all the public programs I get wrangled into emceeing or moderating during the course of the year, the BizTimes Health Care Heroes Awards program is undoubtedly my favorite. That's because the winners of the awards tend to be real people - make that real humble people - who are just doing the right things that make this world a better place.

Do you know someone who is making a positive difference on the front lines of health care? BizTimes Milwaukee is accepting nominations for the 2009 Health Care Heroes Awards, honoring companies, individuals and organizations for their contributions to improving health care in southeastern Wisconsin.

Health Care Heroes Awards honor those who epitomize the spirit embodied in the word "hero" in the delivery of health care to the community. The goals of the program are to recognize excellence, promote innovation, encourage emulation of successful programs, educate the general public, contribute to the enhancement of the value and quality of health care and, ultimately, give recognition to those deserving.

Entries are judged on accomplishments in the following categories:

• Corporate Achievement in Health Care - Honors a company that has successfully implemented an innovative health benefits plan or a company that has solved an acknowledged problem in health care administration. Judges will consider the uniqueness of a benefits plan, its popularity among enrollees, its cost-effectiveness, the complexity of the problem solved and the effectiveness of the solution or solutions.
• Advancements in Health Care - Honors a company, organization or individual primarily responsible for a scientific discovery or for development of a new procedure, device or service that can save lives or improve quality of life. Judges will consider the potential impact of the innovation.
• Community Service - Honors an individual or organization for leadership in focusing on solving a particular health care issue.
• Physician - Honors a physician whose performance on the job is considered exemplary by patients and peers. Judges will consider evidence of positive clinical outcomes, patient satisfaction and testimonials from peers and administrators.
• Nurse - Honors an individual from the nursing field whose performance on the job is considered exemplary by patients, peers and physicians.
• Health Care Staff - Honors an individual who works in the health care field and is committed to providing quality comfort and care. Winners could include therapists, technical support staff, specialists, certified nursing assistants, activity assistants, caregivers, etc.
• Volunteer - Honors an individual who has done volunteer work for the good of one or more people or the entire community. Involvement can be past and/or present.

Nominees must perform their service in Milwaukee, Waukesha, Kenosha, Racine, Walworth, Ozaukee, Washington or Sheboygan counties.

 

Recipients of the Health Care Heroes Awards will be profiled in a special section of an upcoming issue of BizTimes Milwaukee and will be honored at a breakfast on Thursday, Dec. 10, at the Crowne Plaza Milwaukee Hotel in Wauwatosa.

To nominate a person or an organization for a Health Care Heroes Award, visit www.biztimes.com/hero.

 

Steve Jagler is executive editor of BizTimes Milwaukee.

In the midst of the Great Recession, the most serious economic downturn since the Great Depression, companies are clamoring for ways to cut costs, particularly when it comes to skyrocketing health benefits.

There are a number of measures employers can take to stretch their benefit dollars further and realize cost savings with investment in wellness infrastructure. Although counterintuitive, now is the time to make investments in employee wellness.

While improving employee health is a concern among businesses as a matter of corporate social responsibility, perhaps the greatest motivator for companies to invest in employee wellness programs is to decrease corporate health care expenses. Approximately 50 percent of injury and illness costs are lifestyle-related, according to the Partnership for Prevention's Healthy Workforce 2010, presenting significant opportunities to improve productivity and reduce costs.

Improving and promoting employee wellness boosts productivity by making people happier and healthier, and it can reduce insurance premiums for companies if healthier employees are filing fewer medical claims. Case studies suggest that for every $1 spent on wellness programs, a company can save approximately $4 on health insurance costs.  For example, employees who report having high blood glucose levels have 35-percent higher expenditures than an individual who does not, and employees at extremely high or low body weight have 21 percent higher expenditures than individuals who do not, according to the Health Enhancement Research Organization.

Worksite wellness programs are showing a significant return on investment among companies across the U.S., including:

• Johnson & Johnson's Healthy People program, which saves an estimated $9 to $10 million per year from reduced medical utilization and lower administrative expenses.
• Citibank's comprehensive health management program, which demonstrates for every dollar invested in programming activities, $4.56 to $4.73 was saved in reduced health care costs.
• Union Pacific Railroad's medical self-care program, which shows a cost savings of $2.78 for every dollar invested by reducing inappropriate emergency room and outpatient visits.

Here in Milwaukee, Robert W. Baird & Co. Inc. launched its wellness program in 2006. In the past three years, Baird's health care cost trend has decreased from 13 percent per year to 7 percent per year, and it is expected to be lower in 2010 as well. In addition, preventable health risks, which are closely associated with health care costs, have decreased for Baird employees.

 

There are many organizations in Milwaukee taking steps to help encourage workplace wellness and work toward a broader goal of creating a more vibrant and productive workforce. Baird is a member of Well City Milwaukee, a workplace wellness-focused coalition of local employers, led by the City of Milwaukee, the Greater Milwaukee Committee and the Metropolitan Milwaukee Association of Commerce. More than 50 local employers are working together through Well City Milwaukee to achieve a Well City USA designation for our city, creating a call-to-action for all employers, large and small, to work together by investing in workplace wellness.

I urge employers to make a commitment to improving the health and quality of life of the workforce and their families. Not only is the workplace a logical venue to encourage and support healthy lifestyles, but workplace wellness is the right business strategy to achieve bottom-line results that can significantly reduce health care and benefit costs. It is clear that investing in an employee wellness infrastructure is a win-win for all.

 

Janet McMahon is the executive director of Well City Milwaukee. For more information about Well City Milwaukee, visit www.wellcitymilwaukee.org.

Strong emotion surrounding the health care reform debate makes it difficult to consider the facts. Laden with political rhetoric, it's difficult for any of us to roll up our sleeves and carefully conduct a cost/benefit analysis, which is common in corporate environments prior to making important and costly decisions.

I believe that system reform must reduce costs while also improving the user experience.  As a business executive, I know this is possible.

In my role, I view health care reform from two perspectives - as an employer and as a service provider to a health care industry facing enormous change.

As an employer, I see how the current system dramatically impacted health care coverage for our employees. Our insurance premiums skyrocketed after a few catastrophic cancer-related claims. In the end, we had to drop our group insurance because premiums were prohibitively expensive. Therefore, pre-existing conditions negatively affect certain employees who seek to purchase private policies.

We need a solution that increases both accessibility and affordability for employers like us.

As a service provider, I have seen health care providers use technology to become more efficient, reduce costs and improve results. We have worked with patient-centric providers who are changing their billing practices to improve service for patients and at the same time reduce costs.

Health care billing is an area that confounds most patients and has failed to keep pace with today's technology. For example, suppose a patient is admitted to the hospital for knee surgery. After the surgery, the mail begins to pile up from the physician, the hospital, the lab, the physical therapist, and others. Patients can be overwhelmed and confused when they are sent so many bills after receiving care in one location.

If patients have a question, they may need to call multiple locations for answers and, adding to the confusion, the customer service representatives cannot access the actual statements that were sent.

While this is the way it works for most providers, it isn't true for every health care organization. Bellin Health of Green Bay is so focused on improving the patient experience that they re-imagined the entire billing process. Bellin first combined invoices for hospital, behavioral health and most clinic facilities onto one, easy-to-read statement.

Patients can view these statements online through their secured patient portal; they can also pay online. Patients can even view their current outstanding balance online within 48 hours of transactions completed. Further, Bellin consolidated their internal customer service departments, so patients have a single point of contact for answering questions across facilities and providers. And those exact same patient statements are available online for Bellin's service representatives to field patient questions. Revolutionary.

Electronic statements are not new. Our banks, phone companies, and other institutions with our confidential information have been doing this securely for years. In fact, most consumers expect to be able to "go online" to see activities and amounts due, and they are surprised when an organization does not offer this service.

Yet, unlike other industries, patient-friendly health care billing information is not widely accessible online.

Why is that? It's primarily because health care providers have focused their technology resources on assuring portable electronic medical records, a federal mandate by 2010. Of course, medical record portability is important.Yet Bellin managed to improve the billing process at the same time.

Our health care system needs to be streamlined.  As we move forward with reform, there are significant ways that technology can improve patient access to information that will help inform decisions. Using technology, I know we can improve results and reduce costs in many areas of our system.

In more ways than one, I have a vested interest for reform that doesn't mean "worse." It can and must mean "better."

Ane Ohm is president of Green Bay-based LaserNet, a print and mail services company that also has an office in West Allis.

Prevention and early detection are the keys to fighting breast cancer. Yet many women are putting off breast cancer screenings due to economic hardships and changing health care plans, according to a community profile commissioned by Susan G. Komen for the Cure's Milwaukee affiliate.

"Prevention in these economic times kind of falls by the wayside," said Jessica Bergstrom, associate researcher for the Center of Urban Population Health, a partnership of the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, Aurora Health Care and the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.

This should be a significant concern for businesses. 

The price can be high as employees lose substantial time at work as they go through treatment if breast cancer is not caught in its early stages. Any business is adversely affected by employee absences, but this is also a matter of saving lives.

It is also more cost-effective to catch breast cancer early, when lower levels of treatment are needed. That's why screening is so important.

Underwritten by Aurora Health Care, the community profile covered the Milwaukee Komen affiliate's eight-county area of southeastern Wisconsin, showed that:

Under-insured women - those with high deductibles, high co-pays and age restrictions - often skip screening because of the cost or because they cannot afford time off work.

There is a need for more free mammograms and financial support for screening.

Uninsured and under-insured women require preventative care that is often not available to them because of financial and work-related factors.

More focus on preventative care is needed.

The stakes are high for both women and businesses in southeastern Wisconsin, as more than 1,300 women will be diagnosed with breast cancer by the end of 2009. Of those, more than 260 will die. Milwaukee, Waukesha and Racine Counties have both the highest incidence and highest mortality rates.

It is important for screening to be readily available to all women regardless of their insurance status. The barriers to early detection simply must fall, and businesses can play a role by encouraging employees to get screened and requiring health insurers to provide screening coverage and preventative care.

Based on the findings of the community profile, Komen for the Cure Milwaukee Affiliate recommends:

• Regular testing - screening tests and clinical breast exams - lowers the risk of dying from breast cancer.
• Early diagnosis. As screening increases, it is crucial that women have access to diagnostic tests following an abnormal breast cancer screening to ensure early diagnosis.
• Continuum of care throughout treatment. Treatment plans vary for each woman, depending on a number of factors. It is important that women receive proper support throughout her treatment to address all of her needs.

Screening and treatment of breast cancer can save lives. But it can also save businesses lost employee productivity and possibly the cost of increasing health insurance premiums, especially for smaller businesses.
Screening and testing for breast cancer needs to be readily available to all women. It's good for employees. And it's good for business.

Sally Sheperdson is executive director of Susan G. Komen for the Cure, Milwaukee Affiliate.

The health care debate continues with the latest statistics indicating the majority of Americans like the healthcare they have. Eighty percent of the population has health care provided through their employer, and of those people, 70 percent rate their health care as good or excellent.

Knowing that, is an extreme makeover of health care really needed?

The State of Wisconsin ranks third in the nation for number of residents with health insurance. We’re garnering attention from federal and state legislators who feel that perhaps we have a model for health care modernization.
Having recently been in Washington to meet with our congressmen and their legislative leads for health care, I can tell you that things are changing by the hour. There are real reform opportunities and modernization that can help address both access and cost without creating a new overwhelming federal bureaucracy. 

The State of Wisconsin has programs that have demonstrated they can work, including BadgerCare, BadgerCare Plus, Senior Care and HIRSP (Health Insurance Risk Sharing Pool which offers health care to residents who are unable to find adequate health insurance coverage in the private market due to their medical conditions or who have lost their employer-sponsored group health insurance).

By leveraging an undeniably successful program in HIRSP, where all stakeholders contribute equally, we believe we can stabilize the "guarantee issue" (which means individuals must be able to obtain health insurance regardless of their health history), in the small group market by bending the cost curve and providing multi-year rate guarantees.

The programs that have been in place in the State of Wisconsin for years prove that we can effectively insure more individuals while controlling costs. Representatives at both the federal and state level are starting to promote moving this idea forward.

The government says they need to keep private industry honest, but who is going to keep any potential public program honest and affordable to those who already have health insurance coverage?

The public options referenced above still need to be refined to pay the physicians and hospitals equitably when compared to private plans and eliminate fraud. Let's address what needs fixing in the existing public options and use the proven Wisconsin model to reform health care in the country. This approach worked successfully with welfare reform.

Let us pursue reformed health care that leverages existing programs, and not a government takeover or extreme makeover of our health care system.

 

Daniel Burkwald is president of Burkwald & Associates Inc. Pewaukee-based provider of consulting on employee  benefits, communication,  education and wellness.

The health care debate truly came alive in August. Over the past two weeks, my employers - the residents of Wisconsin's First Congressional District - demonstrated a remarkable level of engagement on this critical issue, along with considerable respect for all sides of the debate.

I want to thank the thousands of Wisconsinites who shared their views with me at one of my health care listening sessions throughout Southern Wisconsin.

When Congress reconvenes this week, I will bring with me a message made clear at each of my listening sessions: let's fix what's broken in health care; not break what's working.  Wisconsinites have expressed a number of serious concerns with H.R. 3200, the Majority's health care overhaul: millions of Americans would lose their current coverage and be dumped on a new government-run plan; Washington bureaucrats would seize unprecedented decision-making power over their health; and a struggling economy would be hit with painful new taxes and a debt burden that we simply cannot afford.

I believe that Congress should scrap this bill and start over. I will continue to echo the calls from Wisconsinites that the status quo in health care is unsustainable and unacceptable. Contrary to the false choice offered by the President, nobody is defending the current system that keeps quality, affordable coverage out of reach for millions of Americans, has resulted in the explosion in health care costs, and causes Americans with preexisting conditions to be denied coverage. There are serious problems that need to be fixed, but the Majority's go-it-alone approach to give more power to Washington would only make matters worse.

At each listening session, my employers expressed more fundamental concerns about the proper role of government in our economy and in our lives. Wisconsinites are rightfully anxious about the unprecedented growth in the federal government this past year - from trillion dollar spending bills and bailout fatigue to a budget that doubles our debt in five years and triples it in ten years. Most of us simply can't stomach handing over our energy and health care sectors to the federal government as well.

Washington has been infected with an ideology that believes that for society to grow, government must grow. The American ideal - rooted in individual liberty, self-determination, and limited government - is under attack like never before. This is the real issue bringing record numbers to town hall meetings across the country, and Washington needs to wake up to this reality if we are to preserve our unique American identity and restore the promise and prosperity of this great nation.

Those that run Washington owe the American people a serious debate on health care this fall. There are better solutions - fiscally-responsible, patient-centered alternatives - that could help open a bipartisan chapter to this debate and bring about real reform.

 

U.S. Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Janesville) represents Wisconsin's 1st Congressional District.