How Koch is closing care gaps for its U.S. workforce
The fragmented U.S. healthcare experience is not only complicated for people to navigate but also costly. These barriers often lead to delayed care, especially for people with serious health problems or severe symptoms. In fact, a recent poll found that one in four adults put off care they needed because of cost and more than a fifth of Americans don’t see a single healthcare provider on an annual basis. Moreover, these ongoing challenges contribute to the deterioration of health outcomes in the U.S. and threaten to escalate long-term costs for individuals, employers, and the healthcare system at-large. Ensuring employees thoroughly understand their benefits and how best to use them can lead to both improved health outcomes and financial savings.
In early 2023, Koch – the second largest privately-held company in the country – implemented Sharecare’s well-being and benefits navigation platform to help its 121,000 covered lives, including U.S.-based employees and their family members, simplify the health experience, remove barriers to care, improve outcomes, and lower costs. Within the first 12 months, over half of Koch’s workforce engaged with the Sharecare platform. Of those who engaged, 60% used Sharecare to make more informed healthcare decisions, primarily to better understand and more easily access their employer-sponsored health benefits and additional third-party health services and find in-network providers for everything from routine care to preventive screenings.
As part of its integration, Koch introduced Sharecare’s 24/7 health advocacy solution to provide an additional layer of high-touch support for employees, with an estimated total cost savings in 2023 of $1.7 million from reducing health risks, $7.8 million from helping employees navigate health services, and $2.8 million from offering personalized and specialized medical support. Beyond helping employees navigate their benefits, Sharecare advocates also coordinate care, direct employees toward relevant programs and offerings, and complete tasks on their behalf such as appointment scheduling and prescription management.
During 2023, Koch employees using Sharecare’s advocacy solution showed a 14.2% overall increase in care gap closures compared to their non-engaged counterparts. Of the care gaps tracked, preventative screenings demonstrated the greatest impact; each screening yielded more than a 20-point increase in care gap closures for engaged employees compared to non-engaged employees. Specifically, cholesterol screening completion rates reached nearly 80% for engaged employees, compared to 52% for non-engaged employees. Similarly, breast cancer screening rates among engaged employees were 73% compared to 45% for those not engaged. These findings underscore the fact that Koch’s commitment to innovation and collaboration to support the well-being of its employees is saving time, closing care gaps, and enhancing health literacy and proactive management across its workforce.
Beyond the population-level impact, dedicated care from clinical advocates for high-risk employees can provide invaluable, personalized support that can be life-changing.
In one instance last year, a Sharecare advocate discovered that a Koch employee living with diabetes was not adhering to his prescribed regimen of medication and glucose monitoring. The advocate contacted the employee and was able to identify cost and language as the key barriers to his medication adherence. In addition to managing the employee’s transition to a more affordable mail-order prescription, when the employee asked about coverage for advanced glucose monitoring devices, Sharecare’s advocate ordered a new device covered by his plan and coordinated with his primary care specialist to help with the device setup. Finally and perhaps most importantly, the Sharecare advocate coordinated a dietary consultation for the employee with a registered bilingual dietician, who educated him – in his preferred language – on how his nutrition and diet can help him better manage his diabetes. By improving his understanding of how to live with his condition and empowering him with the tools to do so more affordably and efficiently, the employee was appreciative not only for the significant out-of-pocket savings, but also how the advocate’s thoughtful, personalized intervention put him back on track to live a longer, healthier life.
Koch’s commitment to addressing navigation challenges and enhancing employees’ understanding of their benefits through Sharecare’s platform and advocacy solution has not only improved health outcomes but also is introducing substantial potential cost savings. By bridging the gap between employees and their healthcare benefits, Koch Industries is maximizing efficiency, productivity, and quality, and reducing cost of care while empowering employees and their families to be happier, healthier, and more productive.
