New Premise Health Brand Reflects Strategy, Vision For Future Of Health Care

BRENTWOOD, Tenn., May 2, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Direct health care access company Premise Health today announced a new brand identity that reflects its evolution over the past year and vision for continued progress. The company, which partners with organizations to address the health needs of their employee and dependent populations, is pioneering a model that combines robust provider networks and advanced technology with unrivaled access to care, creating a powerful, less expensive health care experience for clients, members and their families.

Rising health care costs have driven many U.S. companies to change their approach to health benefits in the past 10 years. Average annual employer contributions to premiums for family coverage increased 48 percent between 2007 and 2017, from $8,824 to $13,049 per family, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation 2017 Employer Health Benefits Report. This trend has led to growth in high deductible plans with savings options, with the percentage of covered workers enrolled in these plans increasing 600 percent in the same timeframe, from 5 percent to 28 percent.

Premise Health responded to rises in health care costs by expanding its onsite health model, which traditionally increased access through workplace health centers, to include nearsite health centers and virtual health. Nearsite centers serve members and their dependents in their own communities, while virtual health allows them to receive care anytime and anywhere. This expanded strategic direction is captured in Premise Health's new brand and website, which better communicate its focus on access to care.

"Countless data show us that people stay healthier when they have direct access to care," said Jami Doucette, president of Premise Health and the key leader overseeing strategy and growth. "Our aim at Premise is to remove barriers to access, so our members and their families seek out the care they need instead of waiting until they are sicker – and more expensive to treat."    

Premise's expansion into nearsite and virtual health is part of an aggressive strategy to grow its presence across the country. Since joining the company last year, Doucette has led substantial investments in technology and member experience, preparing Premise Health to further scale its model to meet the needs of more organizations nationwide.

"I envision a future where Premise Health acts as the principle 'health care gateway' that not only directly connects people to primary services, including primary care, occupational health, and pharmacy, among many others, but also optimizes their experience with secondary and tertiary health care providers in the community," Doucette said. "We're positioned to deliver on that vision through a combination of high performance networks, direct contracting, referral coordination, and benefit design – tools that will help us ensure our members and their dependents get the highest value of care in every setting."

Premise Health's strategy reflects both current and projected demand for greater health care access. As organizations nationwide have responded to rising costs, many have considered adding health centers. Among firms with 1,000 or more employees offering health benefits, 23 percent had a health center at any major location in 2016, the Kaiser Family Foundation reported.  

Despite this interest, the number of people with direct access to a health center through an employer remains small. Only five percent of firms with 50 or more employees had a health center at any of their locations in 2016. For Premise Health, that lack of access represents an opportunity, according to its CEO, Stu Clark.

"We are founded on the belief that direct access to phenomenal care that costs less is the future of health care," Clark said. "Every decision we make is driven by a desire to deliver that future today, so more people across the United States can live healthier, more productive lives.

It's an approach that has allowed us to become the leading direct health care access company, serving members and their families in 44 states, Guam and Puerto Rico, and it is the approach that is going to lead us forward."

ABOUT PREMISE HEALTH

Premise Health is the leading direct healthcare access company pioneering new models to deliver powerfully effortless healthcare. With more than 50 years of experience, Premise Health delivers unmatched quality, access and value through more than 600 health and wellness centers in 44 states, Guam and Puerto Rico. The company serves more than 275 of the nation's most innovative organizations, including a significant number of Fortune 1000 companies.   

Premise Health believes that the future of healthcare is unrivaled access to phenomenal care that costs less for clients, members and their dependents. It delivers that future today through three access points – onsite health, nearsite health, and 24/7 virtual health. It also serves as the healthcare gateway for members and dependents, connecting them not only to its own robust and comprehensive provider network but also to the broader healthcare ecosystem. The result is a member experience that makes it easy to be seen anytime and anywhere. 

Premise Health is a company of Water Street Healthcare Partners, a strategic investor focused exclusively on the healthcare industry. For more information on Premise Health, visit www.premisehealth.com.

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SOURCE Premise Health