CIGNA (NYSE:CI) has received a grant from Finding Answers: Disparities Research for Change, a national program of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) at the University of Chicago that evaluates interventions aimed at eliminating racial and ethnic health care disparities in local communities. CIGNA and six other grantees were selected from a pool of 111 proposals and join 21 sites awarded funding since December 2006.
CIGNA was the only commercial health plan to receive a grant from the Finding Answers program this year and will use it to study novel ways to improve high blood pressure control in diverse populations. The project will be administered jointly between CIGNA and RAND Corporation and will draw on CIGNA''s broad clinical expertise and RAND’s extensive health care research design expertise.
The CDC estimated the direct and indirect cost of high blood pressure in 2006 to be $63.5 billion. It’s the number one controllable risk factor for stroke, and can also contribute to heart attacks, heart failure, kidney failure and artery disease. A 50-year-old man and a 40-year-old woman with high blood pressure have almost three times the risk of dying from a heart attack and almost four times the risk of dying from stroke1 than their peers whose blood pressure is normal or well-controlled. African-Americans are 40 percent more likely to have high blood pressure and 10 percent less likely to have their blood pressure under control2 than non-Hispanic white Americans. African-Americans have the highest rate of high blood pressure of all groups and tend to develop it at a younger age.3
“High blood pressure is a significant health problem in the United States, especially among African Americans,” said Dr. Jeff Kang, chief medical officer for CIGNA. “The research CIGNA is able to conduct as a result of this grant is extremely important because it will help us determine which strategies are most effective at helping people of all races and ethnicities improve their health. We are pleased to join the Foundation and its Finding Answers program in working to eliminate health care disparities.”
“Studies like this one that explore human behavior in real world settings provide crucial insights into what works best in practice,” said Dr. Laurie Martin, the RAND principal investigator on the project.
“CIGNA and the other grantees will work with the health care community to identify successful approaches to reducing racial and ethnic disparities in health care,” said Marshall H. Chin, M.D., M.P.H., professor of medicine at the University of Chicago, Department of Medicine and the Center for Health and the Social Sciences, as well as the director of the Finding Answers program. “The interventions being evaluated as part of this program have been selected for their potential to be replicated and sustained in communities throughout the United States.”
The research results will help RWJF understand what works - or does not work - to improve health care for minorities. The information provided to Finding Answers will include: guidance for implementing tested interventions, including potential obstacles and solutions; start-up and maintenance costs for the intervention; and staff training needs. Finding Answers will evaluate the results and related information and then inform health care stakeholders - doctors, nurses, hospitals and health plans - about interventions that demonstrate potential to reduce racial and ethnic disparities in health care.
In 2008, CIGNA established the Health Disparities Council, a multidisciplinary group of leaders from throughout the company. The council exchanges ideas, shares knowledge, and identifies opportunities to effectively address health disparities in a culturally sensitive and medically appropriate manner. The RWJF-funded study is consistent with the council’s mission to pilot and deploy focused actions aimed at reducing disparities and improving health and will be undertaken by one of the council’s workgroups.
About CIGNA
CIGNA (NYSE:CI), a global health service company, is dedicated to helping people improve their health, well-being and sense of security. CIGNA Corporation''s operating subsidiaries provide an integrated suite of medical, dental, behavioral health, pharmacy and vision care benefits, as well as group life, accident and disability insurance, to approximately 46 million people throughout the United States and around the world. To learn more about CIGNA, visit www.cigna.com. To sign up for email alerts or an RSS feed of company news, log on to http://newsroom.cigna.com/section_display.cfm?section_id=18.
About the RAND Corporation
The RAND Corporation is a nonprofit research organization providing objective analysis and effective solutions that address the challenges facing the public and private sectors around the world.
About the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and Finding Answers: Disparities Research for Change
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation focuses on the pressing health and health care issues facing our country. As the nation''s largest philanthropy devoted exclusively to improving the health and health care of all Americans, the Foundation works with a diverse group of organizations and individuals to identify solutions and achieve comprehensive, meaningful and timely change. For more than 35 years, the Foundation has brought experience, commitment, and a rigorous, balanced approach to the problems that affect the health and health care of those it serves. When it comes to helping Americans lead healthier lives and get the care they need, the Foundation expects to make a difference in your lifetime. For more information, visit www.rwjf.org.
Finding Answers: Disparities Research for Change, a national program of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation at the University of Chicago, awards and manages research grants totaling $7 million to health care organizations implementing interventions aimed at reducing disparities. The funds are used to evaluate the interventions and their potential for real world implementation. This initiative encourages health plans, hospitals, and community clinics to focus on racial and ethnic disparities as a priority in their quality improvement agendas. To learn more about Finding Answers, visit www.solvingdisparities.org.
1 American Heart Association.
2 U.S.
Department of Health & Human Services; the Office of Minority Health.
3
National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS), 1997 and CDC: Office of
Minority Health & Health Disparities (OMHD).
Contacts:
CIGNA
Mark Slitt, 860-226-2092
mark.slitt@cigna.com