VSP Vision Care Study: Annual Eye Exams Save Companies Nearly $3 Billion
Description | Challenge | Solution | Outcomes | ROI | Additional Info | Time Commitment | Lessons Learned | Future Changes
Description
VSP engaged Human Capital Management Services (HCMS), a national health care and workplace productivity consulting firm based out of Cheyenne Wyo., to conduct an independent study to determine the frequency and health/cost benefits of detecting early symptoms of diabetes, hypertension, and corneal arcus (associated with high cholesterol) and facilitating early intervention through an eye health exam and coordination of care.
VSP’s Eye Health Management® Program focuses on an eye exam as a health exam and includes health, family and medication history as well as coordination of care through integrative data sharing between VSP doctors, Primary Care Physicians, regional health plans and disease management plans.
Challenge
As health care costs continue to rise at alarming rates and businesses are faced with shrinking profit margins during an unsure economy, employers are actively seeking new solutions to the health care cost and quality problem. Early disease detection has long been proposed as part of this solution, but traditional disease and case management interventions typically begin after the onset of symptoms. Opportunities to improve outcomes can be optimized when interventions begin before damage has occurred (onset of symptoms).
Solution
The eyes are the only place on the body where a doctor can clearly view vascular changes that show signs of eye-related as well as systemic disease like diabetes, hypertension and high cholesterol. In addition, people are nearly three times more likely to see their eye doctor than their primary care doctor; and as the population ages, the need for vision correction will increase this disparity.
Literature suggests that early identification of all three of these diseases can lead to reduced complications and better management of conditions. VSP’s Eye Health Management® Program was designed to enhance the capability of the eye exam experience to fully leverage the potential of identifying people who are at risk for, or have, health conditions and facilitate the beginning of treatment and/or management, resulting in better outcomes and reduced cost.
Outcomes
- HCMS confirmed that VSP doctors were often the first to detect early symptoms of conditions that may have otherwise gone unnoticed and untreated until more advanced symptoms compelled the patients to seek medical attention.
Percentage of Total Cases First Identified by VSP Doctors:- Diabetes: 20%
- Hypertension: 30%
- Corneal Arcus (High Cholesterol) 65%
- For every $1 invested in VSP exam services, clients in the study saved an average of 94¢ in return from avoided medical costs and improved human capital performance in the form of less lost time, fewer disability cases, and lower turnover rates. This savings is in addition to the value of the eye exam itself.
- This analysis gives evidence that early disease detection through eye exams can lead to lower health plan costs, fewer lost work days and lower rates of termination. In fact, cost savings almost completely offset the fees of the eye exams. As such, employers should consider eye exams as part of their overall health strategy.
ROI to date:
For every $1 invested in VSP exam services, employers can save 94¢ in return from avoided medical costs and improved human capital performance in the form of less lost time, fewer disability cases, and lower turnover rates.
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Additional Information
The study included five large commercial (VSP) clients with a combined total of 90,000 members.
Time Commitment (For Existing VSP Clients)
Planning Cycle: 30 days
Implementation time: 30 days
Lessons Learned
Comprehensive eye exams and participating in VSP’s Eye Health Management® Program has the potential to play a significant role in health care cost management strategies.
If you implemented this solution again, what would you do differently?
We would have expanded the scope of the patient data collected, and enhanced the health risk assessment portion of the patient history, to make the information richer and even more beneficial.