Category: Group Health Cooperative
My doctor is taking payments from drug companies – what should I do?
If your doctor is on the “Dollars for Docs” list, he or she received money from one of the drug companies for promotional activities or consulting. Payments are legal, so it doesn’t mean your doctor has done anything wrong. But research has shown that drug company marketing can influence what a doctor prescribes, and some experts say it is cause for concern.
Just what is a health insurance exchange?
Health Insurance or Health Benefit Exchanges are a signature part of the Affordable Care Act — but just what is an exchange? Colin Goldfinch, a public policy analyst with Group Health Cooperative, explains.
Washington state moves to address epidemic of prescription painkiller overdose deaths – BMJ
A feature article on efforts in Washington state to address the epidemic of prescription painkiller overdose deaths by LocalHealthGuide editor Michael McCarthy appears this week in the BMJ, the journal of the British Medical Society.
Group Health opens new expanded 24/7 urgent care facility in Tacoma, Oct. 8th
eginning October 8th, Group Health members in the Tacoma area will now have access to new expanded 24/7 urgent-care facility at the Group Health Tacoma Medical Center’s on 209 Martin Luther King Jr. Way in Tacoma.
My Birth Control Is Free Now. Right?
While it is true that the Affordable Care Act did make access to women’s preventive services easier — including coverage for birth control — there’s some fine print of the law you should know before you head to the pharmacy.
The cost of overtreatment: What care is necessary?
It’s estimated anywhere from one-fifth to nearly one-third of all tests and treatments are unnecessary. Turning around what is at times thought of as defensive medicine must be tackled and soon, not only to rein in health care costs but to deliver appropriate and high quality care that is evidenced based: More is not always better in healthcare.- Barbara Trehearne, PhD, RN, Group Health Cooperative
Supreme Court decision: One step on a long road — Group Health CEO
Now that the Court has answered questions about the constitutionality of the law, we can turn our full attention to two critical issues: how to reform a health care system that is unsustainable because it costs too much and provides too little value to the people it is supposed to serve; and how to expand access to high-quality coverage and care.
Whatever the Supreme Court decides, we’re all in this together – Viewpoint
“Group Health has always stood for universal health coverage—not only because it’s the “right thing”, but also because it’s the most cost-efficient way to provide quality care.” – Dr. Eric Larson, Group Health Cooperative
Group Health wins “Best Places to Work” designation for its treatment of LGBT workers and patients
Group Health scored a perfect 100% on measures gauging how equitably large, private-sector businesses in the United States treat their lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) employees, consumers, and investors.
Group Health seeks members for Board of Trustees
Group Health Cooperative, which is a consumer-governed health-care system, is seeking candidates from its membership for four Board of Trustees positions.
Coordinated case management cuts healthcare costs
Group Health Cooperative reports more than $2.5 million in cost savings during the first seven months of this year for its 8,224 patients in complex case management and 1,831 patients in regular case management.
How does your hospital stack up against the competition?
Medicare’s new Hospital Compare website allows you to compare hospitals side-by-side on a variety of patient safety and patient satisfaction measures. But are the comparisons fair?
Health care’s elusive big idea: Less is more
So here it is, under our noses—the elusive big idea that might fix American health care—if only our society can embrace it: Less is more.
New hires and promotions at Group Health
Sara Kasper named Exe. Dir. Self-Funded Products and Services; Laura Sandstrom, V.P. Group Health Options; Barbara Trehearne, V.P. Clinical Excellence, Quality, and Nursing Practice; Cindy Johnson, Exe. V.P. Human Resources. Robert Reid, MD, Assoc. Med. Dir. Health Services Research & Knowledge Translation
Group Health launches mobile app
Group Health Cooperative has launched a mobile app that will allow the health plan’s members to email their doctors, make appointments and consult a “symptoms checker”.
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