Fox Business
Expand
Browse All Video
Watch Live

You're watching...

Catamaran CEO on Reducing Health-Care Costs

Details

  • Description

    Catamaran CEO Mark Thierer on what is needed to drive down the costs of health care.

  • Duration 3:44
  • Date

Clips

Also in this playlist...

Editor's Picks

Auto-advance: ON

Auto-advance
View All

Transcript

This transcript is automatically generated

You know when we brought you this yesterday the house voted to repeal the Health Care Reform law it's likely to die in the senate but this next healthcare CEO -- Is looking to save you money despite the uncertain future of the law -- -- is the CEO of catamaran he's.

And joins us now -- -- Fox Business exclusive Lamotte thank you so much for being here.

How on earth can you plan with or this uncertainty regarding the health -- -- what how do you approach it how'd you continue to make your plans to save people money.

-- our business model has been the same for years and that is were paid to manage pharmaceutical spending we do that with a whole range of tools and so.

Regardless of what's going on in Washington DC.

You'll always need someone who's paying attention to how can you contain costs and health care and still provide great service and health care to members.

That was the original issue as we propelled and looked out years and years down we saw that.

Health care costs would break the entire system at some point so we needed to so called bend the cost curve up you said.

That one of the biggest issues when it comes to doing that involves not the government not.

Doctors but the patients what's the issue what's the role and responsibility the patient that they're currently not stepping up to the plate for well.

It's very interest thing if you think about it one.

-- every five prescriptions to get written by doctor never get filled by the patient.

And of those 45 that do get filled.

50%.

One out of two did not get taken as prescribed in other words people fall off them.

They are not -- they don't take them as prescribed.

And these things lead to medical misadventures and big money.

Down downstream about what -- cost that is what's affecting cost and in my opinion we've not really gotten underneath what's really driving cost in this health care system.

It's not so much about the payment mechanisms it's about engaging members.

Patients you and -- -- on how to better take care of ourselves in meaningful what why how to do that with -- doctor -- -- it starts with -- LIN's ripping good.

That's not so much yelling at people but it is educating people it's getting their attention.

It's using plan designs that in sent them for the right behavior in our company.

If you take your body mass index seriously and you make improvements you pay a lower health care premiums for your churns.

And so you have to get the people's pocketbooks but ultimately have to get to people's brains.

And engage patients -- a whole new level to take care of themselves better this is the part that's missing in this national debate.

But why not especially in Europe and I speak from experience that a drug here -- cost -- 25 dollars a month prescription and cost -- only two dollars and fifty cents in Europe.

Why am I paying such a massive amount more here in this country especially these pills -- probably made in Ireland or Finland those somewhere outside of the US.

It's a great question and the way that drugs are priced.

Are really country by country and so the United States is an end of one its -- its own pricing ecosystem why because we're so developed -- we pay more.

No it's because the governments in these foreign countries control the prices they set the prices in many of these European countries as an example -- The European governments are setting price.

I'm not an advocate for that I do think the free market should set the price.

But I do not like the European prices I don't make.

I can understand -- but Europe's financial -- is -- I don't like -- part of it is the unions and health care and so so it's this notion of -- prices an issue but you've got to engage patients to take better care of themselves so that diabetics and overweight people are.

Are actually becoming better and the level of utilization of health care -- now.

That's the -- Simple as following doctor's order de mark good to see you thank you thanks for having market fears the CEO of catamaran and guess it's publicly traded.

Very good all right share.

Load More