Houston Business Coalition on Health recognized for member leadership
WASHINGTON – November 14, 2023 – The National Alliance of Healthcare Purchaser Coalitions (National Alliance) recognized the efforts of employers and member coalitions at its 2023 Annual Forum – Temperature Rising: Igniting Change for a New Era. Prudential Financial, Inc. and Bell & Evans received the 2023 Employer/Purchaser Excellence Award and the Houston Business Coalition on Health was honored with the 2023 Membership Leadership Award.
“We’re pleased to highlight the efforts of Prudential Financial and Bell & Evans as excellent examples of employers that are committed to promoting healthcare value while improving the health and wellbeing of their employees,” said Michael Thompson, National Alliance president and CEO. “We also recognize the hard work and dedication of the Houston Business Coalition on Health for state advocacy efforts to address unsustainable and rising hospital prices for employers, employees and their families.”
The Employer/Purchaser Excellence Award is presented to a jumbo- and a mid-sized employer or purchaser who demonstrates leadership and innovation in advancing overall health and healthcare value through their approach to benefit programs and design, employee engagement, and support of coalition efforts. Previous award recipients include The Boeing Company, East Penn Manufacturing, Miami-Dade County Public Schools, Phifer Incorporated, Qualcomm, Turner Industries, Walmart, and The Walt Disney Company.
Prudential Financial
A global financial services company headquartered in Newark, NJ, Prudential Financial’s diverse and talented employees help make lives better and create financial opportunity for more people by expanding access to investing, insurance, and retirement security. The organization has a proven track record of value-based purchasing innovation to meet the health and wellbeing needs of its employees. Prudential has taken a strong and progressive advocacy position to improve affordability and responsiveness of its health benefit programs. The company carved out the formulary development and utilization management from its pharmacy benefit manager. Taking more direct control of its pharmaceutical management resulted in higher member satisfaction along with significantly improved financial results. Prudential is now implementing similar strategies on the medical side, leaning in to educate and incent the use of high quality and high value medical providers. Prudential is a member of the Northeast Business Group on Health.
“To continue to provide affordable benefits and support for our employees, the company has had to be more hands on, relying less on our intermediaries to meet our needs,” said Andrew Gregg, vice president of Employee Benefits for Prudential Financial. “We have shown we can do better for our employees and their families when we are more aggressive in taking the wheel.”
Bell & Evans is a fifth generation, family-owned business and America’s oldest and most premium branded chicken company with its production facilities in Fredericksburg, PA. The organization’s passion for humanely raised superior quality chicken parallels a genuine care and respect for the health and wellbeing of its team members and their families. In 2021, Bell & Evans established a Health and Wellness Department with a vision of creating a Community of Health with dedicated resources and training to engage team members. Investments include a registered dietitian/diabetes care and education specialist, expansion of its onsite and near-site advanced primary care and occupational health services, and partnerships with health-focused organizations in the community. Program implementation and resource needs continually consider team members’ challenges of transportation, shiftwork, language, and literacy limitations. The initiative has resulted in benefit savings (reinvested in enhanced plan design) and increased engagement in personal health (through availability of services) and focus on healthier lifestyles. Bell & Evans is a member of the Lehigh Valley Business Coalition on Healthcare.
“Bell & Evans is committed to removing barriers to care and recognizes that health is more than healthcare,” said Mary Hahn, vice president, Health and Wellness at Bell & Evans. “We’re improving access and quality, while reducing costs to our hardworking and diverse community, with a passion to advance health equity for all.”
Houston Business Coalition on Health
The Houston Business Coalition on Health’s 60 members represents about 500,000 covered lives locally and more than 1 million nationally. The organization is dedicated to helping employers provide health benefits at a sustainable cost and with improved quality. Key programs include hospital safety and transparency initiatives and the development of a SMART Network to guide employers to Houston’s top-quality providers. This year, HBCH played a key role in state legislative efforts to address anti-competitive practices of hospitals as one of the founders of Texas Employers for Affordable Healthcare.
“The cost of care has grown increasingly unaffordable for families and businesses, holding down wages, stalling business growth and is the primary cause of personal bankruptcies,” said Chris Skisak, PhD, HBCH executive director. “We appreciate the acknowledgement from the National Alliance for our efforts to address these issues to restore balance and healthy competition to the marketplace.”
About National Alliance of Healthcare Purchaser Coalitions
The National Alliance of Healthcare Purchaser Coalitions (National Alliance) is the only nonprofit, purchaser-aligned organization with a national and regional structure dedicated to driving health and healthcare value across the country. Its members represent private and public sector, nonprofit, and union and Taft-Hartley organizations, and more than 45 million Americans, spending over $400 billion annually on healthcare. To learn more, visit nationalalliancehealth.org and connect on LinkedIn and X (formerly Twitter).
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