A Vitals' SmartShopper report found providing consumer incentives can yield significant healthcare cost savings, according to ebn.
Various employers offer SmartShopper to employees, a program which gives cash to those employees who select healthcare options with lower prices.
Here are five insights:
1. In 2015, of SmartShopper's eight health plans and employer clients, consumers collectively earned $1.46 million and generated approximately $12 million in savings.
2. Vitals found the average savings per shopped procedure was $625 in 2015.
3. In 2015, consumers shopped 50 percent more for diagnostic scans than the previous year, yielding $2.2 million in savings for employers.
4. Shopping for blood work increased 46 percent from 2014 to 2015, which generated savings of $1.1 million.
5. "The member is the one who does all the work," Rob Graybill, vice president of SmartShopper. "They engage, find out about cost and quality and vote with their feet to generate savings. SmartShopper shares a portion of those savings back to the member in incentive rewards."
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