Dive Brief:

• Twenty major companies—including American Express Co., Macy’s Inc. and Verizon Communications Inc.—have announced plans to cooperate via their aggregate data and buying power as they seek to reign in the price tag of employer-provided healthcare benefits, according to the Wall Street Journal.
• The Journal reports that the members of the new Health Transformation Alliance, which includes four million covered lives, believe that by sharing and utilizing plan member data from employee health spending and outcomes, they can curtail what seem to be unmanageable spending rates. 
• The article also notes that because the 20 companies are so large, their concept could expand to other employers who provide health benefits, with the Journal noting that currently about 170 million Americans have health coverage though the workplace.

Dive Insight:

The article explains that large employers don't actually buy insurance. Rather, they self-fund their workers’ healthcare plans, though traditional insurance companies do administer the self-funded strategy by collecting premiums and deductibles, and paying claims.

That current system, according to the article, means large employers have little impact on the rising costs of healthcare and prescription drugs. In the past, employers didn't attack healthcare costs directly. Instead, they tinkered with the structure of the plans and contributions, including increasing deductibles and offering pre-tax savings plans and other options.

According to the Journal, employers in the original group of 20 say they remain committed to offering healthcare benefits, but on the other hand are looking to "shake up" the status quo. They also are hoping others employers join the effort.