Dallas Regional Chamber's Blog

As you might have heard, momentum for Live Healthy North Texas is building in the region and with healthcare reform in the national spotlight now is a great time to get involved.  Next week is a big week beginning with a Tuesday morning kick-off press conference on the campus of SMU to highlight the initiative that is bringing together ten chambers of commerce, the Dallas County Medical Society, the DFW Hospital Council, and the Health Industry Council of North Texas to promote wellness.

Then, on Wednesday and Thursday the Dallas Chamber will be hosting one hour informationals where the executive director of Live Healthy, Troy Vincent, will overview the program and answer questions.  (If you would like more information visit the events section of the chamber website).

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Healthcare industry leaders came together Monday afternoon, in a first of its’ kind meeting, for the DFW Healthcare Summit at the Dallas Regional Chamber.  Nearly 50 insurance, hospital, and business CEOs along with Dallas Mayor Leppert and Mark McClellan from the Brookings Institute in Washington met for close to 4 hours to discuss ways to improve the quality and access of medical care while reducing costs in North Texas.  All parties agreed that certain diseases linked to obesity, such as diabetes and heart disease, along with the region’s high number of uninsured greatly contribute to the healthcare problems.  The group also stated that it is a personal responsibility of individuals to be proactive about exercising, eating right, and practicing preventative medicine; yet acknowledged that the medical community can help in advocating such activities.  Additional conversation from the meeting the meeting included working with insurers on reforming how they pay for healthcare, enabling direct communication between the employer and their health care provider, setting benchmarks to determine performance, and focusing on technology as a driver for communication in the industry.

Guidance for Businesses and Employers to Plan and Respond to the 2009 – 2010 Influenza Season

CDC is releasing new guidance that recommends actions that non-healthcare employers should take now to decrease the spread of seasonal flu and 2009 H1N1 flu in the workplace and to help maintain business continuity during the 2009–2010 flu season.¹  The guidance includes additional strategies to use if flu conditions become more severe and some new recommendations regarding when a worker who is ill with influenza may return to work. The guidance in this document may change as additional information about the severity of the 2009-2010 influenza season and the impact of 2009 H1N1 influenza become known. Please check www.flu.gov periodically for updated guidance

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