MBGH CEO Moderates RWJF's Aligning Forces for Quality National Meeting Payment Reform Panel
January 20, 2012
Cristie Upshaw Travis, CEO of Memphis Business Group on Health, moderated the payment reform panel at RWJF's Aligning Forces for Quality National Meeting on November 11,2011. The panel addressed the challenges, successes, and " bright spots" of addressing payment reform from different perspectives: bundled payment, global budgeting, and reference pricing -- all in the context of the community discussion to improve quality and cost of care.
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Business Group on Health CEO Prefers A Simple Approach to Wellness
January 20, 2012
In his January 20, 2012 Memphis Works Out article in the Memphis Business Journal, reporter Cole Epley, profiles Cristie Upshaw Travis, CEO of the Memphis Business Group on Health, highlighting her approach to personal health and its connection with MBGH's work with employers to create cultures of health at their worksite. Bottom line for Travis, both personally and in the employer strategies she supports, is to "keep it simple" and, take advantage of the increasingly available public places, such as the Wolf River Greenway, to get out and stay active.
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eHealth Alliance Data Gains Traction
December 09, 2011
In his December 9, 2011 article, Chris Sheffield of the Memphis Business Journal, reports that findings from a recent study by Vanderbilt University show that financial savings are possible using a regional health information exchange linking area hospitals, physicians, and other providers. This finding should sway large payers and medical groups to join the exchange. Cristie Upshaw Travis, CEO of MBGH, says growing the exchange beyond just a hospital-based effort will be vital so that potential savings for employers funding the growing cost of health insurance is greater.
“I believe this exchange has the potential to literally transform how care is delivered in Memphis if it grows to include primary care, specialists and other providers,” she says.
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MBGH is One of the Coalitions Catalyzing Community Health Promotion
December 07, 2011
Memphis Business Group on Health's worksite health initiative with the Shelby County Health Department and community health planning initiative designed to advance the impact of Let's CHANGE are highlighted in a commentary by Andy Webber, CEO of the National Business Coalition on Health, included in the national release of United Health Foundation's 2011 America's Health Rankings.
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TN Pushes Ahead With Mandated Health Insurance Exchange
November 19, 2011
In his November 19, 2011 article for the Commercial Appeal, Toby Sells talks with Cristie Upshaw Travis, CEO of MBGH, to see how employers are reacting to the establishment of an exchange in Tennessee. The article covers Brian Haile's recent visit to Memphis where he laid out some of the basics of what an exchange would like in Tennessee. Haile is the Director of Tennessee's Insurance Exchange Planning initiative. MBGH was a co-sponsor of Haile's visit to Memphis.
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MBGH Suggests 4 Steps You Can Take Now To Get Ready for State Insurance Exchanges
November 14, 2011
In an article for HR Professionals of Greater Memphis, Cristie Upshaw Travis (MBGH CEO) suggests four steps employers can take now to get ready for state insurance exchanges. Employers should learn the basics about exchanges, especially the SHOP exchange for small employers; understand the impact of exchanges on employer sponsored benefits; familiarize themselves with the timeline; and get more information on how the exchange is rolling out in their specific state. The article provides needed information to help employers take these steps.
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Business Prefer State-Run Plan
November 13, 2011
In his November 11, 2011 article, Chris Sheffield of the Memphis Business Journal explores how Memphis-area businesses are reacting to the proposed plans should Tennessee decide to operate its own state health insurance exchange in 2014.
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Memphis Biz Group on Health Preps for Annual Conference
September 07, 2011
In her September 7, 2011 article in The Daily News, reporter Aisling Maki highlighted the mission of the Memphis Business Group on Health and how MBGH's 3rd Annual Conference "Got the Health Reform Blues?" focused not only on the needs and interests of employers but also provided a venue for the Memphis health care industry to have a deeper understanding of what is important to employers and the challenges employers face so they can develop services that meet employers' needs.
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Memphis Business Group on Health to Take on Healthcare Reform at Conference
September 01, 2011
In their September 1, 2011 article, The Tri-State Defender reported on MBGH's upcoming Annual Conference "Got the Health Reform Blues?" highlighting the need for employers to be as innovative with healthcare reform and benefits as they are with their business strategies. The conference featured keynote speakers with a cross-section of experts deemed thought leaders in the industry and focused on the road to value, shared responsibility for health care, marketing your way to health engagement, payment reform, and health system delivery reform in Memphis.
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Tech Tools Add a Dose of Transparency to Cut Health Care Costs
August 24, 2011
Workforce Management's feature article in August 2011 by Andrea Siedsma focuses on change:healthcare's Healthcare Transparency Index and MBGH's employee communication campaign, which shows employees how to use the internet to get information on the cost and quality of health care providers, as tools that help employees become more sensitive to the cost of care resulting in lower benefit plan cost and employee cost.
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MBGH Summit Results in Concrete Actions to Improve Health of Memphians
July 30, 2011
In her July 29, 2011 article in The Daily News, Aisling Maki reports that community leaders gathered for a day long summit, sponsored by the Memphis Business Group on Health, to identify strategies to generate policies and get stakeholders across the community involved to "move plans to action". The summit was made possible by a $49,000 grant to MBGH from the United Health Foundation, Community Coalitions Health Institute and additional funding from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation to support the faith track. At the end of the day 12 specific, concrete actions were identified. In three meetings over the next five months, summit attendees will put action plans together for these actions with the goal of broad community adoption by the end of 2013.
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MBGH Receives Community Planning Grant to Tackle Obesity in Memphis
May 16, 2011
The Memphis Business Group on Health (MBGH) is one of six organizations selected from across the U.S. to receive a community planning grant from the United Health Foundation and the National Business Coalition on Health (NBCH), through the Community Coalitions Health Institute, to assist the Memphis community in mobilizing and focusing their resources to address and improve population health.
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MBGH Hands Out Health Honors
May 02, 2011
Aisling Maki, in her May 2, 2011 article in the Daily News, reports on MBGH's April 28, 2011 Annual Awards Luncheon. Maki, who attended the luncheon, noted that MBGH does not seek nominations and does not always give out awards in all categories because the MBGH standard is high. But this year, seven organizations were recognized for their national leadership.
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Hospitals Reducing Early Deliveries
May 01, 2011
In its April 29, 2011 article in the Memphis Business Journal Morning Call, the Memphis Business Journal reports on MBGH's Annual Awards Luncheon, recognizing quality focused hospitals and health plans for their work to improve health care quality. The article highlighted the performance of Memphis-area hospitals in reducing the number of elective early deliveries.
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Cristie Upshaw Travis Named to Board of Trustees for Southern College of Optometry
April 29, 2011
Jim Hollifield, Director of Communications for the Southern College of Optometry, announced in the Commercial Appeal on April 29, 2011, that Cristie Upshaw Travis, CEO of the Memphis Business Group on Health, recently was named to the board of trustees at Southern College of Optometry in Memphis.
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MBGH Calls for Public Reporting of ACO Improvements in Cost & Quality
April 18, 2011
In Toby Sells' April 17, 2011 article in the Commercial Appeal, MBGH CEO, Cristie Upshaw Travis, calls for Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs) to publicly report their improvements in cost and quality so Memphis-area employer purchasers, community leaders, and residents can evaluate the success of this new form of healthcare delivery. As Travis stated "Without a way to measure and report, where is the accountability?". Accountability becomes even more important as hospitals and physicians consolidate and increase bargaining power with health plans. Methodist Healthcare, St. Francis Healthcare, and Baptist Memorial Health Care are all laying the foundation for ACO development.
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MBGH Moderates Panel at Mid-South's Healthiest Employers Event
April 01, 2011
Cristie Upshaw Travis, MBGH CEO, moderated the panel discussion after the Memphis Business Journal's Mid-South Healthiest Employers awards ceremony. The panel, composed of Methodist Healthcare, Church Health Center, CIGNA and the YMCA, addressed their approach to worksite wellness and health promotion as well as health reform.Mid-South's Healthiest Employers awardees included a law firm and two manufacturers in the Memphis-area.
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Let's Focus on a Better Primary Care System
March 16, 2011
In her March 16, 2011 Guest Column for the Commercial Appeal, MBGH CEO Cristie Upshaw Travis, challenges Memphis to move past focusing on the primary care shortage and focus on designing the primary care practice we want; developing payment systems to reward and sustain improvements in cost and quality; and implementing public reporting systems to ensure provider accountability. She believes that Memphis has all the ingredients we need to do this, if we will just decide to do so. Read the full article and see if you agree.
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