Join us for the 7th Annual Colorado Culture of Health Conference on April 30th at the Denver Marriott City Center. This full-day conference is dedicated to helping employers design value-based benefits and health management programs. Attendees will have the ability to attend a wide variety of educational sessions that address a range of issues - from developing a basic wellness program to creating an advanced wellness initiative with top-level management buy-in. Speakers include wellness experts from the Colorado School of Public Health, Pinnacol Assurance, U.S. Centers for Disease Control, the Anschutz Wellness Center and leaders from employers such as CoBiz Financial and Denver Water, that have implemented successful wellness programs. Please visit www.ColoradoCultureofHealth.org for a full list of speakers and break-out sessions. We hope to see you there.

The Leapfrog Group has reported a drop in the rate of maternal early elective deliveries nationally. In 2010, the Leapfrog Group began asking hospitals to report early elective deliveries. Regarded as the gold standard in evaluating hospital performance, the Leapfrog Hospital Survey measures and publicly reports on national standards of safety, quality and efficiency. About 750 hospitals, accounting for about half the births in the United States, complied. According to Lisa Binder, president and CEO of Leapfrog, the rates they found shocked a lot of people. Even hospitals didn’t know how high their rates were. While the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists has warned against early elective deliveries — inductions or cesarean (C-section) procedures performed prior to 39 completed weeks gestation without medical necessity — for more than 30 years, the 2010 Leapfrog results showed these deliveries accounted for 17 percent of neonatal births. In 2013, the government’s Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services began requiring hospitals to report dada on elective deliveries. By measuring and publicizing rates of early elective delivery, purchasers and providers have been able to see the financial and health implications of their procedure choices. In the case of early deliveries, clinical trials have shown that infant mortality is at least 50 percent higher for babies delivered at weeks 37 or 38 weeks, versus being delivered at 39 or 40 weeks. These babies are also more likely to suffer breathing, feeding and developmental problems. Besides health risks, elective C-sections also cost a lot more than traditional child birth. And due to an increased risk of complications, fewer early deliveries also means fewer babies in the neonatal intensive care unit – one of the most expensive rooms in the hospital. Last year the national average was down to 4.6 percent, a drop of 73 percent in three years. Colorado was one of the nation’s leaders, with a rate of 3 percent (see chart for a year-by-year comparison). “In health care, we talk about a 1 to 2 percent change as spectacular — wow, we’ve really improved,” said Leah Binder, the president and chief executive of The Leapfrog Group. “I have never in my career seen anything like the progress we’re seeing on early elective deliveries.” Measuring and publicizing rates of early elective delivery has revealed the dimensions of the problem. It tells the hospitals how they are doing, allows patients to choose safer hospitals, creates competition for hospitals to increase their safety standards, and creates the basis for payment reform around delivery procedures. The Colorado Business Group on Health is proud to be part of the solution as the Colorado Leapfrog Regional Rollout. The mission of the Leapfrog Group is to activate leaps forward in the safety, quality and affordability of health care by making the American public aware of a small number of compelling and easily understood advances in patient safety. Their mission is to do so by specifying a simple set of purchasing principles designed to promote these safety advances, as well as overall customer value. Early Elective Deliveries in Colorado and Nationally | Create Infographics

On Thursday, March 13th, employers will gather at the Antlers Hilton in Colorado Springs from 11:00am to 3:00pm to help shape the healthcare landscape in our community through the use of existing resources and programs. Sponsored by the Colorado Springs Regional Business Alliance, the Colorado Business Group on Health, and Merck Pharmaceuticals, this information packed event is designed to give business leaders the opportunity to learn, share and explore innovative solutions for health care issues impacting the community. Key speakers include William J. Cherrier with Colorado Springs Utilities, Katherine Blaire, Senior Policy Advisor of Health to the Governor’s Office, and Dr. Bruce Sherman, Consulting Corporate Medical Director for Wal-Mart Stores and Director of Health and Productivity Initiatives for the Employers Health Coalition of Ohio. “There are some fabulous collaborations and partnerships in southern Colorado and great potential to make a truly meaningful impact on the health care system in that region,” states Donna Marshall, Executive Director of the Colorado Business Group on Health. Employers have an impactful role to play in how health care delivery and benefit design evolve in their marketplaces. Interested parties can visit http://www.eventbrite.com/e/good-health-businesses-making-a-collective-impact-registration-10511715825 to register until Wednesday, March 12th, or pay $20 at the door. Members of the Colorado Springs Regional Business Alliance and the Colorado Business Group on Health can participate at no charge. A full agenda is also available on line. Dr. Bruce Sherman, Consulting Corporate Medical Director for Wal-Mart Stores and Director of Health and Productivity Initiatives for the Employers Health Coalition of Ohio, will speak on Employer Strategies in a post-ACA environment. “Anytime a community or region approaches innovation in health care collectively, the potential for change is powerful and practical.” -Dr. Sherman