Central Michigan University employee group leaders and administrators are reversing rising healthcare costs by combining common purchasing and consumerism methods with an innovative gainsharing wellness program. Employees who complete four wellness components* receive their “share” of a fiscal year-end positive balance in CMU’s self-funded health plans. Plan benefits rank among the strongest for Michigan universities, while annual medical and prescription drug plan costs have declined. CMU and its health plan members have avoided $11 million over the past five years in comparison to 11 of the state’s other public universities.

 *Components include an annual health risk assessment, exercise, annual physical, and wellness screenings/programs.

• Stabilize and reduce CMU’s average self-funded health plan per capita (per employee) costs.
• Improve the health status of CMU employees and reduce health risks among the population covered, as measured by the annual health risk assessment.
• Maintain competitive, quality and valued health plan coverage in comparison to other Michigan public universities.  

• Average annual per member per month health plan costs have increased only 1.9 percent for medical and 0.1 percent for prescription drug annually during the past 5 years.
•  “Lifestyle scores” from the annual health risk assessment have improved and the number of members indicating high health risk has decreased from 28% to 17% during the past five years.
• CMU health plans feature zero deductibles and coinsurance for hospital/surgical services compared to an average 4 percent coinsurance fee and $221-single/$450-family deductibles at other state universities in Michigan.
• For FY13, medical illustrative rates (premiums) decreased by 2 percent and prescription drug rates were held flat.