"A couple of acronyms like DEI and SDOH in work culture get tossed around thoughtlessly. I've said for a while that we're all equally getting mistreated by the healthcare industrial complex. But, I think I'm wrong about that. I think the most vulnerable in the workforce are worse off than we think." -- Cristy Gupton
Read More“There’s not one definition of a specialty drug…specialty drugs have a vague group of criteria that many times isn’t clear. You have to find out how your plan defines specialty drugs. If you find generic drugs on a specialty list, you need the right people by your side to fix that.” — Vinay Patel, founder of Mako-Rx
Read MorePatients who receive medical balance bills are ill-prepared to decipher what they’re being billed for and why. If there’s any chronic disease more prevalent than healthcare “pricing toxicity”, we don’t know what that might be. Plenty of us calling for transparency in healthcare throw the term “payment integrity” on the table as often as possible. If we stop talking about it, then the predatory billers win…and we just can’t have that.
Read MoreSpoiler alert. Intermittent fasting and consistent exercise will give you the same results but with better health as an ultimate outcome...not worse health because of a drug your body didn't really need. This week’s article in BenefitsPro about the 10K patients who are suing the makers of the GLP-1s like Ozempic and Wegovy was inevitable.
Read MoreWhen BCBSNC tells us they prefer brand name drugs to low-cost generics, we did some fact checking.
Read MoreMoose Pharmacy, a local, independent, community pharmacy in the suburbs of Charlotte, NC recently won a national award for having one of the 50 best health plans in America. After a competitive vetting process, the pharmacy’s employee health plan stood tall up against employers who were hundreds of times larger than them. Moose Pharmacy and Cristy Gupton of Custom Benefits Solutions started working together 3 years ago to improve healthcare and lower costs for employees and their families.
Read MoreRecently, the NC General Assembly voted to approve a bill that would allow the state’s largest healthcare services organization (notice I didn’t say “health insurance company”) to continue its vertical integration scheme while using policyholder contributions and taxpayer dollars to fund their expansion. What employers should be upset about with that is the favoritism those lawmakers are showing to BCBSNC. Did those same legislators pass a bill in your favor that would help your company grow? Nope. The message here is that there’s more than one health insurance option in this country and it doesn’t have to bear the logos of Blue Cross, UnitedHealthcare, Cigna or Aetna. Give another option a close look. You’ll probably find a partner more aligned with your interests than you realize.
Read MoreCustom Benefits Solutions hosts free webinar aimed at helping employers a they bring employees back to work after quarantine.
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