An Associated Press story detailed a few ways in which healthcare is slowly shifting away from fee-for-service reimbursement models. Some insurers are covering the costs of rides to the gym, specially prepared meals and telephone checkups for patients with chronic conditions hoping that these measures will help limit expensive trips to the hospital later on.
The AP provided the example of Vita Woodard, a 56-year-old from Long Beach, California, with diabetes and chronic pain. She gets rides to a nearby fitness center and weekly calls from case manager Armando Contreras through Anthem’s “Togetherness” program.
The social engagement from the case managers is designed to make people more committed to maintaining their health, and it appears to be working in Woodard’s case.
“I don’t cry every day like I used to because I don’t want to be telling Armando that,” said Woodard, who has lost 34 pounds since joining the program. “I want to tell him I did something good.”
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Daniel joined TriMed’s Chicago editorial team in 2017 as a Cardiovascular Business writer. He previously worked as a writer for daily newspapers in North Dakota and Indiana.