The NC Chamber has set an ambitious goal of making North Carolina a top-ten state for health and health care value – improved quality and outcomes at a predictable and reasonable cost. Value must drive purchasing as North Carolina’s health care costs are unpredictable and health outcomes remain below average.

This is a frustrating reality for job creators purchasing health care for their employees. While some are taking important steps to improve health and health care value for their workforce, there are not enough employers taking action to fix our broken health care supply chain. We need all of North Carolina’s employers to demand new ways of delivering and paying for better health and health care.

Transforming the system will require collaboration from stakeholders across the health care supply chain, including health care providers, third-party payers and job creators. The NC Chamber’s 2019 Health Care Conference not only showcased large-scale initiatives laying the foundation for systemic transformation over time, but provided examples of ways employers and others are improving health and health care value right now. Please read the latest NC Chamber Foundation report, “Turning Conversations into Action: Health Care Value,” so you can learn more about important changes under way and actionable steps your company can take to help make North Carolina a top-ten state for health and health care value.

Sincerely,

Gary J. Salamido
President and CEO
NC Chamber

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Turning Conversations into Action: Health Care Value

Stakeholders along the health care supply chain gathered at the NC Chamber’s 2019 Health Care Conference to discuss health care transformation, major initiatives under way in the state, examples of employer-based strategies, and recommendations for employers. Key takeaways from these conversations include:

1. Health is about more than health care: While care certainly plays a role in maintaining the health of an individual or a population, lifestyle habits and social determinants (income, affordable housing, access to healthy food and more) play an even more important role for most people. Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina and the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services shared specific strategies they are implementing to address social determinants of health. Duke Health System and Novant Health System also mentioned community-based efforts aimed at these factors.

2. Primary care is critical and needs more emphasis: Fragmentation, duplication and waste are issues that drive health care costs up and quality down. And, often at the root of these issues is a lack of appropriate primary care. A variety of organizations, including The Clinic at Biltmore, Cone Health and Wake Forrest Baptist Hospital described steps they’re taking to improve the quality of primary care and make it more accessible.

3. Behavioral health gaps need to be filled: From stress, anxiety and depression to social isolation and substance abuse, stakeholders recognize the need to increase focus on behavioral health. Mindpath Care Centers described initiatives targeting behavioral health needs, including programs to reduce the stigma of behavioral health problems, integration into primary care, and using virtual visits to reach underserved areas.

4. Need better data and better use of data: While there is still more work to do to change how health care is paid for, a critical component of that work is having access to and using data. Presenters emphas