Global Center of Excellence Medical Network Launched by Global Benefits Association

June 7, 2012 - PRLog -- David Bryan, President of the Global Benefits Association, stated “One of the challenges multinational employers and insurers have experienced as they expand across borders is identifying centers of excellence and building a quality hospital network for their employees or insured.  It can be a daunting and almost impossible task for some multinationals or insurers to build this in house.  They have turned to the Global Benefits Association to take the lead with this as an industry wide project and solution.”

“When a multinational employer or insurer has a catastrophic medical case, it is not easy for them to identify the proper center of excellence, ensure that pricing provided is transparent and the service provided to the patient is at the “international standards.”   The current international networks being provided to multinational employers currently include all tiers of hospitals, not just centers of excellence, making it very difficult for the employer or insurer to choose where to refer the patient, and making it even more difficult for the patient to identify the hospital they should receive care from.  The GBA’s Global Medical Network will provide this solution.”

The Global Medical Centers of Excellence Network will be provided at no cost to multinational employers and insurance companies, allowing a transparent cost and pass- through approach. This will make the Global Medical Network the first international center of excellence network to initiate this approach.  

This Network will provide group buying power for multinational employers and insurers.  Rather than negotiating with healthcare providers on an individual basis, the GBA will negotiate on behalf of the multinational employers and insurers, and pass along the negotiated savings to them.   With healthcare costs rising, GBA is committed to transparency in pricing for it’s members.

David Bryan also stated, “The Global Medical Network is an innovative project that will provide a solution to a much needed problem of access to quality care.  Multinational Employers will be able to reduce their expenses by not only eliminating the need to develop their own medical network, but also saving from the cost of having to rent a global network. GBA is committed to developing more group buying solutions for multinationals and insurers in other areas of employee benefits.”

The GBA has partnered with the Medical Tourism Association to help identify Centers of Excellence and determine which hospitals have been accredited and certified, in both quality and international patient services. The joint efforts of the partnership will ensure nothing but the best outcomes for employees or insured utilizing the network. Only top tier hospitals will be allowed to participate in the network.

Renée-Marie Stephano, President of the Medical Tourism Association, responded, “It is important for healthcare consumers to have access to quality healthcare.  We are pleased to collaborate with the Global Benefits Association on this project as aligned with our tenets of transparency in quality, communication and education.”
The Global Medical Centers of Excellence Network will start contracting with hospitals in June .

About the Global Benefits Association
Headquartered in the United States with offices around the world, The Global Benefits Association (GBA) is the non-profit trade association for the Global Benefits and Expatriate Industry with it’s sole and primary focus being on health insurance, employee benefits and other insurance benefits that are delivered on an international basis and across borders. The Purpose of the Global Benefits Association is to provide a single authoritative voice for Multinational employers and insurers and to allow industry participants to collaborate, share best practices and network.