Johns Hopkins Medicine to Offer PepsiCo Employees New Travel Surgery Benefit

(3BL Media / theCSRfeed) February 20, 2012 - Johns Hopkins announced today that PepsiCo, the world’s second-largest food and beverage business, will offer its employees the option to travel to Johns Hopkins Medicine in Baltimore for cardiac and complex joint replacement surgeries.

The travel surgery benefit will be extended to PepsiCo’s domestic employees and their dependents — almost 250,000 people — making the finest in medical care available regardless of geography.

PepsiCo, which sponsors its own self-funded medical plans, will waive deductibles and coinsurance for those who elect to have their surgery at Johns Hopkins. The company will also cover the travel and lodging expenses to Baltimore for the patient and a companion. The payment methodology for these procedures is a bundled rate, an all-inclusive rate for hospital and physician charges and certain preoperative testing. This innovative reimbursement model provides payment for all the patient care over the course of a clinical episode instead of paying for each service on a fee-for-service basis.

“We’re excited about the opportunity to work with an innovative company like PepsiCo that is committed to ensuring cost-effective, higher-quality care as part of its employee health benefits,” says Patricia M.C. Brown, president of Johns Hopkins HealthCare LLC, the managed care arm of Johns Hopkins Medicine. “We’re offering their employees some of the best health care available, which should mean fewer complications and should result in employees being able to return to work sooner. At the same time, we’re offering PepsiCo predictability regarding cost."

Brown adds that Hopkins is open to similar arrangements with other large companies.

“We are pleased to work with Johns Hopkins to offer PepsiCo employees and their families access to this outstanding health care institution,” says Bruce Monte, senior director, PepsiCo Health & Welfare Benefits. “This is a great example of the distinctive programs we provide on top of our already strong health care benefits. These programs are designed to help our employees and their families live healthier lives and ensure a high level of workforce support, which — in turn — helps PepsiCo to be a successful company.” 

To be eligible for the new program, the patient must be approved for surgery in advance and be healthy enough to travel. Other types of surgery may be made part of the program in the future.

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