Welcome to Relocalizing Health, where we explore the transformative power of community-driven healthcare reforms. In today’s episode, guest Lee Lewis and host Dave Chase challenge long-held beliefs about healthcare being an uncontrollable cost and reveal how employers, by banding together in cooperatives, are not just cutting expenses but improving care quality and outcomes.
Drawing inspiration from the historic rise of rural electric cooperatives, Dave Chase introduces us to the Health Transformation Alliance, a pioneering employer-owned cooperative reshaping health benefits for millions. Lee Lewis, Chief Strategy Officer of the Health Transformation Alliance (HTA), shares behind-the-scenes stories and actionable insights on how organizations can pool resources, break industry dogmas, and unleash innovations that empower individuals and whole communities.
Tune in to hear inspiring case studies, practical strategies for change management, and a powerful call to action for every employer, community leader, and clinician ready to take back control of healthcare and make a real difference for the people they serve.
Timestamps:
00:00 Building a healthcare co-op
03:39 Saving for Employee Nursing Stations
08:35 Misconceptions about saving on healthcare
10:25 Identifying motivated benefits team members
15:23 Highlighting hospital cost and risk issues
19:03 Collaborating with local employers
20:42 Scaling innovation with initial partnerships
26:03 Improving patient care navigation
29:39 Improving employee benefits and savings
31:55 Economic impact of technology in workplaces
34:40 Healthcare crisis and hero benefits leaders
Turning the Healthcare Crisis Around: Lessons from Relocalizing Health
Healthcare costs in the United States continue to rise, burdening businesses, governments, and individuals alike. Yet, as explored in the recent Relocalizing Health podcast episode with Lee Lewis and Dave Chase, the belief that healthcare is a fixed and uncontrollable expense is a myth. This engaging discussion offers transformative ideas and practical strategies for employers and civic leaders seeking to both improve the quality of care and reduce costs. Read on to discover key takeaways, inspiring stories, and actionable recommendations straight from this insightful episode.
Dispelling Healthcare Myths: Costs Aren’t Set in Stone
One of the fundamental insights from this episode is the prevalence of three persistent myths about healthcare among business and government leaders. According to Lee Lewis, many believe that healthcare’s costs are “fixed” and cannot be controlled, that saving money on healthcare will automatically diminish care for employees, and that the hassle of trying to change these systems simply isn’t worth it.
Lee Lewis powerfully challenges these assumptions. He asserts there are proven strategies to both lower costs and improve healthcare outcomes. A key example he shares involves working with a major airline, where saving just a fraction of the millions spent annually could have easily funded meaningful employee benefits like nursing stations for new mothers. Unfortunately, many HR and benefit leaders assume such savings are unattainable, leaving tremendous value unrealized.
The Power of Cooperatives and Clean Incentives
The Health Transformation Alliance, detailed by Lee Lewis, functions as a cooperative fully owned by its member employers. This unique structure keeps incentives clean: no external profit motives, full transparency, and an unwavering focus on serving the employees of these companies. Members pool their buying power and data insights, helping each other innovate and negotiate better contracts, vendor relationships, and health plan strategies.
By collecting and redistributing best practices, proven negotiation approaches, and outcome-driven vendor strategies, the cooperative helps bridge the gap between seeing healthcare as an uncontrollable expense and treating it as a powerful lever for positive change.
Creating a Culture of Change: Mythbusting and Peer Support
Changing organizational behavior takes more than just new information. Dave Chase and Lee Lewis discuss how transformation begins with a willingness to push past industry dogmas and a commitment to engaging passionate changemakers within organizations.
Often, it’s about “change people or change people” as Lee Lewis says, meaning you need either curious, engaged staff ready to challenge norms or you need new team members who will. Connecting these changemakers with like-minded peers in other organizations can catalyze progress, helping them feel less isolated and more energized to drive innovation.
High-Quality Care Doesn’t Have to Cost More
Another crucial insight from the podcast is that better healthcare does not mean higher expenses. Many believe directing employees toward lower-cost care equals lower quality. In reality, Lee Lewis outlines that hospitals with better safety records and fewer complications actually help avoid unnecessary costs from errors, readmissions, and preventable health crises.
By educating benefit teams and leadership about the real risks of low-quality care, organizations can make smarter decisions that directly impact both employee well-being and the bottom line. Implementing primary care strategies, embracing nurse or digital navigation, and steering employees to centers of excellence can be significant difference-makers.
Tangible Results: Real Stories of Success
The episode features inspiring stories where organizations implemented these strategies and saw dramatic results. In one case, a merger between two companies with different healthcare cost structures resulted in an opportunity to save over $250 million thanks to more effective benefit management. In another, a Fortune 50 company flattened its healthcare trend over four years, adding a billion dollars to its earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) and even drawing CEO recognition on Wall Street calls.
Who Needs to Take Action?
Both Lee Lewis and Dave Chase emphasize that benefit directors and organizational executives are perfectly positioned to drive these changes. With the right knowledge, connections, and a sense of possibility, it’s realistic to flatten cost trends, improve outcomes, and restore healthcare’s value to employees and employers alike.
Final Thoughts
If you are a benefits leader, executive, or concerned public servant, this episode of Relocalizing Health is essential listening. The tools and playbook exist. By challenging outdated beliefs and working together, turning the healthcare crisis around is not just possible; it’s already happening for those bold enough to lead the way.
Learn More:
RosettaFest 2026 - https://rosettafest.org/
Health Rosetta - http://healthrosetta.org/
Nautilus - https://www.nautilushealth.org/
Kynexions - https://kynexions.com/
Dave Chase - https://www.linkedin.com/in/chasedave/
Podcast Website - https://relocalizinghealth.com/