NASHVILLE, Tenn., (March 10, 2009) – The disappearance of 3.6 million jobs since December 2007 — and more than 1.7 million in the last three months– is enough to make anyone ill.  But the additional loss of healthcare coverage and the unpredictable cost of medical care can not only make you sick, it can put your financial future in the Intensive Care Unit.

Cost transparency firm change:healthcare has a prescription that will significantly ease a downsized employee’s healthcare and financial distress.

The web-based company is underscoring that resources which can reduce the cost of a person’s healthcare are available free-of-charge to the recently severed and current employees as well as general consumers.

“Job loss is a frightening thing to both employees who are let go, as well as those who remain,” says Christopher Parks, CEO of change:healthcare, a Health 2.0 firm that helps employees and consumers make better, money-saving healthcare decisions.  “When layoffs occur, one of the single largest concerns employees have after food and shelter is their healthcare.  But there are ways employers can provide healthcare help to their dislocated employees, as well as those that remain on staff, with little or no cost.”

For starters, access to change:healthcare’s website costs tools and information resources (www.changehealthcare.com) are completely free and directly accessible to all consumers.  The site allows anyone to view the cost of medical services, providers and pharmaceuticals in their area, based on actual medical claims, so they can see where less expensive alternatives can be purchased.   The site provides a wealth of information but becomes more personal when companies in the area, as well as consumers, input their own medical claims to gain a picture of how their purchases compare to other options.

The website is typically used by companies to help employees make more value- and quality-driven healthcare purchases.  Some companies have realized potential savings of 30-40 percent in their healthcare costs since using the site.

Other free resources available to displaced employees include ratings and social networking tools that give users a way to confidentially rate, share and compare the quality of their experiences with physicians, providers, costs and medical issues.

A series of downloadable, practical information sheets that better guide consumers in dealing with real-life healthcare issues, including “Negotiating large medical bills,” “A guide to COBRA,” “Choosing a Health Plan” and “Asking a Doctor about Generics to Cut Prescription Costs” is also available free-of-charge.

Additionally, the company’s recently released book, My Healthcare is Killing Me:  A Survival Guide for the American Healthcare Consumer, which was an early #1 health read at Amazon.com, can be downloaded (www.myhealthcareiskillingme.com) at no cost.  Written by change:healthcare’s CEO and COO, the tongue-in-cheek book helps demystify the American healthcare system so readers can better understand and navigate it.  The book is loaded with tips for saving healthcare dollars.

“We’re focused on bringing greater transparency to our healthcare system and making information and resources like these available to people currently going through great trials, is at least one way we can help,” Parks said.

About change:healthcare, inc.
change:healthcare, inc. (www.changehealthcare.com) is a technology company dedicated to helping people save money and make smarter healthcare consumer decisions. The company’s information and internet-based solutions are available to third party administrators, healthcare providers, medical bill adjudicators, consumers and employers interested in controlling healthcare costs by engaging their employees in making informed healthcare choices.

Download the PDF of this press release here.

Just saw the CNN report on 13 million uninsured 20-somethings in this country. New to the job force and turning down their health insurance.

What are they thinking?!?! Do they believe that they can just go out and buy what they need in terms of medical goods and services on the free market? Good grief! This is America for goodness sakes.

So what are they doing in lieu of buying insurance?

Radical things like minding their health– watching what they eat, working out, bundling up before they go out in the cold, washing their hands (oh, these kids – they’re like modern day hippies shunning the norms of society).

They go to the doctor only when absolutely necessary instead of for every little ache and pain. They go to retail clinics (like Minute Clinic and The Little Clinic) where they know the costs BEFORE they buy (oh my, what are these kids coming to wanting to know the price before they blindly incur the expense). They look things up on the internet (It may be MY chronic disease but shouldn’t the doctor know more about it than me? He treats it, and I only live with it…every single day of my life).

But why should these 13 million have insurance? In case something happens.

Hellooooo – they’re 20-somethings and invincible.

But seriously, why should they? Because it underwrites the rates of the older portion of the population. If they don’t get healthcare, they don’t offset the risk pool – they don’t underwrite the older segment of the population. And we know what that means – our rates will go up because they aren’t contributing monetarily (and taking less out than they put in) as we expect them to do.

But we can still get them. In New Jersey, children can stay on their parents insurance to age 30! Thirty!!!! In many other states it’s only 24 or so.

So now I’ll set aside the sarcasm.

What we are seeing is the revolution. The new generation is taking a stand. We have a product – health insurance – AND THEY ARE NOT BUYING! The business world should get the message here. These folks are going to opt for surgery overseas, retail clinics and internet consults. They are going to cost shop prescriptions and doctors. They are going to demand affordable access to care and they are going to want to know the price AHEAD of time. And they are going to return health insurance to truly being insurance – a safety net for catastrophic situations instead of the all you can eat buffet for $20 we have bad for soooo long – too long.

Do NOT think that it is the sage old regime of healthcare executives and politicos in D.C. who are going to change healthcare. It is the 20-somethings. They alone are able to break out of the old ways of thinking. It has been that way generation after generation. THEY have the new ideas. THEY are taking a more rational approach. They are getting organized and THEY are not content to go along with the system as it has been.

Yes, they are 13 million without health insurance…and growing. THEY will change healthcare.

Thanks to Elizabeth Cohen for the mention on CNN. As we continue to promote transparency and support consumers, employers and their employees, the recognition is greatly appreciated.

You can view the clip below, which ran on Monday March 2nd.

I’m privileged to be part of the change:healthcare team. It’s been almost 8 months since I started and a day has yet to go by that I’ve not learned something new from this dynamic team. I think very highly of the group … and because I know she won’t call attention to herself, I just have to share the ink spotlighting our own Katrina Welty! Two years out of school and her wisdom (in life) and knowledge (of healthcare) is incredible.

Check out the entire story by downloading the PDF!

Herman Trend Alert: Consumer-Driven to Save Money  – March 4, 2009

“change:healthcare” is a leading edge informatics company created to help individuals and employers save money on healthcare expenses. If you knew you could get the same procedure or service for hundreds or perhaps thousands of dollars less than what your physician or hospital charges, you could certainly make a more informed decision about where you chose to go.

That’s just what change:healthcare (www.changehealthcare.com) offers—the opportunity to see what other providers are charging for the same product or service. Their enormous database contains cost data on literally thousands of providers and drugstores.

Over the last five years, employee healthcare costs have risen by 40 percent, while employers’ costs have increased by 29 percent. During the same period, over six million employees have migrated (mostly by necessity) to consumer-driven health plans. We forecasted this shift some years ago. (To see the full study, visit http://www.towersperrin.com/tp/showdctmdoc.jsp?country=usa&url=Master_Brand_2/USA/News/Spotlights/2009/Jan/2009_01_15_spotlight_2009_HCCS.htm)

No one would disagree that for many, the costs are simply unbearable. They respond by either not going to the doctor, taking the medication, or having the procedure. “Most people don’t apply the normal rules of consumerism to healthcare,” said Robert Hendrick, co-founder and Chief Operating Officer of change:healthcare. “They do not think of medical care as a commodity.”

However, when quality care or the very same prescription medication is available at a much lower cost in the same metro area, then many of us will choose to take action. Typical corner drugstores, including the large chains, charge 30 to 40 percent more than some other providers, such as grocery pharmacies. In this economic climate, that savings is very meaningful.

So what is the benefit for employers? After analyzing 12 to 18 months of past claims data, the company performs an analysis to look at the range of rates in the geographical area. The typical cost savings is substantial—between 25 and 40 percent. . . and the pharmaceuticals involved are not generics, but branded drugs. It is not uncommon for employer savings to exceed USD$250,000.

Making people aware of their options allows them to make more informed decisions. Particularly in these challenging times, consumers will vote with their pocketbooks in the US and overseas.

Check out the report on The Herman Group’s website at http://www.hermangroup.com/alert/archive_3-04-2009.html.

It seems that everyone is taking note of the live surgeries being reported via Twitter.  Elizabeth Cohen reported today on CNN (Surgeons send ‘tweets’ from operating room) that for the second time a surgery was tweeted live on Feb. 9, which doctors, medical students, and other twitter uses followed.

As social networking continues to make an impact on the medical world and how other individuals interact with their healthcare, its interesting to see the motivations and intentions behind sharing healthcare experiences on Twitter.  Our very own co-founder and COO Robert Hendrick shared his surgery live on Twitter (which was later posted on the blog). He cited his intentions to Ms. Cohen in an email: “It redirected my attention and allowed me to minimize some of the nervousness around what was going on. It felt like I had family and friends there to support me.”  He also says, “I wanted a record for other people who might be interested in the same surgery… It later allowed me to connect with others with the same issues.”

As Robert’s motivations for sharing his surgery highlight, advances in social media have enhanced and, in certain areas, changed the way we communicate and connect with others.  Think about the ways in which this has enhanced our lives, especially those in the healthcare space: doctors, patients, friends, relatives, and consumers can easily share their experiences for educational or recreational purposes.  It truly connects us.

This is where change:healthcare is focusing a good portion of our time. Enhancing the way individuals communicate and connect with each other about their health experiences.

Our platform uses social networking tools to let users rate, share and compare their healthcare experiences so others can make more informed healthcare decisions (or at least enter into a medical situation with eyes open – rather than tightly closed).  Everyone benefits because everyone shares their experiences, insights or recommendations. True transparency regarding costs and healthcare experiences!!

In both cases — either Twittering during surgery where other physicians learn from the experience and talent of another surgeon, or using social media tools to help strangers deal more effectively with their family’s healthcare issues — it only further exemplifies how far the power of transparency and involving consumers in their healthcare (accountability) can go in helping this country move toward a better healthcare system.

Download the PDF of the CNN Twitter story here.

Thanks to Frank Limpus for his contribution to this post!

The Nashville Business Journal welcomes Chris McIntyre to his new position as director of product management at change:healthcare.

Check out the full article by downloading the PDF here.

Chris McIntyre has been named director of product management for change:healthcare, it was announced today by company Co-Founders Christopher Parks and Robert Hendrick.  McIntyre’s role will be to develop and manage the healthcare technology firm’s growing list of current and future products.

“We’re pleased to bring in Chris and his deep experience to lead the change:healthcare team in our product development and management efforts,”  Parks said in making the appointment.  “Chris understands how to build and replicate web-based products and services that are intuitive, collaborative and support millions of users.  Those skills will become invaluable as we continue our efforts to develop products that truly help consumers make smarter healthcare decisions, and companies control their healthcare benefit expenditures more tightly.”

McIntyre comes to change:healthcare from the Founder/CEO position of Podcast Alley, a San Francisco-based internet company that indexes and distributes consumer podcasts of all genres.  He was also a founder and senior product manger at broadband entertainment network Mevio (formerly known as PodShow), founder and CEO of Anrovia Design, a Chicago boutique agency that develops online and offline marketing campaigns, print collateral and websites for the bioscience and gourmet housewares industries, and founder and CEO of Shirts By Mail, an online textile printing company.

He holds degrees from Purdue University in Computer Graphic Technology and Computer Programming Technology.

To download the full PDF click here.

Once again, Robert has appeared on a TV show!!  This time his healthcare cost-saving tips and new book My Healthcare Is Killing Me were featured on Nashville’s very own “Talk of the Town” – a daily talk show featuring news, weather, and whatever is the current “talk of the town.”

You can view Robert’s segment with Meryll Rose below!

Great job Robert… we look forward to seeing you on TV again soon!

Wondering exactly how change:healthcare can help your company?  Well now there is a new demo to answer your questions!

Learn what change:healthcare can do for you, how c:h can save you money, and help your employees make smarter healthcare consumer decisions.

Check out the demo at http://company.changehealthcare.com/for-employers/guided-tour/