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Six industry groups Monday outlined their promise to cut $2 trillion from the growth of health-care spending over 10 years, with large savings envisioned through administrative cost-cutting and changes in the care of chronic diseases.

The groups caused a splash with a May 11 announcement of a pledge to President Barack Obama to reduce $2 trillion from projected future medical costs over a 10-year horizon.

The groups include the American Medical Association, the American Hospital Association, America's Health Insurance Plans, the Service Employees International Union, Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America and the Advanced Medical Technology Association.

The groups say that since announcing the pledge they have held seven "all-day" meetings to flesh out how they would save the huge sum of money. In a statement Monday, they said they had made "solid progress" on their goal and would now pursue the changes they identified.

The proposed cost-savings, detailed in a letter to Obama on Monday, come from a wide variety of sources. The America's Health Insurance Plans trade group, or AHIP, which represents managed-care companies, pointed to efforts toward "fully automating and standardizing" health insurance claims and payments.

"The effect throughout the health care industry will be similar to the effect of ATMs being introduced throughout the banking system," AHIP said in a statement. Members of the AHIP trade group include Aetna Inc. (AET), Humana Inc. (HUM), Cigna Corp. (CI) and UnitedHealth Group Inc. (UNH).

The group also said it is developing a model for personal health records with the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association. The records, according to AHIP, will help medical providers and patients keep better track of chronic diseases even when they switch doctors.

The American Hospital Association said it would seek to prevent infections, which can lengthen the duration of hospital stays. The American Medical Association, which represents doctors, identified ways to cut down on readmissions of patients into hospitals and prevent the overuse of some imaging procedures.

The details represent a major step for the groups, which had to tamp down speculation that they were unsure or unready regarding the initial $2 trillion commitment. Congressional Republicans have noted that there is no way to effectively enforce the commitment and that the savings wouldn't directly pay for the cost of covering those without health insurance.

Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, the top Republican on the Senate Finance Committee, said in a statement Monday that the Congressional Budget Office would determine whether health policy proposals "rise or fall," rather than the six groups.

"I'm skeptical that these proposals will add up to anywhere near $2 trillion," Grassley said.

The White House and Democrats, however, have said that the proposed savings, even if not directly tied to health overhaul legislation taking shape in Congress, would ease efforts to cover those not holding health insurance.

-By Patrick Yoest, Dow Jones Newswires; 202-862-3554; patrick.yoest@dowjones.com