What problem does it solve? Improve primary care for state employees, save money: The average length of a physician visit is 7 minutes and often results in pharmaceutical intervention. This scenario does little to address root cause of illness. The result is poor performance with prevention, primary and chronic care management, where the bulk of the costs and risks to productivity lie. Naturopathic physicians spend more time with patients and are trained to place a strong emphasis on disease prevention and wellness. What is your solution and who does it apply to? 80% of what needs to be done with a patient is done in a primary care office. A solution to improve primary care and save health benefits costs is to license Naturopathic Physicians in the State. Educated in all of the same basic sciences as a medical doctor (MD), a naturopathic doctor (ND) uses the Western medical sciences as a foundation for diagnosis and treatment. Just like MDs, naturopathic physicians must pass rigorous professional board exams before they can be licensed by a state.Naturopathic medical students intern in clinical settings under the close supervision of licensed professionals. NDs also study holistic approaches to therapy with a strong emphasis on disease prevention and promoting wellness Currently, 23 states provide licensure and 5 states have pending legislation. Due to lack of licensing there are few NDs practicing in NJ After licensed, SHBP could consider Direct Contracting arrangements with NDs to open up more solutions to stress, insomnia, diabetes etc What is the anticipated impact? Improve access to and effectiveness of prevention, primary care and chronic care management by: 1. Addressing the root cause of illness 2. Offer less expensive diagnosis and treatment 3. Reduce the need for expensive surgical procedures, when appropriate 4. Decrease costs associated with adverse reactions to prescription drugs 5. Reduce the incidence of illnesses and fatalities caused by hospital errors 6. Lower malpractice rates, resulting in reduced patient costs 7. Offer disease prevention 8. Reduce insurance costs.
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