LAKELAND EMPLOYEES OPTED FOR “ DOCTOR VISITS” AT A CAR DEALERSHIP

Written by Liz Antaya, M-HBD, Employee Benefits Advisor, Mitigate Partners

Lakeland, FL –The owner of a locally owned car dealership and his employees in Southwest Florida took matters into their own hands when it came time to renew their health insurance provider. Instead, they dropped the big-name insurance company and created their own employer-funded plan. The result: a double-digit drop in their health premiums and doctor visits on location at the car dealership. There’s no error. Family Medicine Physician of Persona Healthcare Direct, Dr. Christopher Salud, sees employees at the car dealership every other week. Employees sign up for appointments in advance, selecting from 30 –60 minute appointments. An office on the second floor of Lakeland Auto Mall’s showroom has been re-purposed for their “dealership doctor”. Employee Mike Kuykendall is thrilled. He’s one of the 62 employees –among more than 50% of the entire dealership staff on the health plan–participating in this program. “I’ve seen the doctor several times, and he’s been very helpful to my wife and me,” explains the salesman. “You can schedule your appointment during your workday and when the time comes, you take your lunch break, see the doctor, and go back to work.” The family-owned business, owned and operated by Greg Balasco, was among my first clients when I switched over to Stahl & Associates Insurance, one of the largest privately owned, independent insurance agencies in Florida and joined the national network of employee benefits advisors of Mitigate Partners, LLC. Prior to that, I had been immersed in the “BUCAH” world largest health insurance companies in the U.S., including Blue Cross & Blue Shield, United, Cigna, Aetna, and Humana. Every year at renewal time, the dealership kept getting increases. We were playing that BUCAH dance. You get an increase, then have to take away benefits to minimize the increase, or you switch to another one of the BUCAHs for a lower rate, only to see a 35% increase in the first renewal. That’s what happened after the dealership switched from Florida Blue to Humana. It happened again when the dealership changed from Humana to Cigna, trying to spare employees from a 35% hike in health premiums. A year later, at the first renewal, Cigna came back with a 25% increase.

This business owner was fed up and desperate to avoid the usual benefits meeting with his 220+ employees. “Every single year we had to fight with the increase in premiums,” said Balasco. The fight had made the dealership open to the idea of ‘unbundling’ and actively managing its own employer-built health plan. My time in graduate school at the University of Lynchburg for Health Benefits Design provided the tools I needed to help businesses save money and take better care of their employees, and had prepared me for this moment. The car dealership became the first in Polk County to create its own actively managed, employer-built health plan with DPC at the foundation. The savings from a traditional or commercial health plan to an actively managed, employer-funded plan can be substantial, sometimes between 20%-60%. The first year, the plan spent 12% or $121,000 less than the previous year on a Cigna level-funded plan and 30% or $368,000 less than the offered renewal, and these savings include the additional cost of adding the Direct Primary Care Doctor and removing barriers to care like high deductibles and coinsurance.

In the end the employees received better access
to high-quality healthcare for less money!

The on-site doctor visits have helped with employee retention and recruitment, but that’s not the only thing. Under its employer-built health plan, employees also have access to a Nurse Navigator. A registered nurse is available to help employees find medical specialists when needed. A 1-800 telephone line was created for easy access to a Nurse Navigator, and the service is free to the employee if they select from the recommended high-quality specialist, meaning deductibles and coinsurance are waived entirely for the member doing the right thing. Employees also have direct access to their “dealership doctor” 24/7. Dr. Salud is available via cellphone. Asked by the local ABC affiliate what it’s like to be this accessible, he said, “It gets back to practicing medicine the way I envisioned it when I became a doctor. It’s getting to know people, spending time with people, and really helping them.” Salud is paid directly by the employer a specific monthly fee per employee. Employer-built and funded health plans like the one at the Lakeland Auto Mall dealership have changed the way he practices medicine, too. He now sees 400–600 patients per year instead of 4,000. That gives him more time to address mental health issues, as well as the prevention and management of chronic diseases. It’s a win-win-win. The savings to the employer are significant, as are the improved health outcomes of employees and the doctor-patient experience. ☤

Reprinted with permission from the author (versions of this article have appeared in Automotive News and featured by ABC News).