Some members of the new university coalition are already participating in local coalition activities with remarkable results. The public universities have had preliminary meetings with Blue Cross and Blue Shield, the dominant health insurance company in Michigan, to begin mapping strategies that will assist the coalition members. The university coalition members will also be working with the health insurance plans, hospitals, physicians, and other providers of care to define collaborative initiatives that will improve access, cost, and quality at the local level. The public universities present one of the largest employer groups in Michigan. As a coalition, these 13 universities can play an important role in bringing about market-driven health care reform by holding the health care delivery system accountable for the value of health care in each community throughout Michigan.
Health care is a very complex subject, and it is changing rapidly.