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National Business Group on Health Joins Forces With Other Business Associations, Employers and the Federal Government to Promote Health Care Transparency
| Source: National Business Group on Health
WASHINGTON, DC -- (MARKET WIRE) -- November 17, 2006 -- The National Business Group on Health is
pleased to co-host today's National Summit on Health Care Transparency, a
key step toward implementing President Bush's Executive Order on
Transparency. The Summit focuses on how the business community and the
federal government, working jointly as the major purchasers of health care,
can lead the way to foster transparency and accountability. Just as the
President has pledged to make health care price and quality information
from federal health programs available to program participants and the
public, employers also embrace the principles of cost and quality
transparency, effective health information technology standards, and
incentives for consumers and providers.
Highlights of the Summit include a keynote address by Secretary of Health
and Human Services Mike Leavitt, remarks by other government
representatives and key leaders from the business and health care
communities, and the unveiling of an employer toolkit to promote health
care transparency when employers purchase health care for their employees,
retirees, and dependents. The National Business Group on Health, which
represents over 255 large employers, providing health coverage to more than
55 million Americans, is dedicated to solving the health care cost and
quality crisis in the U.S. and fully supports and looks forward to continuing
to work with the government to implement health care transparency.
The National Business Group on Health has worked to require that all health
care providers and facilities should publicly disclose, in a user-friendly
format, all relevant information about the relative price, quality, safety,
and efficiency of health care as well as any other information that may
impact care decisions. The National Business Group on Health's complete
position statement on transparency is available at this link:
http://www.businessgrouphealth.org/pdfs/transparencypositionstatement.pdf.
Also available at the following link is the National Business Group on
Health's comprehensive position on national health care reform, in which
transparency must play a key part
http://www.businessgrouphealth.org/pdfs/nationalhealthcarereformpositionstatement.pdf.
In applauding today's kickoff of the collaborative effort by the government
and private purchasers of health care, Helen Darling, President of the
National Business Group on Health, said, "Working together we can achieve
our goals much faster -- the implementation of interoperable health
information technology, price transparency, the right data to measure
quality and safety, etc. I am elated that we are joining forces today in
the nation's interest to ensure quality, patient safety, efficiency and
affordability."
"This is an issue that we can all agree on and which is long, long
overdue," said Steven Wojcik, Vice President, Public Policy, of the
National Business Group on Health. "We will continue to work with the
government and our employers to push for full transparency in health care."
About the National Business Group on Health
The National Business Group on Health, representing over 255 large
employers, is the nation's only non-profit organization devoted exclusively
to finding innovative and forward-thinking solutions to large employers'
most important health care and related benefits issues. The Business Group
identifies and shares best practices in health benefits, disability, health
and productivity, related paid time off and work/life balance issues.
Business Group members, primarily Fortune 500 and large public sector
employers, provide health coverage for more than 55 million U.S. workers,
retirees and their families.