Medica Launches New Online Health Management Tool
Medica Launches myHealthManagerSM Online Health Management Tool Rewards healthy behavior; Designed to help hold down health care costs.
Minnetonka, Minn. April 18, 2006 -- Because healthy workers are more productive and less costly to insure, employers are looking for ways to engage employees in improving their quality of life. Consumers, meanwhile, are looking for a simple approach to looking and feeling better.
Medica is addressing both concerns with the launch of myHealthManager, a new online health management center that provides cash rewards to members who enroll and use the resource. myHealthManager features easy-to-use tools that help people achieve results quickly and easily. It connects to Medica resources like online health risk assessments and challenges to improve heart health, lose weight and manage stress.
Fitness, nutrition, healthy living and medical information resources keep members informed, while preventive care reminders and personalized care “To Dos” help them stay on track.Experience shows that wellness programs help reduce health care costs. For example, one company using a program similar to the one being offered by Medica saw a reduction in the percentage of employees with five or more risk factors from 61.3 percent to 20.6 percent. The results, which occurred over a three-year period, include declines in the percentage of employees with high blood pressure (20 percent to 10.1 percent) and high blood sugar levels (14 percent to 11 percent).
Studies have identified a direct correlation between the number of health risk factors present and health care costs. Based on estimates from the American Heart Association and the American Diabetes Association, the company, which has 6,000 employees, could expect annual savings on the treatment of high blood pressure and high blood sugar of just over $3 million.myHealthManager is provided at no additional charge for all of Medica’s fully insured groups. Self-insured groups can take advantage of myHealthManager for a small additional fee.
Eligible Medica members can use myHealthManager at no cost. Because change can be difficult, myHealthManager offers support, encouragement and tangible incentives. Each quarter, the program offers fun, new activities centered on health and wellness. As a reward for participation in online and offline activities, members earn wellness credits that can be redeemed for gift cards that can be used like cash at online and offline merchants.“We are delighted to make myHealthManager available to our employer groups and members,” said Christine Finn, vice president of strategic accounts. “Our customers are continually looking for ways to engage their employees in managing and improving their health while providing overall health care cost savings. myHealthManager does this by providing easy, fun ways to help people look better and feel better.”
Medica is a 1.3 million-member health insurance company headquartered in Minneapolis and active in the Upper Midwest. The non-profit company provides health care coverage in the employer, individual, Medicaid, Medicare and Medicare Part D markets in Minnesota and a growing number of counties in North Dakota, South Dakota and Wisconsin.
Medica also offers national network coverage to employers who also have employees outside the Medica regional network.Medica has the highest accreditation status, Excellent, from the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA®) for its Minnesota and North Dakota Medicaid HMO plans and commercial health plans. Medica’s vision is to become the community’s health plan of choice, trusted for its integrity, respected for its service, and admired for its commitment to innovation and efficiency.
Minnetonka, Minn. April 18, 2006 -- Because healthy workers are more productive and less costly to insure, employers are looking for ways to engage employees in improving their quality of life. Consumers, meanwhile, are looking for a simple approach to looking and feeling better.
Medica is addressing both concerns with the launch of myHealthManager, a new online health management center that provides cash rewards to members who enroll and use the resource. myHealthManager features easy-to-use tools that help people achieve results quickly and easily. It connects to Medica resources like online health risk assessments and challenges to improve heart health, lose weight and manage stress.
Fitness, nutrition, healthy living and medical information resources keep members informed, while preventive care reminders and personalized care “To Dos” help them stay on track.Experience shows that wellness programs help reduce health care costs. For example, one company using a program similar to the one being offered by Medica saw a reduction in the percentage of employees with five or more risk factors from 61.3 percent to 20.6 percent. The results, which occurred over a three-year period, include declines in the percentage of employees with high blood pressure (20 percent to 10.1 percent) and high blood sugar levels (14 percent to 11 percent).
Studies have identified a direct correlation between the number of health risk factors present and health care costs. Based on estimates from the American Heart Association and the American Diabetes Association, the company, which has 6,000 employees, could expect annual savings on the treatment of high blood pressure and high blood sugar of just over $3 million.myHealthManager is provided at no additional charge for all of Medica’s fully insured groups. Self-insured groups can take advantage of myHealthManager for a small additional fee.
Eligible Medica members can use myHealthManager at no cost. Because change can be difficult, myHealthManager offers support, encouragement and tangible incentives. Each quarter, the program offers fun, new activities centered on health and wellness. As a reward for participation in online and offline activities, members earn wellness credits that can be redeemed for gift cards that can be used like cash at online and offline merchants.“We are delighted to make myHealthManager available to our employer groups and members,” said Christine Finn, vice president of strategic accounts. “Our customers are continually looking for ways to engage their employees in managing and improving their health while providing overall health care cost savings. myHealthManager does this by providing easy, fun ways to help people look better and feel better.”
Medica is a 1.3 million-member health insurance company headquartered in Minneapolis and active in the Upper Midwest. The non-profit company provides health care coverage in the employer, individual, Medicaid, Medicare and Medicare Part D markets in Minnesota and a growing number of counties in North Dakota, South Dakota and Wisconsin.
Medica also offers national network coverage to employers who also have employees outside the Medica regional network.Medica has the highest accreditation status, Excellent, from the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA®) for its Minnesota and North Dakota Medicaid HMO plans and commercial health plans. Medica’s vision is to become the community’s health plan of choice, trusted for its integrity, respected for its service, and admired for its commitment to innovation and efficiency.
posted by Kirby P at 10:31 PM
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