Document text
0 of 3 Premium Clicks used this month SUBSCRIBE Print + Online Subscriber Activation | Register x Forgot Password | Need an Account? e-edition | subscribe | newsletter | deals Home News Latest Stories First hemp permit holder now just needs some seed Beloved advocate dies unexpectedly in Caribbean Man catches burglar in the act Mt. Ashland Ski Area celebrates snow Couple face child abuse charges Crime, Courts and Emergency Services Man catches burglar in the act Couple face child abuse charges Fire guts Evans Valley pump house Oxygen tank explodes during Phoenix house fire Emergency services, Feb. 11 Politics and Elections Oregon's second in command abruptly returns from capital Mark L. Hopkins: Ranking the Obama administration Kent Bush: Fraud kept alive by the left and right Walden sets town halls on Friday Amid rising scrutiny, governor says fiancee won't have role in administration Education Medford School Board OKs full-day kindergarten Former superintendent sues district, board member Sharing black culture SOU board names officers, committees SOU students targeted in Drive Less campaign Environment Mt. Ashland Ski Area celebrates snow Company fined for illegally dumping asbestos in White City Solar pavilion going up at Coyote Trails GMO opponents can join Jackson County in defending ban Jackson County won't set up wolf kill compensation program State News Kitzhaber says he's not resigning Partial port shutdown looms; contract talks stall Suit: Oregon officer illegally stopped live stream of arrest Eugene Duck river race is cancelled Oregon's second in command abruptly returns from capital Nation - World Obituaries Claire G. Craft Wilma June Nelson Theodore F. "Ted" Carter James Fredrick Carlton George DeMott Weather Photo Galleries Since You Asked Videos Web Cams Mail Tribune 100 Shareable This $1 million Mercedes is like an armored private jet for the road Sports Latest Stories Raiders down Royals in home openers Cascade Christian boys hold off St. Mary’s North Medford nets historic sweep South girls steamroll past North No. 19 SOU men blow by New Hope Varsity 541 College Sports Raiders down Royals in home openers No. 19 SOU men blow by New Hope Adams eager to make impact at Oregon No. 2 UConn rolls over No. 1 South Carolina Pace of play not expected to be rules issue Pro Sports Popovich reaches 1,000-win mark Casper was one of golf’s least-known legends Charges against Panthers' Hardy dismissed Shields, Padres agree to four-year contract Blazers take charge late in Houston Community Sports Local Events Business Latest Stories Medford airport flies past January record Carestream innovation opens new direction Cooperation, not confrontation Ride & Drive: 2015 Dodge Challenger R/T Scat Pack Silvio Calabi: Range Rover Sport, the off-road GT Real Estate News Housing prices climb 9 percent in Jackson County Big plans on the Butte Homes for the long haul New owners of Medford Center promise a hands-on approach: Home loan rates continue to fall, applications soar People In Business People in Business Transportation The heart of Brammo will remain Want to be an investor? Four companies will be pitching their plan to you Agriculture 1-800-Flowers dumps Harry & David execs Nine companies pitch investment opportunities in Medford Darigold to shutter Medford plant, putting 29 out of work Opinion Latest Tom Loewy: A testimony haunted by murder Granlund cartoon: Jon Stewart’s replacement Our View: Maintaining a major community asset Letters to the Editor, Feb. 11 Kathleen Parker: Brian Williams' six-mile stare Editorials Our View: Maintaining a major community asset Our View: A small contribution to fairness Our View: Call for resignation is premature Other Views: Overhaul the national firefighting budget Our View: Waiting is best approach to wolf damage Letters to the Editor Letters to the Editor, Feb. 11 Letters to the Editor, Feb. 10 Letters to the Editor, Feb. 9 Letters to the Editor, Feb. 8 Letters to the Editor, Feb. 6 Columns Kathleen Parker: Brian Williams' six-mile stare Guest Opinion: Understanding Wes Cooley Mark L. Hopkins: Ranking the Obama administration Guest Opinion: Smokers: Quit before this happens to you George Will: Education is the business of the states Guest Opinions Guest Opinion: Understanding Wes Cooley Guest Opinion: Smokers: Quit before this happens to you Guest Opinion: Our public school system is a stew pot of clashing ingredients Guest Opinion: How long will we look the other way? Guest Opinion: Health professionals don't always act that way Lifestyle Latest stories Tammy Kelly: Healthy at-home Valentine’s Day meals (and desserts) for two 5 Things to Do This Weekend (Feb. 13-15) Donna Knight: Meatloaf holds lessons Lost in Suburbia: Beep goes the strings of my heart Repair or replace your garage door panel? Food Tammy Kelly: Healthy at-home Valentine’s Day meals (and desserts) for two Donna Knight: Meatloaf holds lessons Sriracha, Southern Oregon-style A wine to match a winter film festival Community blog: Braise chicken with fennel for one-pot feast Home and Garden Repair or replace your garage door panel? Dear Monty: Hot markets change agent behavior Carol Link: How to make sure yucca plants are gone Home Help: Repurposing garage doors into stunning walls with a view Landscape lighting for beauty, safety and value Health Community blog: Simple Solutions Health Watch: Simple swaps for a healthy lifestyle Community blog: Five "Must Haves" Health Watch: Don’t let your fitness resolutions fizzle out Community blog: Toxic Love: How to Identify an Abusive Relationship Hiking Biking Faith RELIGION BRIEFS, Feb. 6 Religion News: Church of England consecrates first female bishop Religion briefs Religion briefs, Jan. 23 Religion briefs Milestones and Achievements New arrivals: Sunday, Feb. 8 Columnist for a Day Rogue Healthy Aging Tempo Latest stories Blues Jam at The Little Brown Jug in Talent Jeff Kloetzel at South Stage Cellars Ayron Jones and The Way play Rocky-Tonk Mexican Brass at the Craterian Theater 'Dames at Sea' opens at Oregon Cabaret Theatre Theater 'Seven Brides for Seven Brothers' 'Dames at Sea' opens at Oregon Cabaret Theatre Le Cirque presents 'City Walk' Camelot presents Playwright Richard Manley's 'A Question of Words' Classics, premiers highlight '15 season for OSF Music Blues Jam at The Little Brown Jug in Talent Jeff Kloetzel at South Stage Cellars Ayron Jones and The Way play Rocky-Tonk Mexican Brass at the Craterian Theater Southern Oregon Repertory Singers present 'The Passing of Time' Community Events Ashland's First Friday Art Walk showcases new exhibits by regional artists Jacksonville celebrates Chinese New Year Comedian Susan Westenhoefer pulls no punches Paula Poundstone performs at the Craterian Len Dickson's 'Fall Harvest' to grace Belle Fiore wine label Dining Stylish shareables are the feature at Brickroom Sandwiches and burgers are hits at The Rogue Chef The Vine offers a taste of Italy Cheeseburgers on the cheap Valley View — It's all in the family Tempo Videos Classifieds Jobs Autos Real Estate FEATURED » Obituaries Blogs TV Listings Movie Listings Oregon Outdoors Oregon Healthy Living Magazines & Special Sections NEWS NOW Kitzhaber had planned to quit ... First hemp permit holder now just needs some seed ... Beloved advocate dies unexpectedly in Caribbean ... Kitzhaber had planned to quit ... First hemp permit holder now just needs some seed ... Beloved advocate dies unexpectedly in Caribbean ... CHAMBER FORUM Cooperation, not confrontation Conversation changing between medical providers and insurers Comment By Greg Stiles Mail Tribune MailTribune.com By Greg Stiles Mail Tribune Posted Feb. 9, 2015 @ 5:59 pm Updated Feb 9, 2015 at 6:12 PM By Greg Stiles Mail Tribune Posted Feb. 9, 2015 @ 5:59 pm Updated Feb 9, 2015 at 6:12 PM » Social News There was a time when health care providers, insurers and employers had little in common. "The best way to describe the historical relationship between health care providers and employers was that there was no relationship," Asante CEO Roy Vinyard told a Medford audience Monday. "There really wasn't any form of communication or work between the employer and provider, other than delivery of care. Between the provider and the insurer, I'll have to say it was somewhat confrontational." Vinyard shared the stage at the Chamber of Medford/Jackson County Forum at the Rogue Valley Country Club along with Angela Dowling, president of Regence BlueCross BlueShield of Oregon, and Southern Oregon Cardiology CEO and Executive Director Rich Bodager. When insurance companies and health care organizations sat down to bargain, Vinyard said, both had the goal of coming away with the best deal for their organization. "This sounds a little harsh," he said. "It wasn't so much about care delivery as it was about finances of health care delivery." Dowling said all three parties operated individually. As the organization in the middle between the employers and health care providers, insurance companies negotiated with both parties. "It's a challenging place to be," Dowling said. "But long-term we have to work collaboratively if we want to solve the health care cost equation." Wasted health care dollars can be found a lot of places, she said, but the easiest to find might be in the home medicine cabinet. Dowling said three in 10 prescriptions go unfilled or are filled and not taken. As a result, patients aren't getting better or their long-term status suffers. She said her organization's goal is reduce such waste to 10 percent. "You clearly have a reason to take the medication," Dowling said. "It's wasteful, sitting in the medicine cabinet. As a society we need to understand you do need to take all of that antibiotic so you don't relapse." Vinyard said fragmentation of health care delivery and lack of coordination contribute to waste of medical dollars. "You have a lot of redundancy of procedures and tests," he said. "It's also an inconvenience to patients who have to get the same tests two or three times." Vinyard said overutilization of brand-name drugs versus generic alternatives also runs up costs, while the overuse of emergency departments is an inefficient drain on resources. "Many, many communities have physician shortages and/or many people not covered by health care," he said. "Their first alternative, even for primary care delivery, is the emergency department — the most expensive form of delivery you could possibly get." Vinyard said there has been a big shift in the relationship among the involved parties from confrontational to collaborative. "It's an inclusive partnership between the provider, insurer and employer and getting all three at the table," he said. "We can encourage preventative health and encourage wellness, and take away barriers from access to primary care. For providers, it's utilizing information systems that can help them better coordinate the care for a patient." Dowling said the conversation with providers has changed in just the past year. "Frankly, it's more around how we can work together collaboratively," she said. "Let's take care of the fee schedule, but more importantly, how do we engage providers with employers, with our customers, so that we can deliver more effective, efficient medicine and take that waste out. So there can be lower premiums, so that it costs you less as consumers." Reach reporter Greg Stiles at 541-776-4463 or  [email protected] . Follow him on Twitter at  www.twitter.com/GregMTBusiness , on Facebook at  https://www.facebook.com/greg.stiles.31 , and read his blog at  www.mailtribune.com/Economic Edge .         By Greg Stiles Mail Tribune MailTribune.com By Greg Stiles Mail Tribune Posted Feb. 9, 2015 @ 5:59 pm Updated Feb 9, 2015 at 6:12 PM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. calendar Connect with MailTribune.com Facebook Twitter RSS Back to top Reader Services Reader Services Home Subscriptions Subscriber controls Contact us Submissions Photos Events Letters to the editor Corrections Announcements Obituaries Story ideas Since you asked Alerts Email Alerts RSS Feeds Text Alerts Advertise Media Kit Home Products and services Ad rates Advertising contacts Mail Tribune Daily Tidings The Nickel Shop Our Valley Blogs Stay Informed Email newsletter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Your privacy is important, read our privacy policy. © Copyright 2015 Local Media Group, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms of Service | Local Media Group Publications Original content available for non-commercial use under a Creative Commons license, except where noted. MailTribune.com | P.O. Box 1108, Medford, OR 97501