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Consultant urges Polk schools to consider direct hospital contracts, tiered plan to cut claims costs
Summary
A benefits consultant described direct hospital contracting and cost‑plus models as tools Polk County Public Schools could use to reduce health‑care spending and steer employees toward lower‑cost providers, prompting questions from board members about provider choice and broker relationships.
Shane Wingo, a partner at Lakeland-based Baldwin Group, told the Polk County School Board during a Jan. 28 work session that the district could lower health‑care costs by negotiating directly with hospitals and using tiered incentives to steer employees to lower‑cost providers.
Wingo said direct contracting is already used by large employers and some Florida school systems and described a “cost plus” model that pays hospitals a percentage over Medicare with faster payment terms. “If you negotiate that contract, you’re saying I’m going to pay you Medicare, I’m going to add a percentage on top of that, and I’m going to pay you within 30 to 45 days,” Wingo said. He said hospitals accept lower margins for faster cash flow compared with…
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