Use the tools in this section to engage health plans in your local area.

Opportunity Rate Toolkit – The Leapfrog Opportunity Rate Toolkit includes instructions, reference materials, worksheet templates, and other documents that Leapfrog purchaser members and health plans will find useful in computing and reporting the Opportunity Rate in their patient population for the Leapfrog quality and safety standards. The Opportunity Rate - getting patients to go to hospitals that meet the Leapfrog quality and safety standards is the process used by Leapfrog employer/purchaser members to reduce avoidable hospital deaths. Measuring that process underlies the method The Leapfrog Group uses to measure its success.  The Leapfrog Group has focused on this actionable goal and will measure progress against it using an opportunity rate metric, with "opportunity" generally defined as the remaining number of avoidable patient deaths due to preventable errors based on admissions to hospitals not meeting the Leapfrog standard(s) appropriate to patients’ condition.

Health Plan Contract Language – This template contract lays out commitments to be made by the plan to support and advance group health plan initiatives to develop a health care market in which (a) providers improve the effectiveness and efficiency of the services they provide using NCQA/Leapfrog/Bridges to Excellence performance measures, and (b) consumers are engaged in managing their health, and selecting their providers, but are sensitive to the cost and quality of services provided. Click the link above to gain access to the full document based on work conducted by the GE Group Health team.

eValue8 (Standardized Health Plan Request for Information Tool) – The National Business Coalition on Health (NBCH) eValue8 tool includes a common set of core health plan performance expectations and Request For Information questions, including sections that query plans about their efforts to support Leapfrog’s goals. Click the link above to learn more about NBCH and the eValue8 RFI and how Leapfrog is incorporated into this tool.

Ensuring Quality Health Plans: A Purchaser's Toolkit for Using Incentives - While there are many factors that adversely affect health care, one of the most troubling is the variation in health plan performance from region to region. The effects of this disparity can have dire consequences. The current marketplace does not typically reward high performing health plans with more enrollees or higher reimbursement. It is critical for purchasers to guarantee health plan value and quality through a variety of motivational incentives. Click on the link above to learn more and use this tool along with other Leapfrog resources to implement a successful incentives and rewards program with health plans and purchasers.

Health plan user group toolkit - Leapfrog members indicate that they needed benefit design and enrollee education solutions from health plans to advance the Leapfrog mission and purchasing principles. Leapfrog has developed this tool kit to provide Leapfrog members and Regional Roll-Out leaders with the tools needed to start their own health plan user groups. To learn more about this toolkit click the link above. Use this and other Leapfrog resources to work more closely with health plans.

2004 Health Plan User Groups Scorecard Results - Leapfrog and its members initially created Health Plan User Groups with major national carriers to maximize the potential value to Leapfrog’s members and their beneficiaries.  Three user groups were established with Aetna, Cigna and United Health Care/Uniprise.

Twenty Leapfrog member employers volunteered to serve on a steering committee and serve on subgroups for each plan. User Group discussions with health plans occurred over the course of the year. Each respective user group had between five and seven participating employers.  Each health plan was invited to describe the actions it was taking or planning to take to advance a set of goals health plans can implement in 2005 to support employer implementation of Leapfrog’s purchasing principles.  Plans have been scored based on their responses to the 2005 goals.  These initial user groups are a work in progress as Leapfrog members and plans continue to discuss how best to implement the Leapfrog purchasing principles. Click the link above to learn more about the scorecard results of the participating health plans. Use this information along with other Leapfrog resources to engage your health plans.