How employers can leverage value-based care to drive retention and improve employee health outcomes
American workers are currently facing a changing labor market: vacancies for four years, employees are seeking stability and improving insights into potential job changes. But one thing remains the same. Even in this environment of increasing economic uncertainty, the same key factor determines whether employees stay or not: health care.
70% of employees say health insurance is the most important benefit of their decision to stay at work or seek a new job. Successful employers must provide not only competitive benefits programs, but also significantly improved accessibility, affordability and most importantly health outcomes. In today’s environment, health benefits and health insurance options are the most important leverage employers can attract to influence employee engagement and retention.
This means that for employers of all sizes, it’s an obvious avenue – it’s value-based care. This outcome-centric approach is not only economically viable, but is also key to developing employee health plans, thereby increasing employee confidence and satisfaction. From a simpler point of view, value-based care is better for employees and their families, which in turn creates stability for employers and the economy as a whole.
Commonwealth Fund defines value-based care in this way: “Value-based care draws the services of healthcare providers with the amount earned by the results they provide to patients (such as quality, equity, and care costs). Through financial incentives and other approaches, value-based care programs are designed to make providers more accountable while providing them with greater responsibility while providing them with greater attitudes while providing them with flexibility at the right time.
In order for employers to provide employees with effective, accessible and affordable value-based care, they must address the following four components.
Use your own data to create a personalized healthcare plan
Both employers and providers must understand and meet the different needs of each patient by developing personalized treatment plans to consider factors such as race, race and social determinants of health (SDOH). Adjusting care in this way can help improve better health. Employers can analyze aggregated data to identify high-risk patients and anticipate potential complications, allowing them to implement targeted strategies to improve health outcomes.
Provide an effective preventive health program
Employers should prioritize provider networks that emphasize preventive care, effective management of chronic diseases, and patient-centered strategies to enhance overall well-being. To maximize the effectiveness of care, employers should provide customized health plans that address the needs of individual employees. Beyond that, building a healthy culture within the workplace is key – it turns out to be a healthy journey that actively attracts employees, thus bringing a sustainable transformation in health. Incentives to participate in health programs, health screening and lifestyle improvement programs also encourage healthier habits and long-term commitment to happiness.
Solve the profit literacy rate
According to the 2024 Health Equity Survey, prioritizing welfare literacy is essential, as more than a quarter (26%) of surveyed employees said choosing a health plan can cause them to feel stressed and confident in their plan choices. Employers must provide employees with frequent, accessible education and training options for their benefits. Health and welfare literacy often overlap, and both have been shown to drive more preventive care, catalyze improved lifestyle decisions, and reduce the use of inpatient and emergency care.
Ensure price transparency
Employees should be aware of the costs of procedures, treatments and services in advance, which enables them to make choices that are aligned with their health needs and financial conditions. This price transparency can help employers design smarter health benefits plans and bring employees to high-value care to manage overall health care spending more effectively. Furthermore, when the provider is responsible for its costs, it incentivizes efficiency and provides more affordable care.
The most effective way to achieve transformation throughout the healthcare sector is to unite employers to accelerate the change in the value of medical care from expense service to payments. This allows us to move from a system focused on treating diseases to a system that emphasizes health and prevents diseases and provides excellent care to patients. Value-based care can, in turn, translate into employee satisfaction and retention, and most importantly, personal impact-improves the health and well-being of employees and their families.
Photo: Philippe Turpin, Getty Images
Robert E. As CEO of HTA, Andrews oversees the strategic direction of more than 70 major companies that fuse a coalition to do one thing: fix our broken health care system. HTA member companies, composed of four founding members in September 2015, jointly responsible for more than 4 million U.S. employees, with annual health care spending of $27 billion. Through Andrews’ leadership, HTA launches value-driven solutions that enhance patient care and economic value with world-class data and analytics, disruptive pharmaceutical solutions, high-quality health care networks, and strong consumer engagement programs. To date, the cooperative has saved its member companies more than $2 billion in health care costs.
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