Apex Management Group launches new disease management ROI assessment capability tool

PRINCETON, NJ ñ The APEX Management Group, a healthcare actuarial consulting organization, announced today the launch of a new assessment capability that will allow employers to evaluate the cost effectiveness of disease management programs. APEX, based in Princeton, NJ, is a division of Gallagher Benefit Services, Inc.

ìOver the last few years, employers have been adding various disease management programs in an effort to help manage the cost of their healthcare benefit programs,î said Barry Rosenfeld, a senior consultant at APEX. ìNow, virtually every employer with a disease management program is questioning whether these programs are saving money and having an impact on their workers.î

At the heart of APEXís new capability are its proprietary predictive modeling and forecasting tools which are used to identify the extent of real cost savings attributable to an employerís disease management program.

ìUntil now, employers have relied on potentially biased performance and savings data produced by a disease management program vendor to try and evaluate cost savings,î said Rosenfeld. ìOur approach ensures that benefit managers receive a completely independent analysis of whether real savings occurred and whether any are the result of the disease management vendorís interventions.î

The APEX program involves analyzing the claims and medical resource use of disease management participants who were covered by an employerís medical program for at least 12 months prior to joining the disease management program. These costs are analyzed both before and after the start of the disease management program. In addition, the participant groupís costs are compared with a second group of workers who do not participate in the disease management program but who closely match the health status and demographics of the program participants.

ìMeasuring the return on investment in a disease management program is becoming a top priority for many employers,î said Rosenfeld. ìThereís no question that these programs can potentially have an enormous impact on the health and productivity of a companyís workforce as well as its bottom line. However, if employers canít prove real cost savings, it is only a matter of time before the popularity of disease management as an effective cost control tool diminishes.î

For more information about the APEX disease management ROI cost savings analysis program, visit www.apexmgmt.com or call 609-452-2488.

Distributed by HR Marketer.com