50 Maine Employers Join Forces to Improve Healthcare, Reduce Costs

Maine Healthcare Purchasing Collaborative's first task is passage of L.D. 1959, allowing patients greater access to high-quality, cost-effective healthcare

Fifty Maine employers - companies, colleges and non-profit organizations - have joined together to work to restructure the state's healthcare delivery system, and to identify and reward providers who deliver the highest quality of medical care.

Called the Maine Healthcare Purchasing Collaborative (MeHPC), the new group collectively represents more than 150,000 consumers of health care in Maine and is committed to health care reform that is "value based." A value-based system would reward providers identified as delivering high quality care, and provide incentives for consumers to seek care from "providers of excellence" who also offer competitively priced services.

"We firmly believe that higher quality reduces cost," said Peter Hayes, Benefit Strategist for Hannaford Bros. Co. "At a time when health care costs continue to soar, a system focused on quality and access offers the best solution for containing costs and improving care. This truly can be a win-win scenario for the citizens of Maine. Our long-term goal is to replace the current system that is driven by cost and marked by limited information about the quality of care. Our short-term goal is to pass L.D. 1959 so we can begin giving our associates an incentive to seek out quality providers."

The membership of the collaborative represents the diversity of employers within Maine, both in terms of geography and size. Members include public and private employers, for-profit and not-for-profit organizations. Some of the members are Bowdoin College, Mariner Lumber, Dragon Cement and Concrete, Maine Potato Growers Association, Lucas Tree, Hannaford Bros. Co., Irving Oil, Viking Lumber, Sabre Yachts, IDEXX, the State of Maine Office of Employee Health & Benefits, University of Maine System, Training and Development Corp., and UnumProvident. [A complete list is attached.]

Passage of L.D. 1959 will allow insurers to offer pilot projects based on quality and cost and eliminate travel restrictions within these pilot projects, freeing patients to select the best treatment facility or provider for their specific needs. The legislation is essential. It will allow MeHPC to work with the health plans and providers to jointly develop innovative insurance programs that will meet quality, access, and cost standards.

"L.D. 1959 is important, but our overall purpose is to work with insurers and providers as a large purchasing group to encourage them to write some innovative benefit plans that reward quality, thereby cutting costs. In working on that mission, we learned that there are travel restrictions on pilot programs, which is what L.D. 1959 is all about - lifting those restrictions," said John Slagle, director of Human Resources at Dragon Cement and Concrete.

"We have an obligation to provide our members with information on which providers deliver the highest quality of care," said Frank Johnson of the Office of Employee Health & Benefits for state employees, one of the group's 21-member volunteer board. "L.D. 1959 is the first step, as it lifts current restrictions and increases access to quality healthcare, which is the cornerstone of our collaborative."

The bill, sponsored by Rep. Art Mayo (R., Bath) would allow HMOs to designate "providers of excellence" so that issues such as patient safety, quality of care and outcomes, and competitive costs enter the purchasing equation.

"If passed, L.D. 1959 would help save consumers money while promoting quality care - how can anyone argue with that?" said Jeff Baker, Director of Human Resources for Sabre Yachts.

"When patients receive quality care from 'providers of excellence,' the probability of complications which lead to misdiagnosis, re-admission, extended or prolonged hospital stays and mortality rates are greatly reduced. This will have a dramatic effect on reducing the overall costs of healthcare and inevitably have a positive effect on premium stabilization. The net effect is that rates will begin to stabilize and the overall cost of healthcare will be reduced."

Maine employers have been hit hard in recent years by escalating health care premiums for their employees. A vast majority of organizations have been saddled with double-digit premium increases in each of the past three years. The dramatic rise in costs has forced some Mainers to drop or reduce health coverage. The leadership in both legislative houses is also actively involved in the debate on healthcare reform. Both Speaker of the House Mike Saxl (D-Portland) and President of the Senate Rick Bennett (R-Oxford) have introduced bills this session to address this most important of issues.

"Something has to give, and it shouldn't be quality," Jeff Baker continued. "That's why we have joined together as one voice to push for a health care system that it is both quality-driven and economical. It's a very simple concept, really, and certainly do-able. It just takes determination, planning and a consensus of the population to get it done. This legislation is a start. And with 50 employers on board, representing 150,000 consumers, we feel we are on the right track."

The legislation is due for a vote sometime this week. Members and supporters of the MePHC testified in January before the Joint Committee on Banking and Insurance in support of L.D. 1959.

Employers interested in joining the collaborative can call Cathy Gavin, the executive director, at 846-9889.

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MAINE HEALTHCARE PURCHASING COLLABORATIVE
Membership List as of January, 2002

Bankers' Health Trust, Augusta
Barber Foods, Portland
Bowdoin College, Brunswick
C. B. Cummings & Sons Co., Norway
C. F. Wells, Buckfield
Caribou Nursing Home, Caribou
Cedarworks of Maine, Rockport
Central Maine Power, Augusta
City of Belfast, Belfast
Colonial Distributors, Inc., Waterville
Down East Enterprises, Inc., Camden
Dragon Products, Portland
Dysart's Equipment Corp., Bangor
EPX Group, Portland
Fairchild Semiconductor, South Portland
Great Northern Paper, Inc., Millinocket
Group Home Foundation, Belfast
Hannaford Bros. Co, Portland
Hutchins Trucking Co., South Portland
IDEXX Corporation, Westbrook
Industrial Roofing Corp., Lewiston
Irving Oil, Inc., Portsmouth, N.H.
Jasper Wyman & Son, Cherryfield
J. D. Irving, Ltd., Dixfield and Saint John, N.B.
Kennebec Tool & Die, Augusta
Lucas Tree Co., Portland
Maine Automobile Dealers Association Insurance Trust, Augusta
Maine Financial Institutions' Insurance Trust, Portland
Maine Municipal Employee Health Trust, Augusta
Maine Potato Growers, Presque Isle
Maine Public Service Company, Presque Isle
Mariner Lumber, Brunswick
Morris Yachts, Bass Harbor
Penquis C.A.P., Inc., Bangor
Pottle's Transportation, Inc., Bangor
Pratt-Abbott, Westbrook
Reed & Reed, Woolwich
Sabre Corporation, South Casco
Seven Islands Land Company, Bangor
State of Maine, Office of Employee Health & Benefits, Augusta
Stonewall Kitchen, York
The Coastal Workshop, Camden
The Jackson Laboratory, Bar Harbor
Training & Development Corporation, Bucksport
University of Maine System, Bangor
Viking, Inc., Warren
UnumProvident, Portland
Western Maine C.A.P., East Wilton
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