WASHINGTON, Oct. 27 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Watson Wyatt Worldwide, a leading human capital consulting firm, and the National Business Coalition on Health (NBCH), a nonprofit organization of employer-based health coalitions, today announced an agreement that will provide employers with the most comprehensive and up-to-date information on the quality of health plans.
Under the arrangement, Watson Wyatt and NBCH will conduct annual evaluations of health plans for their employer clients and coalitions using the NBCH's eValue8 Request for Information tool. The results of these national health plan surveys will be available to both Watson Wyatt clients and NBCH for its member coalitions to use in their assessment and management of health plans.
Each evaluation will include hundreds of benchmarks on critical issues such as plan administration, provider performance, pharmacy benefit management, disease management, patient safety, and member and provider communication. The benchmarks will help employers improve service and make the most of their health care spending.
"Controlling rising health care costs while improving the quality of care for our workers is a key area of focus for General Motors," said L.L. (Woody) Williams, executive director, Health Care Initiatives at General Motors Corporation. Last year GM spent more than $4.8 billion on health care for its 1.1 million workers and retirees. "Having access to up-to-date information to evaluate health plans will help us and other employers ensure we are receiving the greatest value for our health care dollar."
Using a standard request for information (RFI), the eValue8 tool gathers comprehensive data on health care quality and performance from all types of health plans and providers including health maintenance organizations and preferred provider organizations.
"We are delighted that the NBCH has chosen to partner with Watson Wyatt," said Ted Chien, Watson Wyatt's global director of group and health care consulting. "The partnership will help both NBCH members and Watson Wyatt clients maximize the value of their health care plan through increased use of this outstanding tool. They'll gain more comprehensive health plan performance data and will need less time and paperwork to obtain, analyze and report health care performance data."
"Employers of all sizes are increasingly concerned about purchasing quality health care at an affordable price," said Andrew Webber, president and CEO of the National Business Coalition on Health. "By teaming with Watson Wyatt, we'll be able to provide our members with the information they need to effectively evaluate and make decisions about the best health plans for their employees."
For more information about eValue8 Request for Information, please visit http://www.nbch.org/ and http://www.watsonwyatt.com/.
About the National Business Coalition on Health
NBCH is a national, nonprofit, membership organization of nearly 80 employer-based health care coalitions, representing over 10,000 employers across the United States. NBCH and its members are dedicated to value-based purchasing of health care services through the collective action of public and private purchasers. In developing, identifying and disseminating best practices in value-based purchasing strategies, NBCH seeks to accelerate the nation's progress towards safe, efficient, high quality health care. For more information, call 202-775-9300 or visit http://www.nbch.org/.
About Watson Wyatt Worldwide
Watson Wyatt Worldwide is a global human capital consulting firm that provides services in the areas of employee benefits, human capital strategies and related technology solutions. Watson Wyatt & Company is the primary subsidiary of Watson Wyatt & Company Holdings . The firm is headquartered in Washington, D.C., and has 3,900 associates in 61 offices in the Americas and Asia-Pacific. Together with Watson Wyatt LLP, a leading European-based consulting partnership, the firm operates globally as Watson Wyatt Worldwide. Watson Wyatt Worldwide has more than 6,000 associates in 88 offices in 30 countries.
Watson Wyatt WorldwideCONTACT: Ben Taylor, Watson Wyatt, +1-202-715-7550,Benjamin.Taylor@watsonwyatt.com; or Cary Conway, NBCH, +1-972-731-9242,cary@conwaycommunication.com
Web site: http://www.nbch.org/
Web site: http://www.watsonwyatt.com/