by Dianne Kiehl

Welcome to the inaugural issue of The Catalyst, the newsletter from the Business Health Care Group.

As we intensify our efforts to improve the way health care is used, managed and delivered, the BHCG continues on a path of growth. There is strength in numbers, and the more organizations that join our collaborative, the more leverage we have to make a positive impact on health care costs.

Our membership now stands at more than 400 organizations—and we’re continuing to see growth. Much of our recent growth is in the small-business sector, where health care costs represent a dangerously high percentage of operating budgets.

We are reaching out to involve all parties that have a stake in the health care cost issue, including health care providers, employers and employees. We believe this inclusive approach is the most powerful way to help our state continue to lead in health care quality, while keeping care affordable for everyone in our region.

The Latest Develpoments
Humana Inc., our administrative partner, offers an increasing number of tools on its website that now include cost information for 30 inpatient procedures and 26 ambulatory procedures (see Humana Update column in this issue), as well as information on how individual physicians are complying with evidence-based medicine based on Humana’s claim data.

Meanwhile, we are producing our own series of education modules for health care employees/consumers (see lead article in this issue). These online presentations help explain the health care cost dilemma and what consumers can do about it.

Despite our continuing growth, the BHCG’s focus on the 11-county region of Southeast Wisconsin hasn't changed. However, we have decided to drop the locator from the name of our group to make the name easier to remember.

Our partnership with Scheibel Halaska, a marketing communications firm, is another way we’re working to focus our message and increase our visibility. Based on a market research program that examined the ways our members and constituents view our organization, SH has helped us develop a new brand tagline for the Business Health Care Group: Driving meaningful change.

This phrase, which is featured in our logo and appears on our website, connotes what we’re striving to do every day as a voice and conduit for the business community. With The Catalyst, we intend to keep the dialog going.

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