Press Releases Archives

Chronic Conditions Equal High Expenditures in Michigan

Chronic conditions, such as asthma, diabetes, and coronary artery disease, are attacking our wallets in Michigan. According to a new issue brief from the Center for Healthcare Research and Transformation (CHRT), average annual spending for someone with a chronic condition can cost from $3,785 to $38,270 more than someone with no chronic condition.

Chronic conditions are also disproportionally costly. Data from Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan showed that the 35% of its patients with at least one chronic condition accounted for more than 64% of its total spending.

Not only are chronic conditions expensive, but personal health risk factors such as smoking and obesity have been shown to contribute to many of these conditions. At 20.5%, Michigan’s smoking rate is higher than the national average of 18.4 percent, and accounted for $3.3 billion in smoking-related health care expenditures.Continue Reading Chronic Conditions Equal High Expenditures in Michigan

Cover Michigan 2010 Finds Health Safety Net Still Critical Despite Health Reform

Cover Michigan 2010, a comprehensive view of health coverage in the U.S. and Michigan released today by the Center for Healthcare Research & Transformation (CHRT), shows upward negative trends from the 2009 report: more people lacking health insurance, more employers dropping coverage, higher costs for those with health insurance, and a growing strain on the health care safety net including hospitals.

This year, the report also provides a projected picture of how the state’s health coverage would look if the newly passed Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (P.L. 111-148) were already in effect.Continue Reading Cover Michigan 2010 Finds Health Safety Net Still Critical Despite Health Reform

CHRT Policy Brief Demystifies National Health Care Act; Shows Choices, Opportunities at State, Local Levels

The Center for Healthcare Research & Transformation (CHRT) today released a national policy brief on the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (“Act”) that summarizes state requirements, as well as opportunities at the state and local levels to shape health care delivery.

“This Policy Brief is a tool to help policy-makers, providers of care, foundations, and individuals understand the scope of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, and point out where the opportunities exist to collaborate on improving health care delivery and public health,” says Marianne Udow-Phillips, director of CHRT. “Media coverage of the Act so far has focused principally on health insurance reform. But, there is much more involved, including provisions that will affect the way care is delivered and paid for in every hospital and doctor’s office. In fact, each state has important provisions to implement and choices to make beginning this year.”Continue Reading CHRT Policy Brief Demystifies National Health Care Act; Shows Choices, Opportunities at State, Local Levels

Survey Reveals Health Insurance and Access to Care Not So Closely Linked

A survey released today by the Center for Healthcare Research & Transformation (CHRT) challenges the long-held assumption that having health insurance is synonymous with having access to health care.

The survey of 1,022 Michigan adults showed that while 40 percent of those who lacked insurance delayed seeking needed care, so did 17 percent of those with health insurance — mostly due to cost concerns.

The survey also revealed that many low income urban dwellers had fewer problems accessing care than all but high income suburban dwellers — potentially reflecting the greater availability of health care “safety net” providers in urban areas. Residents in rural communities and small towns reported more problems with access to care.Continue Reading Survey Reveals Health Insurance and Access to Care Not So Closely Linked

The Cost Burden of Disease: What Health Care Spending Can Teach Us About Improving Care

Examining the reasons people end up in the hospital could point to opportunities for improving patient care and making the health care system more effective and efficient, according to an issue brief released today by the Center for Healthcare Research & Transformation (CHRT).

Nationally in 2007, four of the top ten diagnoses related to cardiovascular disease; in Michigan, three of the top ten. Heart disease accounted for over $143 billion in health care spending nationally — $4.2 billion in Michigan.

“We know many cases of heart disease are potentially preventable,” said CHRT director Marianne Udow-Phillips. “A focus on prevention and/or early intervention for underlying risk factors such as obesity, diabetes, and smoking could have substantial impacts on both patient health and the cost of care.”Continue Reading The Cost Burden of Disease: What Health Care Spending Can Teach Us About Improving Care

Michigan’s health care spending lower than U.S. average – Medicaid reimbursements among the lowest in the nation

According to an issue brief on health care costs released today by the Center for Healthcare Research & Transformation (CHRT), Michigan’s health care spending has been growing at a slower pace than the national average for more than a decade.

The issue brief also says Michigan spends less per capita on personal health care than the national average ($ 5,058 vs $5,283), ranking 36th among the 50 states and District of Columbia in 2004 (the most recent year for which state-level data were available), and has one of the lowest rates of Medicaid payments to physicians in the country, ranking 44th on the 2008 Medicaid to Medicare physician fee index.Continue Reading Michigan’s health care spending lower than U.S. average – Medicaid reimbursements among the lowest in the nation

Help for Michigan’s Health Care Safety Net

For many who struggle with health care costs or lack of insurance, free clinics and other health care “safety net” organizations provide services that are truly life-saving. In partnership with the Center for Healthcare Research & Transformation, a team of University of Michigan (U-M) researchers is looking for ways to help Michigan’s safety net providers meet the challenges of caring for increasing numbers of uninsured, low income, and vulnerable people in Michigan.

“Many safety net providers are actively seeking strategies that will help them meet growing demand,” said Peter Jacobson, professor of health law and policy at the U-M School of Public Health and the study’s principal investigator. “Our goal with this study is to bridge the gap between academic research and the realities faced by clinic directors, and to recommend concrete strategies they can use to enhance efficiencies, make the best use of scarce resources, and extend services to those in need.”Continue Reading Help for Michigan’s Health Care Safety Net

Measuring Transformation: Patient Centered Medical Homes in Michigan

The preliminary results of a new study of patient centered medical homes (PCMH) demonstrate the challenges researchers face when attempting to measure physicians’ progress toward adoption of this primary care practice model.

University of Michigan researcher Christopher G. Wise, Ph.D., led the team that analyzed responses to a survey about the degree of implementation of PCMH, which showed significant variation in interpretation and implementation of the elements of the PCMH model among physicians, their staffs, and physician organizations.Continue Reading Measuring Transformation: Patient Centered Medical Homes in Michigan

Collaborative Quality Initiatives: A strategy that works for improving health care quality & cost

Can better health care and cost savings go hand in hand? Michigan physicians and hospitals working together in collaborative quality initiatives (CQIs) sponsored by Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan and the Blue Care Network (BCBSM/BCN) are proving that collaboration is indeed a powerful model for saving both lives and dollars for patients throughout Michigan.

For example:

In one Michigan CQI, hospital deaths following angioplasty and other minimally invasive heart procedures declined 32 percent over five years.
Another Michigan CQI saved more than $13 million in one year by reducing the rate of ventilator-associated pneumonia by 29 percent.

Physicians from BCBSM/BCN and the University of Michigan Health System (UMHS) showcased the successes and strategies behind these initiatives at a June 4 health care quality symposium sponsored by the Center for Healthcare Research & Transformation (CHRT).

Each CQI focuses on a particular type of health care delivery: specific heart procedures, or types of surgery, for example. Participating hospitals submit procedure- or condition-specific data to a coordinating center that analyzes the data, identifies best practices, and guides improvement efforts. While the funding for the programs comes from BCBSM/BCN, hospitals submit data for patients who are covered by all payers (BCBSM/BCN, Medicare, Medicaid, self-pay, other commercial health plans, etc.) so quality improvements and cost savings benefit all Michigan residents. And, publication of results from the various CQIs can provide a model for hospitals nationwide.

“President Obama has outlined an ambitious agenda for health care reform,” said Marianne Udow-Phillips, director of the Center for Healthcare Research & Transformation. “As the President and Congress move forward on strategies to change the health care financing system, it is models like this-with real world experience and results-that should inform the dialog on how to reduce cost and improve care.”

“Quality improvement initiatives like these require funds to run and sustain, but the investment pays considerable dividends in improved patient outcomes,” said Tom Simmer, chief medical officer at BCBSM. “These collaboratives have shown we can improve the quality of care and lower the cost, leading to better health care for Michigan residents.”

BCBSM/BCN convened the first collaborative- the BCBSM Cardiovascular Consortium or BMC2-in partnership with UMHS, in the late 1990s, in an effort to improve the quality of angioplasty in Michigan. Today, there are eight CQIs, each with a different clinical focus. UMHS is the coordinating center for seven of the eight; Beaumont Hospital in Troy coordinates the eighth. Some initiatives have national partners; for example, the MSQC, which focuses on general and vascular surgery, partners with the American College of Surgeons’ National Surgery Quality Improvement Program. A full list of CQIs is available on the CHRT website at chrt.test, or on www.valuepartnerships.com.

“When a regional group of hospitals gets together in a collaborative way, it’s possible to identify the best practices behind good results and help the entire group improve,” said Darrell (Skip) Campbell, Jr., M.D., chief of clinical affairs at the University of Michigan Health System and the clinical lead for the Michigan Surgical Quality Collaborative. “When quality improves, costly complications are avoided, and patients get better. That’s what it’s all about.”

Speakers at the June 4, 2009 symposium included:

Marianne Udow-Phillips, MHSA, Director, Center for Healthcare Research & Transformation
Tom Simmer, M.D., Senior Vice President and Chief Medical Officer, BCBSM
David Share, M.D., MPH, Senior Associate Medical Director, Health Care Quality, BCBSM; clinical lead for the CQIs
John D. Birkmeyer, M.D., Professor of Surgery, UMHS; representing the Michigan Bariatric Surgery Collaborative
Hitinder Singh Gurm, M.D., Assistant Professor of Internal Medicine, UMHS; representing the Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan Cardiac Consortium
Darrell (Skip) Campbell, Jr., M.D., Chief of Clinical Affairs, Professor of Surgery, UMHS; representing the Michigan Surgical Quality Collaborative

A webcast of the symposium is available on the CHRT website.

The University of Michigan Health System (www.med.umich.edu) is a major academic medical center that includes the U-M Hospitals and Health Centers, the U-M Medical School and its Faculty Group Practice, and the clinical practices of the U-M School of Nursing. UMHS is consistently ranked among the nation’s top institutions for clinical care, biomedical research and medical/life sciences education.

Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan, a nonprofit organization, provides and administers health benefits to 4.7 million members residing in Michigan in addition to members of Michigan-headquartered groups who reside outside the state. The company offers a broad variety of plans including: Traditional Blue Cross Blue Shield; Blue Preferred, Community Blue and Healthy Blue Incentives PPOs; Blue Care Network HMO; BCN Healthy Blue Living; Flexible Blue plans compatible with health savings accounts; Medicare Advantage; Part D Prescription Drug plans, and MyBlue products in the under-age-65 individual market. BCBSM also offers dental, vision and hearing plans. Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan and Blue Care Network (BCBSM/BCN) are nonprofit corporations and independent licensees of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association. For more company information, visit www.bcbsm.com

Center for Healthcare Research & Transformation releases Cover Michigan — a report on healthcare coverage and access

Cover Michigan, a report on healthcare coverage released today by the Center for Healthcare Research & Transformation (CHRT) shows that while Michigan compares well to the country as a whole, the state is losing ground in critical areas, including the number of Michigan’s children and adults who are uninsured and the percentage of the population covered by private insurance.

“Cover Michigan shows a state under stress,” said CHRT director Marianne Udow-Phillips. “More and more Michigan residents – especially our most vulnerable populations – are facing hardships in obtaining and affording health care. Our health care delivery system is destabilizing as more people are underinsured and uninsured.”Continue Reading Center for Healthcare Research & Transformation releases Cover Michigan — a report on healthcare coverage and access

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