Beyond Cost: 'Responsible Purchasing' Of Managed Care By

We explore the extent of "responsible purchasing" by employers— the degree to which employers collect and use nonfinancial information in selecting and managing employee health plans. Most firms believe that they have some responsibility for assessing the quality of the health plans they offer. Some pay attention to plan characteristics such as the ability to provide ade- quate access to providers and services and scores on enrollee satisfaction surveys. A more limited but still notable number of firms take specific actions based on responsible purchasing information. Because of countervailing pres- sures, however, it is not clear whether or not the firms most involved in respon- sible purchasing are signaling a developing trend.