PELVIS.
THIS HAPPENED LAST WEEK IN THE
2000 BLOCK OF NORTH JOHNSON
AVENUE -- NEAR KANSAS EXPRESSWAY
AND DIVISION.
NO WORD ON WHAT CAUSED THE
INCIDENT -- NO SUSPECTS HAVE
BEEN ARRESTED YET.
BUT OFFICERS ARE STILL
INVESTIGATING.
DAVID
NOW TO A KOLR10
INVESTIGATION...ON THE RISING
COSTS OF PRESCRIPTION DRUGS.
DAVID
LAST NIGHT WE SHARED ONE WOMAN'S
STORY ABOUT HER STRUGGLE TO PAY
FOR LIFE-SAVING
DRUGS, AND THE RESOURCES
AVAILABLE LOCALLY TO HELP COMBAT
THE COST.
HEATHER
TONIGHT -- WE EXPLORE THE
BUSINESS ANGLE -- HOW COMPANIES
BALANCE PROFIT -- AND HEALTH
COVERAGE TO ATTRACT AND RETAIN
EMPLOYEES.
"I think about one." Pretty
close to 140."
NEW HIRES...TRAIN TO BE DIRECT
SUPPORT
PROFESSIONALS FOR THE ARC OF THE
OZARKS.
THERE ARE 13 HUNDRED STAFF
MEMBERS IN THIS
ORGANIZATION THAT HELP
INDIVIDUALS WITH INTELLECTUAL
time, be able to pay them enough
that we can have good
retention."
CEO AND PRESIDENT, MICHAEL
POWERS SAYS
HITTING THE BOTTOM LINE AND
PROVIDING GOOD HEALTH COVERAGE
CAN BE CHALLENGING.
OUT OF ONE THOUSAND EMPLOYEES
ELIGIBLE, ONLY
HALF OPT TO TAKE THE COMPANY'S
INSURANCE.
(Powers) "When we offer benefits
to individuals, we ask
them -- if they decline--why
they're declining, so we know
what the reasons are."
"We don't ask them specificially
if you're on medicaid, but we
know that a lot of them are."
THE ORGANIZATION TAKES MEDICAID
MONEY TO WORK
WITH PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES,
BUT THEN EMPLOYS PEOPLE WHO TURN
TO MEDICAID.
IT'S LOBBYING FOR MORE
COMPETITIVE PAY.
AND WHILE IT'S AT THE MERCY OF
LAWMAKERS...
(Amy Blansit/Drew Lewis
Foundation) "When you're a
small company, you're really at
the mercy of which plan can you
get. The larger your company is,
now they want your business,
and so rates per person begin to
decrease. There's a lot more
financial drain on small
companies when it comes to
providing medical care for your
employees.
FOUNDER OF THE DREW LEWIS
FOUNDATION, AMY
BLANSIT, TAKES THE APPROACH OF
BEING TRANSPARENT WITH
EMPLOYEES.
(Blansit) "We sat down and
we as a team address that?"
EDUCATING EMPLOYEES ON HOW TO
STAY HEALTHY --
ALSO HELPS KEEP COST DOWN.
(Blansit) "It really goes back
to prevention. We talk so much
about the medical system being
so expensive because there isn't
money in prevention. How do we
work with staff in order for
them to not need the blood
pressure medication, obesity is
a big one where we have all
these code morbiditites that go
along with it, so what can we do
as employers to promote a
healthy environment?"
OTHER EMPLOYERS IN TOWN ARE
EDUCATING
THEMSELVES ON PHYSICIANS.
DR. LUKE VAN KIRK PROVIDES AN
ALTERNATIVE
TO SOME INSURANCE PLANS.
(Dr. Luke Van Kirk/Owner,
Command Family Medicine) "So
we do direct primary care,
basically what that means is we
work directly with the patients
on payment. We don't bill any
insurance or anyhting or third
parties. Patients just pay us a
montly membership."
THIS MEMBERSHIP, WHICH COSTS 50
TO 75 DOLLLARS A
MONTH, COMES WITH UNLIMITED
DOCTOR VISITS....AND...
WHOLESALE PRICES ON MEDICATION,
LABWORK, AND PROCEDURES.
(Dr. Luke Van Kirk) "If a
business has a self-funded or
partially self-funded plan, they
can actually customize those
plans, and they can cut out the
primary care that I can provide.
They can cut out the
prescription plan, the labwork.
Basically anything I can do in
the office they don't have to
have in the plan and that brings
down the cost of the premiums,
usually 10-15% right off the
bat. And then on top of that, we
reduce the amount of claims that
go to the insurance because
we're keeping people out of the
urgent care, out of the
emergency room....we're doing
most of the medication through
our office, not through the
insurance plan, so that's
usually
a big cost on the insurance
claims is the prescriptions."
WHILE SOME BUSINESSES GET
CREATIVE TO COMBAT
THE RISING COSTS OF PRESCRIPTION
MEDICATION...
BLANSIT SAYS THERE IS SOMETHING
*YOU* CAN DO.
(Blansit)"We're learning as a
nation, with the rising cost,
how
do we stop that? That is
something bigger than me as the
employer, but really it's bigger
than that. It's voting and
getting out and being activists,
so that's one thing that we
really talk with our families
too. One of the major things
AFFORD TO SPEND ON EMPLOYEE
HEALTH INSURANCE GIVES US A
DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVE ON THIS
ISSUE THAN NORMAL.
HEATHER: YES, I WAS REALLY
STRUCK BY THE
NUMBER OF PEOPLE WHO OPT OUT OF
MEDICAL COVERAGE WITHIN THEIR
COMPANY, BECAUSE
THEY'RE LOOKING FOR CHEAPER
OPTIONS. BUT, BRIAN, BUSINESSES
ARE STILL JUST ONE PART OF
THE EQUATION FOR LOWERING DRUG
PRICES. POLITICIANS HAVE A ROLE
HEATHER: OKAY LOOK FORWARD TO
IT... DAVID
DAVID
TODAY WAS CERTAINLY THE WARMEST
DAY OF THE WEEK AS COLD
TEMPERATURES AND RAIN