November 4, 2013
The City of Overland Park will offer on-site health as part of its employee health insurance and wellness programs beginning next spring.
Under an agreement the Overland Park City Council approved last month, worksite healthcare provider Marathon Health will deliver its MedicalHome@Work model beginning in March 2014. Marathon Health will staff a full- and part-time nurse practitioner and a medical assistant at a city-owned facility to provide their Total Population Health Risk Management solution, which includes primary care, disease management, and health coaching, as well as pre-employment occupational health services.
Overland Park selected Marathon Health following a competitive search process. The selection of Marathon Health was based on a number of factors, including Marathon Healths philosophy, which favors a proactive approach in health risk identification and shifts away from transaction-oriented sick care. Marathon Healths patient-centered medical home requires a holistic approach to care, the ability to integrate all health services, and a technology platform that facilitates care coordination and reporting.
The new on-site health center will be an integral part of the Citys health insurance and wellness programs and our efforts to manage rising health care costs, said Mike Garcia, Chief Human Resources Officer for the city of Overland Park. We look forward to our partnership with Marathon Health to provide primary care services for our employees as well as enhance our employee wellness initiatives.
Onsite health centers are a growing trend. A 2012 report from health and human resources consultant Mercer showed that in the past three years, prevalence of onsite health clinics for employers with 5,000 or more employees increased from 32 percent of companies to 37 percent.
Marathon Health CEO Jerry Ford said his team has put a lot of time and effort into the Marathon Health MedicalHome@Work model.
Because we focus on identifying and mitigating health risks, in the context of providing high-quality care, we expect to see significant savings as well as improved health status of the Overland Park population, Ford said. Our collaborative care model, which we support with a sophisticated technology platform for reporting and care coordination, continually demonstrates improved outcomes, lower costs and high patient satisfaction. In short, this is an approach that works and we look forward to partnering with the city to enhance the way healthcare is delivered.
