Five Blues plans collaborate to provide online, consumer-friendly healthcare cost information.
Five Blues health plans are collaborating to provide access to online, consumer-friendly healthcare cost information.
WellPoint, Highmark Inc. (Pennsylvania), Premera Blue Cross (Washington), Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota and Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan, will provide the total estimated cost ranges associated with 39 specific medical procedures performed at a local hospital, outpatient surgery center, free-standing radiology facility or other medical facility.
“It is a collaborative effort to use the same data methodology [developed by WellPoint] and same condition list to present to all members within all Blue Plan locations,” says Debra Miller, a Highmark e-marketing consultant.
The cost information is facility-specific ranges that include everything during the hospital stay, according to Miller. “It is a shopping tool for common elective surgical procedures where the consumer has the ability to shop and the desire to do so because of increasing out-of-pocket costs,” she says.
The roll-out will initially include a limited amount of cost information. Information is being mined from the Blue plans’ claims data paid over the last 12 months, and will be updated every six months.
Bridging the Diversity Gap in Rare Disease Clinical Trials with Harsha Rajasimha of IndoUSrare
November 8th 2023Briana Contreras, an editor with Managed Healthcare Executive, spoke with Harsha Rajasimha, MD, founder and executive chairman of IndoUSrare, in this month's episode of Tuning in to the C-Suite podcast. The conversation was about how the disparity in diversity and ethnicity in rare disease clinical trials in the U.S. has led to gaps in understanding diseases and conditions, jeopardizing universal health, and increasing the economic burden of healthcare.
Listen
35th World AIDS Day Marks 20 Years of PEPFAR: Challenges and Strategies to Combat HIV/AIDS
November 29th 2023PEPFAR, having invested $100 billion and saved 25 million lives in the global fight against HIV/AIDS, faces Congressional hurdles in its reauthorization due to abortion debates. Despite widespread support and no evidence of abortion-related activities, the legislative process is at a standstill. Members of PEPFAR and authors of a recent editorial stress the significance of PEPFAR and advocate for integrating behavioral and social science into healthcare programs to achieve UNAIDS targets and address barriers in HIV/AIDS testing and treatment.
Read More
Managing Editor of Managed Healthcare Executive, Peter Wehrwein, had a discussion with William Shrank, M.D., a venture partner with Andreessen Horowitz, a venture capital firm in Menlo Park, California, about how artificial intelligence's role is improving healthcare, where we are today with value-based care and the ongoing efforts of reducing waste in the healthcare space for this episode of the "What's on Your Mind" podcast series.
Listen
Study Raises Concerns Over Insurance Barriers to HIV Prevention Medications
November 29th 2023Despite its efficacy, PrEP remains underutilized compared to the need for it. High costs are among the barriers to PrEP use, along with limited knowledge among clinicians, lack of health insurance, stigma, and underestimation of personal HIV risk.
Read More