Oregon Educators Benefit Board (OEBB) to Expand Its Digital Health Self-Management Program Offering Through Canary Health
Innovative Partnership Allows OEBB to Reduce Healthcare Costs and Improve the Quality of Care for More Than 150,000 Oregonians
LOS ANGELES, CA and SALEM, OR–(Marketwired – July 20, 2016) – Canary Health, the leading provider of digital health self-management programs that prevent the progression of chronic diseases, and the Oregon Educators Benefit Board (OEBB), which provides a comprehensive selection of benefit plan options for most of Oregon’s K-12 school districts, education service districts and community colleges, as well as a number of charter schools and local governments across the state, today announced the roll-out of additional digital health programs to help OEBB members prevent and manage chronic illnesses. In addition to offering Canary Health’s Better Choices, Better Health® (BCBH) self-management program for chronic diseases such as heart disease, arthritis and depression, OEBB will add Virtual Lifestyle Management (VLM), a self-management program specifically for pre-diabetes which affects more than 1.1 million Oregonians.
“We are always looking for ways to reduce healthcare costs for our members and improve the quality of care,” said James Raussen, Director of the Oregon Educators Benefit Board. “Working with our carriers and progressive companies like Canary Health is part of OEBB’s vision of the future. We look forward to continuing and expanding the partnership even further.”
First deployed to OEBB members in 2014, Canary Health’s digital self-management program, Better Choices, Better Health® (BCBH) has been offered to all adult members, covered spouses and dependents with a chronic condition, through OEBB’s medical carriers Moda Health and Kaiser Permanente. The program, which is based on more than three decades of research by Stanford University Patient Education Research Center, is a 6-week, peer-led, small-group, online workshop that helps individuals effectively self-manage a variety of chronic illnesses such as heart disease, diabetes, arthritis, and depression.
OEBB will now start a phased roll-out of Canary Health’s Virtual Lifestyle Management (VLM) program which is a CDC-recognized digital Diabetes Prevention Program (DPP) that is proven to not only slow the progression of a variety of diseases associated with obesity, but also prevent new cases of diabetes from developing. According to the Oregon Diabetes Report, diabetes and diabetes-related conditions cost OEBB and PEBB (Public Employee Benefit Board) more than $46 million in 2012, which is why a solution to address the progression of the disease was needed.
“Expanding our focus on self-management to include Canary Health’s VLM program for pre-diabetes allows us to prevent a growing problem from getting any worse,” added Mr. Raussen. “Our members who have participated in BCBH have reported that the program helps improve their self-management of chronic conditions and their overall health. And now, adding VLM will increase the benefits we provide our members.”
Canary Health’s work with OEBB’s carriers is one of many that the company has with organizations that provide healthcare coverage to local, state and federal public employees including federal employee health benefits plans, state public employee benefit boards and benefit boards representing educators. In addition to implementing its digital self-management programs for chronic diseases, Canary Health offers support for contracting (RFP, sole-source, pass-through) and communication integration with open enrollment periods.
“Given our deep experience with public employee healthcare organizations, we are able to offer a completely seamless experience to our partners,” said Jonah Kaufman, Vice President of Sales, Pacific Northwest for Canary Health. “We are honored to expand our partnership with OEBB and their carriers to offer proven ways to lower costs and improve health outcomes.”
With more than 117 million people in the U.S. suffering from one or more chronic illnesses, Canary Health’s mission is to provide evidence-based, digital self-management programs that reduce the cost of care and make a significant impact in preventing and arresting the progression of chronic diseases such as diabetes, arthritis, heart disease and depression. According to the CDC, health self-management helps people learn techniques to reduce pain and improve function and to develop skills and confidence to daily manage their conditions. Participants in Canary Health’s self-management programs have also demonstrated fewer visits to physicians and emergency departments, fewer days in the hospital and fewer hospitalizations. In addition, Canary Health’s health plan partners report a 90% user satisfaction rate and a savings as high as $1,000 per participant per year for an overall ROI of 3:1.
The expansion of the partnership with OEBB and their carriers follows Canary Health’s recent partnership with Medtronic to create a comprehensive treatment offering for the full spectrum of diabetes acuity. Canary Health also recently acquired mobile stress management company, bLife, as well as an exclusive license with Stanford University’s Patient Education Research Center for its chronic disease self-management programs, which have achieved the highest criteria for evidence-based programs set by the U.S Department of Health & Human Services and have been proven effective through more than 30 published clinical studies.
Canary Health and Population Health Alliance will be hosting a webinar on July 27th featuring Glenn Baly of Oregon Educators Benefit Board (OEBB) and others who have successfully implemented evidence-based digital self-management programs for their public employee members. To participate in the webinar, and to find out how implementing digital self-management programs can lower the cost of care for public employees with chronic conditions, please visit https://www.canaryhealth.com/webinar-managing-cost-of-public-employees-with-chronic-conditions/.
For more information about Canary Health’s comprehensive suite of self-management programs, please visit www.CanaryHealth.com. For OEBB members looking for more information about these programs, please visit oregon.gov/OHA/OEBB or send an email to info@canaryhealth.com to learn more.
