Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts

Overview:

Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Massachusetts, Inc. Blue Cross began as the Associated Hospital Service Corporation of Massachusetts, founded by a group of community-minded business leaders in 1937. Designed to spread the cost of hospital treatment among a large group of employed persons, the nonprofit organization obtained a charter in March and opened its doors in September. Upon its opening, the Corporation was the 26th plan of its kind in the United States, differing from others in its offering of statewide coverage. In 1939, the name Blue Cross was officially adopted by the American Hospital Association as the national symbol of the Hospital Service movement. Blue Shield of Massachusetts was established in 1941, as a result of physician interest in the prepayment concept of financing health care. Unique in that it paid for covered services only with participating physicians, the Blue Shield Plan quickly produced widespread physician participation. Over the years, "Blue Cross" and "Blue Shield of Massachusetts" continued to grow and adapt to the needs of consumers, offering ever-increasing comprehensive coverage. In 1988, the two separate Blues organizations merged to become Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Massachusetts, Inc. (BCBSMA), and continued as part of a national network of affiliated plans, providing its members with access to the widest selection of the most respected physicians and best hospitals in the country. In 1992, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts launched its premier product, HMO Blue, which offers a statewide managed care network of doctors to residents of Massachusetts. Offered as a transition from traditional health insurance to managed care, this new product reflected a change that was in line with the interest of the emerging market. As a result of its solid position in the marketplace in 2001, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts had the exceptional opportunity to reconnect to its original charter and to endow its own foundation, the Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts Foundation (www.bcbsmafoundation.org), to expand high-quality health care access to the underserved residents of Massachusetts. Today, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts retains its independent, not-for-profit status as a multifaceted health care company providing a wide range of health care programs and educational services. Members receive health care coverage through a range of employer-sponsored group plans, and non-group and senior citizen programs. To enhance our ability to provide affordable, quality health care, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts transferred its insured HMO line of business to a separate, not-for-profit subsidiary, effective as of January 1, 2005. This change will have no impact on the benefits and services that we provide to our members. The subsidiary, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Massachusetts HMO Blue, Inc., will offer the existing insured HMO plans: HMO Blue® (including non-group plans), HMO Blue New England, Blue Choice® (in-network), Blue Choice New England (in-network), Access Blue and Managed Blue for Seniors. Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts (www.bluecrossma.com) was founded 68 years ago by a group of community-minded business leaders. Today, headquartered in Boston, BCBSMA provides coverage to 2.9 million members. Consistently recognized for standards of service that are among the highest in the nation, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts is the choice for health care consumers seeking reliable and high quality health care coverage. Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association.

Benefits:

Your Pharmacy Benefits Your personal pharmacy program benefits are made available through our partnership with Express Scripts, Inc. (ESI). ESI is the pharmacy benefit manager (PBM) that we utilize to administer your pharmacy benefits. At the ESI website, you'll have secure and confidential access to a variety of resources to help you better understand your pharmacy benefits*. Hospital Quality Comparisons provided by Select Quality Care - Powered by HealthShare This resource allows you to compare hospitals throughout the U.S. by using a variety of criteria, including length of stay, and complication rates. Curious? Try the demo. My Blue Health We've worked with WebMD® to offer you My Blue Health, a comprehensive online lifestyle management center that provides key tools and resources designed to help you stay healthy. It includes personalized health assessments, healthy lifestyle programs, and a workshop with tips on being a wise health care consumer.

Career Opportunities:

BOSTON—March 7, 2006—Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts (BCBSMA) has been awarded the 2006 Innovation in Health Information Technology Award for its e-health programs by the America's Health Insurance Plans (AHIP) Foundation. AHIP is the national association representing nearly 1,300 member companies providing health insurance coverage to more than 200 million Americans. BCBSMA was recognized yesterday with a trophy for its achievements during the AHIP Foundation Innovation and Excellence Awards ceremony. BCBSMA received recognition for the company's programs that encourage and support providers in the adoption of information technologies in their practices through both collaboration with competitors and individual initiatives. They include: Electronic patients visit pilot with RelayHealth Electronic Medical Records/Medical Decision Support (EMR/MDS) pilot programs Electronic prescribing collaborative with Tufts Health Plan and Neighborhood Health Plan MedsInfo-ED, a collaborative of BCBSMA with other key players in the community through an organization called MA-SHARE (Simplifying Healthcare Among Regional Entities) to enable providers to obtain the medication history of patients in the ER The Massachusetts eHealth Collaborative (MAeHC), a collaboration of BCBSMA and 34 key stakeholders that will study the effectiveness and practicality of implementing a clinical technology infrastructure, including MDS, in an entire community health care system. "BCBSMA has committed more $50 million and staff solely to these efforts. Additional associates are involved as a significant portion of their jobs. Our experience shows that adoption of new technologies can be accelerated by collaborative, health-plan sponsored programs offering technical and financial support," said Andrew Dreyfus, BCBSMA Executive Vice President for Health Care Services. Dreyfus added that by promoting the adoption of health information technology, BCBSMA believes it will demonstrate benefits to hospitals, physicians and their staff, patients, and health plans. Examples include: Physicians and their staff. Providers may be able to spend more time delivering quality care when they use technology that lets them reduce administrative functions such as pulling patient charts and making calls to navigate each patient's insurance requirements. These systems also support physicians in delivering evidence-based care and preventing medication errors, which could lower medical insurance premiums. Physicians may also be able to spend more time with patients, thus increasing their revenue. Patients. Patients benefit by having greater access to care and healthier, more productive lives. Reduced health care costs enable more citizens to afford health care coverage. Health plans. When providers implement technologies that improve quality, health plans experience lower costs due to reduced hospitalizations and complications, increased generic-drug utilization, and reduced medical errors. In turn, this will moderate health care costs for all. Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts (www.bluecrossma.com) was founded 68 years ago by a group of community-minded business leaders. Today, headquartered in Boston, BCBSMA provides coverage to 2.9 million members. Consistently recognized for standards of service that are among the highest in the nation, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts is the choice for health care consumers seeking reliable and high quality health care coverage. BCBSMA received the 2006 Innovation in Health Information Technology Award for its e-health programs from the America's Health Insurance Plans (AHIP) Foundation. Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association.

Vision:

The mission of the Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts Foundation is to expand access to health care. Through grants and policy initiatives, the Foundation works with public and private organizations to broaden health coverage and reduce barriers to care. The Foundation focuses on developing measurable and sustainable solutions that benefit uninsured, vulnerable and low-income individuals and families in the Commonwealth.

Products:

Stay connected. Take control If you're interested in having more control over your health care, you've come to the right place. Member Self Service gives you quick, secure access to your personal health care information and the resources you need to make informed, healthy choices. Expanded Services Whether you're checking the status of a claim, reviewing your benefits and deductible information, checking up on your Blue Care® Account, changing your address or PCP, or requesting new ID card, Member Self Service helps you manage your care from the comfort of home*.

Contact:

The BCBSMA Foundation is located at: Landmark Center 401 Park Drive Boston, MA 02215 617-246-3744 - Phone 617-246-3992 - Fax