Role of HMOs in successful businesses cited

MANILA, Philippines - If you think the services being offered by healthcare maintenance organizations (HMOs) are just a human resource requirement, you are probably unaware of their immense contributions to a company’s productivity and business performance.

In fact, the significance of HMO services can be measured by their expanding coverage and the growing number of specific issues being addressed to ensure the health of corporate workers.

“From an issue previously handled merely by the human resource department, the cost of healthcare has thus escalated to a level of significance that top management is now involved in the intricate process of decision-making,” said chairman and president Mario Angelo M. Silos of IntelliCare, one of the country’s top HMOs.

Yet, Silos’ observation can be an understatement.

For example, Team Energy Philippines, one of IntelliCare’s top clients for eight years with no less than 764 employees, speaks of evolving healthcare needs based on actual, prevalent and imminent conditions that also include certain administrative services.

Team Energy human resource manager Maria Anna F. delos Reyes cited wellness program recommendations, prompt and comprehensive HMO utilization reports and billings, effective accounts management, and flexibility in adapting to the needs of the organization as among the many elements that should constitute a good healthcare package.

In fact, Delos Reyes lauded these attributes – including responsiveness to health issues and concerns, wide network of healthcare providers, and competitive pricing – as the primary reasons for her company’s decision to stick it out with IntelliCare over the past eight years

A partnership between Japanese firms Tokyo Electric Power Co. and Marubeni Corp., Team Energy is one of the country’s largest independent power producers.

With over 2,000 megawatts of installed capacity, Team Energy generates and supplies reliable and affordable electricity through safe and environmentally-sound operations using superior technology.

Team Energy’s vital role in the country’s sustainable economic growth and development makes it imperative for the company to ensure the health of its workers by choosing the right HMO for the job.

Nonetheless, IntelliCare has proven capable of measuring up to the task. IntelliCare now leads the HMO industry with its over 1,000 corporate accounts composed of leading companies in every sector, total membership of almost 600,000 and a network of more than 12,000 of the country’s well-known physicians and medical specialists, and almost 800 reputable hospitals, multi-specialty clinics, diagnostic centers and other first-class medical institutions.

IntelliCare also has a 24/7 call center to assist clients, and more patient relations officers in tertiary hospitals than the competition.