INDIANAPOLIS (AP): a healthcare company conceived by Amazon AMZN,
Berkshire Hathaway BRK.B,
BRK.A,
and JPMorgan Chase JPM,
attacking high costs dissolves.
Haven, which was formed in 2018 by the three U.S. corporate giants, will cease operations in late February, a spokeswoman said Monday. He gave no reason for the dissolution of the company.
The independent company was created to focus on improving the care provided to employees in these businesses while performing better expense management work. But profit experts expected any plan developed by Haven to be widely adopted by other companies if they proved effective in controlling costs.
The news of the creation of the company almost three years ago caused a brief shudder through the stocks of health insurance that manage employer-sponsored coverage.
But the Boson-based company has been largely silent since a high-profile CEO was appointed, the professor, author and surgeon of Dr.
Gawande left last May.
Employer-sponsored insurance covers about 157 million people, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation. This accounts for nearly half of the total U.S. population and the largest portion of the country’s mosaic health insurance market.
Health care costs have risen faster than wages and inflation for years, stressing families and employers. The founders of Haven warned from the outset that the company was hard at work and did not expect quick fixes.
They had several priorities for the company. They wanted me to look for ways to help employees make better decisions for their care and give them the best options available.
They also wanted Haven to develop better programs to improve health and treat in particular obesity and smoking, which explain chronic diseases such as cancer, heart disease and depression.
A spokeswoman for Haven said the company was moving forward in several areas. He initiated new designs of medical benefits that eliminated out-of-pocket payments from patients, such as deductibles and coinsurance, and favored access to primary care.
He said Haven also identified areas to reduce the costs of prescription drugs and that “the issues addressed are related to fraud, waste and abuse.”
Amazon, JP Morgan and Berkshire Hathaway said they plan to continue collaborating informally.