Tria Health reports clinical improvements, $314,000 in estimated savings for Shawnee County plan

Shawnee County commissioners heard an annual report on May 22 from Tria Health, the county’s contracted medication‑management vendor, detailing clinical outcomes and estimated savings for the county-sponsored health plan. Tria reported that 136 plan members actively engaged with a Tria clinical pharmacist in calendar year 2024 and that the county’s investment produced an overall 7.6-to-1 return on investment.

The report matters because the county pays for the program as part of employee and plan-member benefits; program managers said better medication alignment and monitoring reduces avoidable pharmacy and medical spending. “Overall, we had 7.6 to 1 ROI,” Tria presenter Jim Wynne said during the commissioners’ meeting. Wynne also said Tria validated $78,893 in pharmacy (Rx) hard-dollar savings through claims during the year and reported total estimated savings of $314,027 compared with a county investment of $47,008.

Tria described its target population as plan members with one or more chronic conditions who take four or more prescription medications. County data cited in the presentation showed about 35% of the plan population meets that criterion; Tria identified 136 engaged members and has an additional outreach list of 331 members it is contacting to offer the no‑cost benefit. Tria said engaged members typically take eight to nine prescription medications and have two to three chronic conditions.

The program’s clinical results included identification of 126 drug-therapy problems across engaged members. Tria listed common problems it found as adverse drug reactions, noncompliance, ineffective drugs and incorrect dosing. In one case described by Tria, a member with an initial A1c of 10.3 had medication adjustments recommended to the prescribing physician that ultimately reduced the member’s A1c to 5.8 without an in‑office specialist visit; Wynne said the physician agreed to the recommended changes. Tria said the average A1c for participating diabetics was 7.0, and participating diabetics averaged a 1.5‑point reduction in A1c.

Tria also described real‑time remote monitoring for a subset of high‑risk members. Fourteen members used cellular-enabled glucose meters that transmit readings to pharmacists; pharmacists initiated outreach in four instances when readings were concerning. Eleven members used cellular blood-pressure monitors; Tria said pharmacists reached out 10 times for out‑of‑range blood‑pressure readings. Wynne said those monitoring tools allow earlier intervention without waiting for an adverse event to occur.

Wynne said Tria’s clinicians make recommendations to prescribing physicians rather than unilaterally changing regimens; he reported a 97% physician acceptance rate for Tria’s recommendations. “97% of our recommendations to the physicians were accepted,” Wynne said. He also said Tria’s reports are conservative about counting avoided hospitalizations and emergency visits and that the firm did not claim any prevented hospitalizations or ER visits in the audited results presented to the commissioners.

Commissioners discussed broader drug‑pricing issues during the presentation, including federal proposals and market forces such as pharmacy benefit managers and drug manufacturers. Commissioner comments praised Tria’s advocacy for plan members: a commissioner said the program “looks at interactions between medications, and you look at the outcomes that you're getting from it.”

Angela Lewis, director of administrative services, told commissioners how staff and covered members can contact Tria. Lewis provided the vendor’s phone number and website during the meeting, saying employees eligible for the county’s plan can call +1 (888) 799-8742 or visit www.TriaHealth.com to enroll. Lewis said the initial call typically takes about 30 minutes and is scheduled.

There was no formal board action tied to the presentation; commissioners did not vote or direct a specific change during the meeting. County staff said emails would be sent to eligible employees to remind them about the Tria benefit.

The presentation and discussion on Tria Health comprised the primary, substantive item on the agenda and included remarks from the Tria presenter and multiple commissioners.