News
Cheaper and More Effective: The Case for Asthma Prevention
Investing in Best Practices in Asthma: A Business Case
November 16, 2010
Nearly half of all adults suffer from chronic conditions like heart disease, diabetes, arthritis and pulmonary disease, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. National health care reform, in looking to reduce the lifetime treatment costs for these patients, has spurred a fresh look at prevention.
Investing in Best Practices in Asthma: A Business Case, a 2010 report by The Asthma Regional Council of New England (ARC), a program of HRiA, examined the efficacy of asthma prevention efforts to see what impact, if any, they had.
The results were clear: prevention works.
"Our nation spends close to $20 billion per year on asthma," said Stacey Chacker, ARC’s director. "By emphasizing prevention, taking up-front steps to limit the factors that precipitate attacks, and providing patients with access to education for better self-care, our society could potentially save $5 billion in unnecessary hospitalizations."
Prevention initiatives like home assessments, extermination services, and removal of mold and other allergens are generally considered outside the typical insurance benefits package but have proven effective in preventing more costly treatment.
Laurie Stillman, chief strategy officer for HRiA and co-author of the 2010 study, said these findings provide insurers with information that "demonstrates the advantages of patient education and expanding interventions beyond the clinic." ARC is managed by HRiA.
An analysis of data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention showed a savings of between five and fourteen dollars for every dollar invested in prevention. "Money," Chacker notes, "that could help fund other vitally needed health initiatives."
While the study illustrates the enormous monetary cost of uncontrolled asthma, the human cost is also significant. "Both adults and children suffer with the illness; they lose work and school days and must restrict daily activities," Chacker notes, adding "the disease places an unnecessary burden on families and society at large."
The report also highlights six cost-effective strategies for managing asthma from some of the nation’s most successful programs, including local programs at Children’s Hospital Boston and the Cambridge Health Alliance.
"The work of the Asthma Regional Council embodies the mission, and even the name, of Health Resources in Action," says Ray Considine, HRiA’s president. "This was an extensive research-based and scientific approach to a major public health and public policy challenge. What is even more impressive is how this research will now be used to promote change within the very organizations that fund the care."
The report was produced in collaboration with the University of Massachusetts Lowell and was supported by a grant from The Kresge Foundation.
Investing in Best Practices in Asthma: A Business Case, a 2010 report by The Asthma Regional Council of New England (ARC), a program of HRiA, examined the efficacy of asthma prevention efforts to see what impact, if any, they had.
The results were clear: prevention works.
"Our nation spends close to $20 billion per year on asthma," said Stacey Chacker, ARC’s director. "By emphasizing prevention, taking up-front steps to limit the factors that precipitate attacks, and providing patients with access to education for better self-care, our society could potentially save $5 billion in unnecessary hospitalizations."
Prevention initiatives like home assessments, extermination services, and removal of mold and other allergens are generally considered outside the typical insurance benefits package but have proven effective in preventing more costly treatment.
Laurie Stillman, chief strategy officer for HRiA and co-author of the 2010 study, said these findings provide insurers with information that "demonstrates the advantages of patient education and expanding interventions beyond the clinic." ARC is managed by HRiA.
An analysis of data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention showed a savings of between five and fourteen dollars for every dollar invested in prevention. "Money," Chacker notes, "that could help fund other vitally needed health initiatives."
While the study illustrates the enormous monetary cost of uncontrolled asthma, the human cost is also significant. "Both adults and children suffer with the illness; they lose work and school days and must restrict daily activities," Chacker notes, adding "the disease places an unnecessary burden on families and society at large."
The report also highlights six cost-effective strategies for managing asthma from some of the nation’s most successful programs, including local programs at Children’s Hospital Boston and the Cambridge Health Alliance.
"The work of the Asthma Regional Council embodies the mission, and even the name, of Health Resources in Action," says Ray Considine, HRiA’s president. "This was an extensive research-based and scientific approach to a major public health and public policy challenge. What is even more impressive is how this research will now be used to promote change within the very organizations that fund the care."
The report was produced in collaboration with the University of Massachusetts Lowell and was supported by a grant from The Kresge Foundation.
« Return
