March 31, 2008
Sims receives national award for health reform
Joins Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sen. Ted Kennedy as honorees
The groundbreaking health care reform initiatives of King County Executive Ron Sims have been recognized with a prestigious national award.
The National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA), a Washington, D.C. non-profit and a leader in advancing health care quality, has tapped Sims for its 2008 Health Quality Award for his work founding the Puget Sound Health Alliance and pioneering the county's employee wellness initiative. Sims is joined in this national recognition by Senator Ted Kennedy of Massachusetts, California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, and Arkansas Surgeon General Joseph Thompson.
"Ron Sims has taken an innovative approach to improving the health of the residents and employees of King County," said Margaret O'Kane, President of NCQA. "He has demonstrated leadership by bringing an impressive group of stakeholders together to improve the quality and efficiency of health care in the Puget Sound region while containing health care cost increases."
To tackle rising health care costs, King County has taken the unique approach of investing in employees' health rather than cutting benefits. The county's Healthy IncentivesSM program has surpassed national standards for participation and produced impressive rates of health improvement for employees. In 2008, 89 percent of employees chose to participate in the wellness program, which offers lower out-of-pocket expenses to those who enroll. Since the program began two years ago, more employees have moved into lower risk categories for developing health problems in the future by losing weight, exercising more and eating better.
The success of the county's initiative has been attributed to its sizeable financial incentive and its aggressive outreach and education. Employees and their covered spouses or domestic partners who choose to participate in the wellness program receive lower out-of-pocket expenses, up to $1,500 lower for a family of four. And, the county has ongoing education programs "Eat Smart," which concentrates on good nutrition, "Move More," which concentrates on physical activity, "Stress Less," which focuses on stress relief, and Quit Tobacco. The county has an annual flu shot program used by more than 3,000 employees and a county-wide competition where around 1,000 employees compete in teams for prizes and earn points for exercising and good nutrition. A partnership with area gyms enables county employees to get discounts averaging 20 percent at 124 area gyms and employees have lost 7,393 pounds through Weight Watchers at Work. Employees throughout the county are also using modest sums provided in departmental budgets for things like yoga classes, lunch-and–learn seminars, filtered water and pedometers.
To reduce or eliminate unnecessary cost associated with inappropriate or duplicative care, Sims founded the Puget Sound Health Alliance and served as its first Board Chair. The Alliance has been recognized nationally as a model for regional collaboration seeking to improve health care quality and affordability. With more than 160 organizations now involved, the Alliance represents about 1.5 million covered lives in the Puget Sound area (not counting health plan enrollment). The Alliance recently issued its first "Community Checkup" report on health care performance of more than 80 clinics across the region. Washington State has provided Medicaid data to use in the second Community Checkup, and U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Mike Leavitt announced last week that it will make Medicare data available to the Alliance, which will be used to expand the scope of the Community Checkup report in the future.
Sims will receive the award in a ceremony in Washington, D.C. on April 1. Each year, NCQA recognizes individuals and organizations who lead the way to a better health care system that focuses on coverage, affordability and quality.
NCQA is a private, non-profit organization dedicated to improving health care quality. NCQA is the nation's leading developer of health care evaluation tools including health plan accreditation, physician recognition and organization certification. NCQA also is responsible for the evolution of HEDIS®, the most widely used set of health care performance measures.