McKesson focuses on helping healthcare organizations improve their business health so they can deliver better care to patients. As a leader in healthcare, we connect people and organizations to support the quest for higher-quality care and improved clinical outcomes. At McKesson, our employees are part of a team of passionate people working together to improve lives and advance healthcare. Our guiding principles include focusing on a healthy and productive workforce while improving our healthcare trends. By investing in the health and wellness of our employees, we lead by example and create a culture that genuinely supports our employees and their families as well as our customers and partners. 

In 2010, McKesson implemented a comprehensive wellness program through our partner vendor, Vitality. This program includes requirements for employees and spouses to complete a health assessment, biometric screening and certain other wellness activities in order to earn an incentive that reduces employees’ contributions toward healthcare coverage. Knowing that our employees are not always at a computer and that they are not all marathon runners, we engage them through a variety of outreach mechanisms, including articles, flyers, health fairs, videos and challenges. 

In 2014, we implemented an innovative carrier marketplace model providing employees with choice in medical carriers. This model incents medical carriers to provide the best service, to compete for members, and to differentiate based on the efficiency and effectiveness. We also offer a Centers of Excellence program for joint replacement, prescription generic step therapy and drug discounts for engagement in chronic condition management. Encouraging employees to manage their own health through wellness programs, care management programs and value-based benefit design incentives has helped them reduce lifestyle risks and make better care decisions that result in reduced inpatient stays, emergency room visits and use of specialists. 

Some facts bearing this out: 

• From 2010 to 2012, McKesson’s risk score dropped from 98 to 93 (using a measure of illness burden in our population). 
• In 2011, 83 percent of McKesson’s eligible population had a “vitality age” (the measure of the lifestyle and biometric risks of a population) that was greater than their chronological age. In 2013, results improved to 77 percent. 
• Inpatient use dropped from 65 per 1,000 lives in 2010 to 63 per 1,000 in 2012. During this time, severity of inpatient stays dropped from an expected $14,164 per case to $13,720. 
• Dollars per service decreased since 2010, the first year we moved to consumer-driven health plan replacement. 

While cost per service is going down, employees are engaging more in wellness programs. Those who engage at a higher level have lower annual healthcare spending trends than those who are less engaged. Employees are engaging more in care management programs over time to help them manage their conditions and comply with practice guidelines.