Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota and its family of companies (Blue Cross) today announced audited financial results for 2016. Blue Cross ended the year with a net operating loss of $322.4 million on full-year revenues of $12.1 billion, for a negative operating margin of 2.7% and a pre-tax net loss of $194.4 million. For the year, $11.1 billion of medical claim payments were incurred which represented 92 cents of every premium dollar going directly to cover health care costs. Additionally, total member enrollment grew from 2.75 million to 2.9 million members. [Read more…]

In an effort to improve care and support for our members who are faced with serious illnesses, today Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts (Blue Cross), the largest health plan in the Commonwealth, announced it will partner with Landmark Health on an innovative program that provides care to seniors in their homes. The program is the first of its kind in New England. [Read more…]

The Blue Cross Blue Shield Association (BCBSA) today released the second edition of a Moody’s Analytics report that finds a direct link between a population’s health and a growing economy, higher incomes and lower unemployment. [Read more…]

Energy credits generated from local solar projects owned by Ameresco and co-developed with BlueWave in Hopedale and Mendon, MA will reduce BCBSMA’s electricity costs, enable clean, local community solar power, and help reduce air pollution in Massachusetts. [Read more…]

Over the past year, numerous insurers have left the federal health insurance exchange, which has left many Georgians with few options for health insurance and made their preferred providers and hospitals out of network. For some patients, they would see the impact on January 1, 2017. WellStar Health System has reached an agreement with Blue Cross Blue Shield of Georgia to participate in a federal insurance exchange product that will provide access to care for our patients. [Read more…]

Blue Shield of California Foundation announced today $3.9 million in fourth-quarter grantmaking, raising its total 2016 giving to more than $29 million to advance its mission to improve health equity and end domestic violence in California. Fourth-quarter grants include $1.46 million to support community organizations working to connect mental health services and primary care for low-income patients. [Read more…]

Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas (BCBSTX) is the only carrier offering retail health benefit plans on the Texas Health Insurance Marketplace in every county of the state in 2017 with Blue Advantage HMO? and Blue Advantage Plus HMO? plans. These plans offer individuals access to a network of health care professionals and help ensure quality, cost-effective care through the selection of a primary care physician. Texas residents can visit www.bcbstx.com to learn more about the health plans offered and sign up by December 15, 2016 for coverage to begin on January 1, 2017. The final day to enroll for a 2017 health insurance plan on the Texas Health Insurance Marketplace is January 31, 2017. [Read more…]

Focused on increasing access to quality care to Medicare beneficiaries, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas (BCBSTX) is offering more options for health care coverage that provides them additional choice, optimized networks, flexibility and affordability. [Read more…]

In 2015, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas (BCBSTX), the state’s largest health insurer, collaborated with nearly 500 community organizations through employee volunteers and financial investments to help prevent and manage heart disease, cancer, diabetes, asthma and other ailments. As noted in the company’s Social Responsibility Report (SRR), released today, [Read more…]

January 31st marks the end of the third annual enrollment period through the Health Insurance Marketplace. With this deadline quickly approaching, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas (BCBSTX) is actively providing Texans with health insurance information and enrollment opportunities.

BCBSTX offers health insurance in all 254 counties in Texas and is the only health insurance provider offering individuals access to health insurance through the Federal Health Insurance Marketplace in 58 of those counties. [Read more…]

Capital BlueCross has signed an agreement with The Leapfrog Group, a national nonprofit organization focused on health care quality and safety, that will establish a regional hospital recognition program to help employers and consumers in central Pennsylvania and the Lehigh Valley make more informed health care decisions. [Read more…]

Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts (Blue Cross) has announced the launch of a comprehensive program aimed at improving quality-of-life for individuals and families facing advanced illnesses and the end of life. [Read more…]

As consumers look for new ways to obtain the best possible care and lower their health care costs, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas (BCBSTX), the largest provider of health benefits in the state, announces the enhanced Provider Finder, an online health care solution developed to enable members to more easily research and select physicians and hospitals, as well as estimate out-of-pocket health care costs. The Provider Finder provides cost estimates for more than 400 common medical procedures, increasing to 1600 by the end of the year.

Provider Finder allows members to search and compare more than 400,000 health professionals and 21,000 facilities nationwide, estimate treatment costs, access clinical quality data and read and write patient reviews. BCBSTX analyzed the use of Provider Finder for approximately 800,000 members and found that members who acted on a Provider Finder recommendation saved on average $900 per procedure.

Recent research indicates that consumers may pay as much as 683 percent more for the same medical procedures, in the same town, depending on the facility they choose.2 For example, the total cost for a knee replacement in the Dallas area could range from $18,801 to $47,324 depending on the facility.3 The Provider Finder offers members a simple, easy to navigate website, to help in selecting the best provider for their needs, based on location, clinical quality and costs. A few unique features include:

— Out-of-pocket costs. Unlike other transparency solutions that rely on estimated costs, the Provider Finder uses an expansive, proprietary database to provide information on out-of-pocket expenses. Out-of-pocket estimates are based on a member’s own health plan benefits including health reimbursement and health savings account balances.
— Unparalleled provider demographic data. The Provider Finder includes a large library of patient reviews of physicians and facilities, as well as photos and information on average wait times and physician training, expertise and awards.
— Extensive Provider Clinical Quality Data. Members can evaluate the quality of care with data from Blue Distinction/Blue Distinction+ Centers, Bridges to Excellence, National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) distinctions and Physician Quality Measurement data.

At a Capitol Hill briefing today, the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association (BCBSA) highlighted the innovative collaborations among Blue Cross and Blue Shield companies, local providers and patients to help improve care delivery through patient-centered medical home (PCMH) programs. Today there are Blue Cross and Blue Shield PCMH initiatives in 39 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico, serving more than 4 million Blue members.

The PCMH is a model of healthcare based on an ongoing, personal relationship between a patient, a primary care physician and the patient’s care team that aims to assure comprehensive, coordinated care across all aspects of the healthcare system. For example, the PCMH-based care team personally manages, facilitates and coordinates care with appropriate qualified professionals – such as hospitals, nursing homes, pharmacies and related community resources – as well as engages patients in promoting wellness and prevention and managing any chronic conditions they may have. [Read more…]