Arlington, VA. GPBCH employer members qualify for a special discounted rate of $995 ($800 off) to attend the Summit. Hosted by The Leapfrog Group, this first-ever National Health Care Ratings Summit will bring together purchasers, providers, payors and consumer advocates to explore best practices for engaging consumers in using health care ratings effectively, as well as strategies for providers that use ratings for improvement.

Speakers include leaders of the 5 ratings agencies themselves as well as quality measurement experts, health system leaders, purchasing executives from Fortune 100 companies and disruptors driving positive change. Some sessions include: Designing Ratings to Engage Consumers, Leading with Transparency: A Purchaser Perspective on the Future of Health Care, and Using Ratings for Quality Improvement. Visit the Summit website to view the full agenda.

Please join us for our November member education program, focused on a topic of great importance to employers – how to apply a population health approach to managing diabetes. Our guest speaker is Dr. Scott Conard, a physician executive nationally known for his work in advancing population health management and health outcomes improvement.

Dr. Conard will review the principles of population health and then discuss how employers can support diabetes management initiatives in a population health framework. The population health section of the presentation is being sponsored by Merck.

Accountable Care Organizations (ACO’s) have the potential to transform healthcare delivery, improve quality of care, and lower costs, by improving the provider community’s focus on service coordination, patient engagement and improvement of population health. At this session we’ll learn more about the ACO model and how it is being implemented by several of the region’s leading healthcare provider organizations and health insurers. We’ll also discuss implications for employers, including new health plan models, payment models, and potential for direct contracting. We’ve assembled a stellar panel for what is sure to be an informative and important discussion:

• Katherine Schneider, MD, President, Delaware Valley ACO
• Steve Kolesk, MD, Senior Vice President, Clinical Integration, Virtua
• Dan Elliott, MD, Medical Director, Christiana Care Quality Partners
• G. David Cronan, Vice President, Reimbursement Strategy and Contracting, Children’s Hospital of -Philadelphia
• Randy Solomon, Vice President, Network Strategy and Value-based Contracting Growth, Aetna
• Richard Snyder, MD, Senior Vice President Health Services, IBC

Thank you to Aetna for sponsoring the event. Hope to see you there.

The GPBCH Annual Wellness Summit will focus on “Stress and Pain”. The first half of the program will examine the role of stress on physical health and well-being and on service utilization and costs, and will then showcase employer solutions to managing stress, including mindfulness training, Mental Health First Aid, and web- and app-based technologies. The “pain” portion of the agenda will review information on the impact of pain and opioid abuse on worker health, and provide practical advice for employers for looking at their data, offering effective treatment programs and resources, and identifying community-based resources to support their efforts. Click on the Eventbrite link below to register.

Introduction and Welcoming Remarks: Neil Goldfarb, President and CEO, GPBCH

Stress: Epidemiology, Impact and Mitigation Strategies: Jeffrey Greeson, PhD, Assistant Professor, Rowan University

Mindfulness: Cara Bradley, Founder, Verge BodyMind Center

Managing the Workplace Impact of Caregiver Stress: Jane Meier Hamilton, MSN, RN, Founder and CEO, Partners on the Path

The Role of the EAP in Supporting Stress Management: Matt Verdecchia, Senior Trainer, Organizational Development, Health Advocate

Lunch Activity: So You Think you Know Wellness?: Al Lewis, CEO and Quizmeister-in-Chief, Quizzify

Overview of the Opioid Epidemic: Epidemiology, Economics, and Strategies: Harry Kovelman, MD, Vice President for Medical Affairs, Pacira Pharmaceuticals

Opioid Prescribing Issues in the Workforce: David Singer, PharmD, Janssen Outcomes Research Fellow

Movement Break: Kelli McIntyre, Physical Activity Coordinator, Get Healthy Philly & Anna Petruncio Nelson, Health Educator, Get Healthy Philly

Addressing the Opioid Epidemic - Public Health and Employer Perspectives in Philadelphia: Jeffrey Hom, MD, MPH, Policy Advisor, Philadelphia Department of Public Health & Marsha Greene-Jones, Deputy Director, Human Resources, City of Philadelphia

Join us on July 19th in the Western Suburbs to hear from Health Advocate and Accolade on Best Practices in Care Coordination.

The Issues

-Poor care coordination can result in lower employee productivity, poor health outcomes, and higher costs

-The US has the highest rate of poor primary care coordination in 11 countries surveyed*

-Adults with poor primary care coordination are more likely to be hospitalized or visit the ER*

-Inadequate management of care transitions was responsible for $25 to $45 billion in wasteful spending in 2011 through avoidable complications and unnecessary hospital readmissions**

What You'll Learn

Healthcare Navigation organizations offer employers solutions utilizing personalized patient advocacy, data and technology to provide clinical support and care coordination for their employees and dependents. This approach can result in improved outcomes, reduced costs and increased employee productivity and satisfaction. Our presenters from Health Advocate and Accolade will discuss their best practice approaches and case studies from Severn Trent and AmeriGas for employers to address problems with care coordination and take away actionable solutions.

Contact Eric Croft at about registration.

Full Presentations

- Accolade:

- Severn Trent:

- Health Advocate:

References:

* J. Penm, N. J. MacKinnon, S. M. Strakowski, J. Ying, and M. M. Doty, “Minding the Gap: Factors Associated with Primary Care Coordination of Adults in 11 Countries,” Annals of Family Medicine, March/April 2017 15(2):113–19.

** Health Policy Brief: Care Transitions,” Health Affairs, September 13, 2012.

Sessions will highlight the work of organizations including the Health Transformation Alliance, the National Alliance of Healthcare Purchaser Coalitions, Health Share Exchange of Southeastern Pennsylvania, the Better Medicare Alliance and The Leapfrog Group, and employers including Campbell Soup, GE, and Pepsico, as they seek to drive health system and payment reform, and improve the value of the health benefits spend.

Conference Agenda (Presentations Included)

7:30am – 8:30am: Registration and Continental Breakfast; exhibits open

8:30am – 8:45am: Welcome and Overview of the Day -- Neil Goldfarb, President and CEO, GPBCH

8:45am – 9:25am: How the Health Transformation Alliance Hopes to Shake Things Up – Rob Andrews, CEO, Health Transformation Alliance

9:25am – 10:00am: How the Philadelphia Region’s Data Collaborative is Expediting Improvement – Marty Lupinetti, CEO, Health Share Exchange

10:00am – 10:30am: Networking Break; exhibits open

10:30am – 11:00am: The Role of Employers and Business Coalitions in Promoting Change – Mike Thompson, CEO, National Alliance of Healthcare Purchaser Coalitions

11:00am – 12:00pm: Panel Discussion: Disruption in Washington and Implications for Employers

• Allyson Y. Schwartz, CEO, Better Medicare Alliance

• Rob Andrews, CEO, Health Transformation Alliance

• Mike Thompson, CEO, National Alliance of Healthcare Purchaser Coalitions

• Ed Leeds, Counsel, Ballard Spahr

12:00pm – 12:45pm: Lunch and exhibits

12:45pm – 1:30pm: Advancing Hospital Safety: Lessons from Top Performers – Jill Hutt, Director of Member Services, GPBCH, and James Brexler, President and CEO, Doylestown Hospital

1:30pm – 2:20pm: Panel Discussion: Unhealthy Communities, Unhealthy Employees

• Kim Fortunato, President, Campbell Soup Foundation

• Robert Wells, Executive Director Healthymagination Strategy, GE

• Lawrence Bowdish, Director, Research and Food Security, US Chamber of Commerce Foundation

2:20pm – 3:15pm: Employer Showcase: GPBCH Health Benefits Innovation Award Winners

• AmeriGas, Andy Rosa, Director HR, Benefits and Workforce Health

• Camden County, Jim Rhodes, Deputy County Administrator

• Drexel University, Monica Fauble, Wellness Administrator

• Toll Brothers, Diane Hoff, Senior Benefits Manager

3:15pm – 3:30pm: Break

3:30pm – 4:30pm: GPBCH Members Only: Annual Meeting and Strategic Discussion

4:30pm: Adjournment

At our recent College for Value-based Purchasing Program on Determining Drug Value from the Employer’s Perspective, our faculty consultants suggested that employers consider carving out prior authorization activities for specialty pharmaceuticals, in order to improve appropriate utilization and manage drug spend. In order to learn more about the rationale for this approach, and the evidence of impact on utilization on cost, we've arranged this webinar with Health Information Designs, one of the leading prior authorization vendors. The presentation is intended to provide an educational overview, not a sales pitch. All are welcome.

In case you were unable to attend the webinar, Health Information Designs wanted to provide our members with their .

Cancer is rapidly changing from a terminal illness to a chronic disease. As the number of cancer survivors in the workplace continues to grow, there is increased need for resources and support that will help survivors manage work-life balance, and help employers manage employee health, productivity, and well-being. Our guest speaker, being provided through a sponsorship from Pfizer, will be Christine Brennan, Associate Director of Programs at Cancer & Careers (www.cancerandcareers.org). Chrissy oversees many of the organization’s educational programs and events. John Dornan, Executive Director of the CEO Roundtable on Cancer, will speak about the CEO Cancer Gold Standard accreditation program which recognizes employers that implement a comprehensive approach to cancer prevention and quality care. Karen Walters, Clinical Services Support Director at Independence Blue Cross, will share her organization's experience in attaining CEO Cancer Gold Standard accreditation.

In collaboration with the Colorado Business Group on Health, the National Alliance of Healthcare Purchaser Coalitions – the organization representing coalitions like GPBCH – has announced two one-day back-to-back national summits on subjects of interest to many employers and healthcare system stakeholders: mental health, and wellbeing. April 25th will focus on workplace mental health and how employers can address the cost of healthcare through workplace programs. April 26th will focus on getting beyond “wellness” and into “wellbeing” - how employers can help themselves by taking a bigger, broader approach to health. GPBCH members can register at a discounted rate of $375 for both events, or $275 for either day’s program.

Join Employers Health for this popular session that explores common challenges in managing pharmacy benefits.

Gain insight on PBM trends, such as:

- Market forces impacting pharmacy trend

- Strategies to manage specialty pharmacy

- Insights into transparent pricing models

- Changes in the supply chain affecting plan sponsors

- Benchmarking data to compare your plans performance

Speaker: Mike Stull, chief marketing officer, Employers Health

As CMO, Mike's primary focus is on strengthening the Employers Health brand & growing membership, particularly in the coalition's 22 year, $1 billion group purchasing program for Rx benefits. Outside of Employers Health, Mike represents employer and plan sponsor interests in local community and regional efforts aimed at improving the health care delivery system. To that end, he serves as Board Chair for the Healthcare Collaborative of Greater Columbus.

Mike earned his undergraduate degree from the University of Mount Union in Alliance, Ohio and his master's in business administration from Walsh University in North Canton, OH. He previously served as an adjunct instructor at Walsh University, teaching health care policy and has served in his local church as Elder, Finance Chair and was a leader for its Youth Ministries.

-Click to watch

Offered by the College for Value-based Purchasing of Health Benefits, this one-day advanced course, "Determining Drug Value from the Employer's Perspective," provides knowledge and skills for determining value for pharmaceutical products, and applying this information to pharmacy benefit program design and management. The registration fee includes meals (breakfast and lunch), materials, and the opportunity to hear and seek guidance from a national expert faculty. HRCI credits are available. Space is limited.

In an informal setting, get together with other employer members and GPBCH staff to discuss challenges, best practices, and trends on topics of your choice.

Radnor Hotel, Wayne, PA. Our guest speaker will be Tami Simon, JD, a nationally recognized health, wellness and workforce strategy leader. Recently named one of the 25 Most Influential Women in Benefit Consulting by Employee Benefit Adviser, Tami is the Global Practice Leader of Conduent’s HR Services Knowledge Resource Center. The Knowledge Resource Center is responsible for the firm’s cross-practice legal compliance consulting, government relations, thought leadership, publications, research, surveys, and training. Tami has testified before the US Congress and Federal Government agencies. She has served as a faculty member for numerous programs, including those of the Harvard Business School, American Law Institute, American Benefits Council, ERISA Industry Committee, Society for Human Resource Management, and the International Society of Certified Employee Benefit Specialists. Tami will share her insights on the federal policy climate, the regulatory environment for employee health benefits post-ACA, and the role employers can plan in influencing policy. This program is being sponsored by Conduent.

The cost of managing chronic diseases is staggering, accounting for ~84% of the U.S. healthcare budget. Inflammation is linked to the onset and progression of many chronic conditions such as periodontitis, diabetes and heart disease.

This program will:

1. Examine the growing body of evidence linking oral health to chronic diseases and the potential cost saving impact

2. Explore strategies that employers can leverage to reduce their healthcare costs

3. Discuss a concrete program that integrates genetic testing, professional education and tailored employee engagement to optimize existing benefits and maximize healthcare cost savings

Our Panel of Speaker includes:

• Marjorie Jeffcoat, DMD

Dr. Jeffcoat is Emeritus Professor of Periodontology at the University of Pennsylvania School of Dental Medicine, where she served as the Morton Amsterdam Dean from July 2003 through June 2008. Dr. Jeffcoat has held numerous professional positions and specializes in clinical trials, with a focus on the relationship between dentistry and medicine.

• Greg Fisher

Director of Sales, United Concordia Dental

Gregory J. Fisher, Director of Sales, located in Plymouth Meeting, Pennsylvania, is responsible for new client opportunities in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware and West Virginia, in addition to managing sales staff in our Mid-Atlantic division. He joined United Concordia in 2007 and has 12 years of industry experience. Greg holds a Bachelor of Arts in History/Secondary Education from Albright College in Reading, Pennsylvania.

• Mark Carbeau, CEO, Interleukin Genetics

Mr. Carbeau is a transformative healthcare leader who brings to Interleukin Genetics more than three decades of business expertise in the life science industries, with a proven track record of building high growth diagnostic and pharmaceutical businesses.