The Employers’ Voice

Forum Friends, I hope you are enjoying the final days of Summer. I am excited to see everyone in person at our upcoming All-Stakeholder Meeting on September 15th. In this newsletter, learn about Sage Transparency and how stakeholders are using price, quality, and cost transparency to align payment with value; healthcare policies; and articles I thought you may find of interest.

Best,

Gloria Sachdev
President and CEO, Employers’ Forum of Indiana

Please join us in welcoming our newest Forum members…Physician’s Plan of Northern Indiana and Gibson. Learn more about each organization by clicking on their logo.

Inside the Forum

EFI All-Stakeholder Meeting on September 15th

We’re excited for our first in-person All-Stakeholder meeting in over two years! During the meeting, we will begin with a networking lunch, then take a deep dive into Sage Transparency as well as the web-based National Academy for State Health Policy’s Hospital Cost Tool.

Date: September 15, 2022
Time: 11:30am – 2:30pm ET
Location: Indiana Landmarks Center, 1201 Central Ave, Indianapolis, IN 46202

Calendar invitations were sent to Forum Members in August. If you didn’t receive one, contact sara@employersforumindiana.org.

More than 10,000 active sessions since launch!

Forum invited to present Sage Transparency to more than 15 organizations across the U.S.
More data is coming soon!

Sage Transparency, our newly developed web-based tool that compares price, quality, and cost data for over 4,000 hospitals across the country has been a massive success. We continue to receive amazing feedback about how it is being used across the United States:

Hospital Consolidation: A Fight Worth Having (Arnold Ventures)
Employers Are Sharing Health Price Data, but Real Change Is Slow (Bloomberg Law)
New Study on Hospital Pricing by Houston Business Group Highlights Gaps Between Medicare and Private Insurance Payments (Dark Daily)
Employer- and Worker-Led Efforts To Lower Health Insurance Costs (CAP)
Gloria Sachdev talks hospital price transparency at annual Healthcare Economics Summit (Concordia University)
New Transparency Trends: 3 Healthcare Problems (And Their Solutions) (The Alliance)

Since its launch, Gloria Sachdev was invited to present Sage Transparency to the following organizations:

The Alliance
Healthcare Purchaser Alliance of Maine
Indianapolis Chamber of Commerce-Health Policy Council
Integrative Care Partners and Gibson Conference
National Alliance of Healthcare Purchaser Coalitions
Kansas Business Group on Health
Council of Insurance Agents and Brokers
Benefit Advisors Network Annual Conference
Physicians Health Plan of Northern Indiana
Concordia University – Healthcare Economics Summit
Indiana Manufacturers Association
Medical World News

Access Sage Transparency

Policy Updates

Anthem Indiana Public Forum Meeting

Anthem is hosting its annual Indiana Public Forum on August 31, 2022, at 4:05 pm EST to present information in regard to 2021 premium changes, financial performance, and cost of care initiatives. Participants will have an opportunity to seek feedback either by pre-submitting questions to events@anthem.com or by asking questions during the meeting through the online chat feature. Review the full meeting details.

No Surprises Act

Map: No Surprises Act Enforcement (The Commonwealth Fund)
This interactive map summarizes the roles of the federal and state governments on various aspects of the No Surprises Act, including enforcement, specified state laws for payment determination, the use of external review for surprise-billing cases, and the patient-provider dispute resolution process. Check it out.

Court Upholds No Surprises Act as Constitutional (Health Affairs)
On August 10, 2022, a federal district court upheld the No Surprises Act (NSA) against a challenge brought by a New York surgeon who argued that major parts of the law were unconstitutional. Read the full story.

Federal Officials Revise Approach To Arbitration Under No Surprises Act (Health Affairs)
On August 19, 2022, the Departments of Health and Human Services (HHS), Labor, and the Treasury issued a new final rule to further implement the independent dispute resolution (IDR) process under the No Surprises Act (NSA). The final rule was accompanied by a press release, fact sheet, and a status update on the IDR process. Read the full story.

Health Policy in Transit – Surprise Billing Final Regulations (NAHPC/Employers’ Forum of Indiana)
The Coalition Against Surprise Medical Billing (CASMB), of which the National Alliance is a member, issued a statement following the publication of the rules. Review the summary and statement.

Inflation Reduction Act of 2022

Prescription Drug Provisions in the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (NAHPC)

On August 16, 2022, President Biden signed into law the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022. This expansive legislation covers prescription drug provisions, including Medicare negotiating drug prices. Read the summary from NAHPC.

Inflation Reduction Act’s Health Care Provisions Could Affect Employers (SHRM)
The climate spending and tax legislation President Joe Biden signed into law on Aug. 16 contains provisions that could affect employers that sponsor group health plans. Also, the legislation’s increase in IRS auditors could impact employer-sponsored retirement plans. Read the full story.

Indiana Passes Near-Total Abortion Ban (Ice Miller)
Read the full summary from Ice Miller.

Hear what Indiana citizens, employers, and physicians are saying:

Forum Member Spotlight

The Alliance

The Alliance serves as the voice of self-funded employers who want more control over their health care costs, and who believe

that affordable, high-quality care should be accessible to everyone. Every employer is different, which is why we’ve partnered with 34,000 doctors and health care providers across the Midwest to help our 300 clients create custom Smarter Networks that drive value and health benefit plans that satisfy their unique needs.

In the News