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AFL-CIO Employer Purchasing Coalition (AEPC) Tackles Escalating Health Care Costs By Selecting ActiveHealth Management's URAC-Accredited Disease Management Program

Posted on: Monday, 12 June 2006, 09:01 CDT

AEPC Chooses ActiveHealth's Informed Care Management Program To Improve Health Care Quality and Help Members Cope with High-Cost Chronic Conditions

ActiveHealth Management, Inc. (ActiveHealth(R)), a clinically-based, technologically-driven health management services company, has been selected by the AFL-CIO Employer Purchasing Coalition (AEPC) to provide its Informed Care Management (ICM) disease management program to AEPC members. AEPC will endorse ICM and encourage its 26 organizations, totaling 200,000 covered lives, to offer this important health management and cost savings program to its members.

Increases in health care costs and concerns about quality are important issues for union members, including members of AEPC. Increasingly, unions are settling for lower increases in wages in order to maintain current levels of health care benefits for members and their dependents. "Union members are actively seeking programs to control costs. They have a high level of cost-consciousness and understand the impact of higher benefit costs on current and future wage increases," stated Suzanne Paranjpe, Ph.D., Executive Director of AEPC. Equally important to AEPC members, according to Paranjpe, is that union members with chronic conditions receive the support necessary to ensure appropriate treatment. "With AEPC members' interests in mind, ActiveHealth's ICM program was selected to identify and assist members who have serious chronic medical conditions and could be high-cost utilizers of health care services," said Paranjpe. "Given the track record of ActiveHealth's ICM program, we are confident that these services will improve the health of some of our most vulnerable members and contribute to a significant reduction in medical costs."

ICM, ActiveHealth's URAC-accredited disease management program, is powered by ActiveHealth's CareEngine(R) System, a patented clinical decision support technology that improves the quality of health care delivered to members and thereby reduces costs. The CareEngine continuously scans all available data from medical, pharmacy and lab claims and compares this member-specific information to the latest findings in evidence-based literature. When an opportunity for better care is discovered, a clinical alert is sent to the physician and member to help avoid medical problems and prevent unnecessary hospitalizations. The CareEngine has been proven to significantly improve clinical outcomes, reduce medical errors and lower health care costs.

The CareEngine enables ICM to take traditional disease management to the next level. The program supports a holistic approach to care and engages both the physician and member with highly-specific, targeted information that facilitates smarter, more informed decisions regarding the member's treatment. ICM focuses on 30 high-cost, chronic conditions, such as coronary artery disease, diabetes and asthma. ICM nurses perform a full health assessment on each member and then develop a personalized plan of care that addresses all conditions. ActiveHealth technologies identify the members that can benefit the most from targeted disease management and give nurses unique access to member-specific information to guide their communications with members.

"AEPC's selection of ICM, over more traditional disease management companies, validates our unique approach. We are honored to have been chosen and are confident that our technology-driven program will improve the quality of care for members and lead to significant reductions in medical costs for participating unions," stated Lonny Reisman, MD, CEO of ActiveHealth.

About AEPC

AEPC is a not-for-profit corporation that was established in 1993 to assist organized labor in the group purchasing of health care services. AEPC has highly successful value-based purchasing programs for pharmacy, dental and vision services. Today, AEPC members include 26 organizations' health benefit plans covering over 200,000 lives.

About ActiveHealth Management

ActiveHealth Management is a technology-driven health management and data analytics company engaged by leading health plans, employers and government payors to help improve care for those most in need, prevent medical errors and reduce medical costs. Over 12 million patients nationwide have benefited from programs powered by ActiveHealth's patented CareEngine(R) System.

ActiveHealth offers CareEngine Clinical Decision Support, Informed Care Management and customized programs, complemented by a full range of care management services, including case identification, case management and utilization management. The company's HDMS - Health Data Management Solutions - business provides data analytics and consulting services for payors, providers, and suppliers nationwide.

Founded in 1998, ActiveHealth Management is headquartered in New York City with offices in Cleveland, Chicago, and Chantilly, Virginia. For more information, please visit www.activehealth.net.

ActiveHealth(R) and CareEngine(R) are registered marks of Active Health Management, Inc.

Source: Business Wire

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