The US healthcare system is in crisis – costs keep rising while quality and access decline. But employers have the power to drive change, according to Matt Ohrt, author of the new book “Save Your Company: Don’t Feed the Beast: The Employer Healthcare Success Formula.”
In this week’s episode of the Health & Wealth Power Hour podcast, Ohrt joins host Harlon Pickett to discuss how employers can take control of their healthcare plans and spending. As a long-time HR executive, Ohrt realized the system was failing both employers and employees. So he set out to create a better model, successfully cutting costs at companies like Merrill Steel.
Now Ohrt is on a mission – crisscrossing Wisconsin to educate employers on transforming their benefits. It starts with self-funding your plan so you can see where every dollar goes. But you also need a sound medical strategy, from building high-value networks to creating incentives that steer employees to quality care. Just shifting financial risk isn’t enough.
Effective change management is critical. You must get buy-in across the organization and help staff understand why the old ways can’t continue. As Ohrt says, “You’ve got to detach people from the here and get them excited about the there.”
This transformation takes time, but delivers results. Ohrt saved Merrill Steel 40% in the first two years and 70% in ten years. Now he’s leading a growing “healthcare revolt” in Wisconsin, igniting what he calls “small grass fires” of innovation.
Other key insights from the episode:
- Employers must demand transparent pricing and quality data from insurers. Right now most employers just roll the dice and don’t actively manage their plans throughout the year.
- Traditional brokers have misaligned incentives since they are compensated by insurers. Employers should align brokers’ pay to plan performance.
- The CAA is uncovering how insurers exploit employers through hidden fees, excessive stop-loss premiums, and opaque data. Lawsuits like Heinz vs Aetna are just the tip of the iceberg.
- Effective engagement starts with asking employees for input. You also need strong leadership support for culture change to succeed.
- The healthcare revolution requires expanding free market solutions, but entrenched interests want to maintain the profitable status quo.
The employer-driven transformation in healthcare is coming. Ohrt’s book provides the blueprint for companies ready to take control of costs and care. As Pickett says, if we stay with the failing status quo, “we’re part of the problem.” It’s time for employers to take the lead before the system collapses.
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