Allegheny County Schools Health Insurance Consortium and Memphis Business Group on Health Honored by National Alliance at Annual Conference

WASHINGTON, Sept. 29, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Allegheny County Schools Health Insurance Consortium was presented with the Employer Excellence Award and the Memphis Business Group on Health received the Member Leadership Award at the National Alliance of Healthcare Purchaser Coalitions* (National Alliance) annual conference. The recipients were recognized for their efforts to improve the quality and efficiency of the healthcare delivery system and health of employees and communities.
(*Formerly the National Business Coalition on Health)

Employer Excellence Award
The Allegheny County Schools Health Insurance Consortium (ACSHIC), a public employer representing approximately 43,000 lives, was recognized for its efforts to develop a narrow, high quality network. To make this decision, ACSHIC trustees used tools and resources through the Pittsburgh Business Group on Health (of which they are a member) to analyze the cost and quality and overall value of providers and services. The result was working with the organization's health plan carrier to design a tiered benefit plan design that offered a narrow, high quality network, which saved the taxpayers more than $10 million in claims over the first half of 2015 alone. This change enabled ACSHIC to eliminate deductibles and copays for its members, bucking the trend towards high deductible plans while they reduced costs.

"We applaud the efforts of ACSHIC to achieve higher quality healthcare while lowering costs," said Jessica Brooks, CEO/Executive Director for the Pittsburgh Business Group on Health. "Their focus helped drive physically and financially healthier schools, and contain costs for the taxpayers and community."

Member Leadership Award
The Memphis Business Group on Health, under the leadership of CEO Cristie Upshaw Travis, has long played a critical role in encouraging and assisting Memphis-area employers to not only create a culture of health within their organizations, but to implement programs that will more broadly help the entire community. The coalition works with Tennessee hospitals, physicians, health plans, community and government leaders to drive healthcare delivery system reform.

MBGH sponsors the CEO Culture of Health initiative with 64 organizations in the Memphis-area currently participating and was a founding member of the Common Table Health Alliance (formerly Healthy Memphis Common Table) as well as Healthy Shelby. National efforts include Travis serving on the Health Alliance board; as a board member and Regional Roll-out Leader for The Leapfrog Group, a hospital patient-safety organization; and co-chair of committees of the National Quality Forum, the multi-stakeholder, consensus-building organization that leads national collaboration to improve health and healthcare quality through measurement.

"Memphis Business Group on Health is a proud member of the National Alliance, learning from our sister coalitions and helping where we can to share our experience and expertise to assist purchasers nationally," said Travis. "We are honored to be recognized for our 31 years of work to create, support and sustain a culture of health at the workplace for our members and their families."

The National Alliance's Member Leadership Award is sponsored by Merck.

About the National Alliance of Healthcare Purchaser Coalitions
The National Alliance is a nonprofit network of business health coalitions, representing more than 12,000 purchasers and 41 million Americans. Its members are dedicated to driving innovation, health and value through the collective action of public and private purchasers. The organization seeks to accelerate the nation's progress toward safe, efficient, high-quality health care and the improved health status of the American population. www.nationalalliancehealth.org

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SOURCE National Alliance of Healthcare Purchaser Coalitions (National Alliance)