Blue Shield of California

Blue Shield of California Members Can Now Treat Heart Disease From Home, with Digital Expansion of Ornish Lifestyle Medicine

Retrieved on: 
Thursday, December 7, 2023

OAKLAND, Calif., Dec. 7, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Blue Shield of California members now have virtual access to Ornish Lifestyle Medicine, an innovative intensive cardiac rehab program designed to help prevent, treat, and even reverse heart disease through lifestyle change.

Key Points: 
  • "At Blue Shield of California, we believe making lifestyle changes have the power to help people with chronic conditions," said Jennifer Christian-Herman, Blue Shield of California vice president of MindBody Medicine.
  • Ornish Lifestyle Medicine is a 72-hour, 9-week heart disease reversal program through lifestyle intervention methods.
  • Until now, Blue Shield of California members had access to the Ornish Lifestyle Medicine program in-person at Marin Health and UCLA Health.
  • The results include:
    "Backed by over 45 years of research, Ornish Lifestyle Medicine remains the only program scientifically proven to often reverse heart disease without drugs or surgery," said Dean Ornish, MD, founder of Ornish Lifestyle Medicine.

Hoag's Cardiothoracic Surgery Team Earns Highest Distinction in Three Surgical Areas

Retrieved on: 
Wednesday, November 29, 2023

NEWPORT BEACH, Calif., Nov. 29, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Hoag's Jeffrey M. Carlton Heart and Vascular Institute has earned the highest distinction possible, a three-star rating out of three stars, from the Society of Thoracic Surgeons (STS) for three categories of surgery - isolated aortic valve replacement (AVR), isolated mitral valve replacement and repair (MVRR) and isolated coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG).

Key Points: 
  • The cardiac surgery performance of Hoag is in the highest quality tier in the current analysis timeframe from July 2020 through June 2023.
  • Fewer than 2.6% of hospitals nationwide receive a three-star rating for isolated aortic valve replacement.
  • "We are honored by the national recognition for Hoag's Cardiovascular Surgery Program in the highest category for quality and successful outcomes," said Robert T. Braithwaite, Hoag president and CEO.
  • Hoag's cardiac surgery team is led by Anthony Caffarelli, M.D., the Newkirk Family Endowed Chair in Aortic Care, director of Hoag Cardiac Surgery and director of the Elaine & Robert Matranga Aortic Center, as well as esteemed cardiac surgery colleagues Asad Shah, M.D., co-director of Hoag Cardiac Surgery, and Timothy Lee, M.D.

BLUE SHIELD OF CALIFORNIA PROMISE HEALTH PLAN HONORS SAN DIEGO PROVIDERS, COMMUNITY GROUPS, PUBLIC OFFICIALS FOR ADVANCING HEALTH, EQUITY, INNOVATION

Retrieved on: 
Monday, November 13, 2023

SAN DIEGO, Nov. 13, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Blue Shield of California Promise Health Plan today announced 60 individuals and organizations who will be recognized at the Medi-Cal managed care plan's inaugural San Diego "Leading the Way" Awards Dinner at The Prado in Balboa Park on November 16, 2023.

Key Points: 
  • The honorees represent a broad cross section of healthcare providers, community organizations, and public officials serving Medi-Cal beneficiaries across San Diego County.
  • The awardees are being recognized for advancing health, equity, and innovation across the region.
  • "Our progress in serving members and the communities across San Diego County is enhanced by all those who work together to improve the health and wellness of all San Diegans," said Kristen Cerf, president and CEO of Blue Shield Promise.
  • Honorees will be recognized for leadership in several categories, such as health access, partnership excellence, community outreach, innovation, distinguished service, healthcare quality, and health equity.

Zócalo Health Now Providing California Latino Families Primary Care Services

Retrieved on: 
Tuesday, October 10, 2023

SEATTLE, Oct. 10, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Zócalo Health, a primary care provider group designed to administer culturally-sensitive care for the Latino patient, announced that all commercial members of Blue Shield of California will now have access to a variety of virtual primary care services, from pediatrics to personalized care teams and mental health support. It is the first Latino-focused digital provider group to be fully covered for commercial members under Blue Shield's provider network.

Key Points: 
  • SEATTLE, Oct. 10, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Zócalo Health, a primary care provider group designed to administer culturally-sensitive care for the Latino patient, announced that all commercial members of Blue Shield of California will now have access to a variety of virtual primary care services, from pediatrics to personalized care teams and mental health support.
  • Zócalo Health's virtual health service is built by Latinos, for Latinos, and offers members, as a supplement to their existing in-person care, a dedicated team of providers for urgent care and primary care services.
  • Zócalo Health's diverse and inclusive provider network and promotoras are trained to provide culturally aligned care and that supports Latino families' unique needs.
  • The mission of Zócalo Health is to increase timely access to high-quality primary care and chronic condition management for the Latino community.

Wellness Together, Inc. and Blue Shield of California Partner to Celebrate Education Leaders with the Mental Health Innovator Awards

Retrieved on: 
Tuesday, September 5, 2023

ANAHEIM, Calif., Sept. 5, 2023 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Wellness Together, Inc. and Blue Shield of California are partnering to celebrate the recipients of the first Wellness Together Mental Health Innovator Award, sponsored by Blue Shield of California.

Key Points: 
  • ANAHEIM, Calif., Sept. 5, 2023 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Wellness Together, Inc. and Blue Shield of California are partnering to celebrate the recipients of the first Wellness Together Mental Health Innovator Award, sponsored by Blue Shield of California.
  • Three outstanding leaders have been selected for their innovations and commitment to student mental health:
    Wellness Together, Inc. and Blue Shield of California are partnering to celebrate the recipients of the first Wellness Together Mental Health Innovator Award.
  • The Wellness Together Mental Health Innovator Awards, sponsored by Blue Shield of California, will be presented at the 7th Annual Student Mental Wellness Conference, in partnership with the California Department of Education, held on September 7-8th, 2023, at the Anaheim Convention Center.
  • "Since 2019, Blue Shield's BlueSky youth mental health initiative and Wellness Together have worked to provide culturally responsive mental health supports for middle and high school students in California.

Blue Shield of California Collaborates with Microsoft to Reimagine Access to Quality Health Care with Connected Cloud Ecosystem

Retrieved on: 
Wednesday, July 26, 2023

OAKLAND, Calif., July 26, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Blue Shield of California and Microsoft are collaborating to enhance members' ability to engage in their health care by building an ecosystem in the cloud that securely integrates relevant, authorized information from disparate sources of data.

Key Points: 
  • Blue Shield is leveraging Microsoft's scalable technology and processing power to derive insights faster to improve members' access to affordable care in partnership with providers.
  • "Microsoft's cloud technology can help Blue Shield better coordinate with providers to open up greater access to care and services for our members.
  • Blue Shield and Microsoft are building a new integrated data hub, Blue Shield's Experience Cube, which runs on the Microsoft Azure cloud platform.
  • Leveraging expertise from Blue Shield and Microsoft, the nonprofit health plan has experienced significant improvements in delivering value to members.

Blue Shield of California Launches Virtual Blue Benefit Plan Incorporating Primary, Mental Health, and Specialty Care

Retrieved on: 
Monday, January 30, 2023

OAKLAND, Calif., Jan. 30, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Blue Shield of California today unveiled its Virtual Blue health benefits plan offering members easy-to-access, comprehensive care through a team of "virtual-first" primary, behavioral, and specialist healthcare professionals.

Key Points: 
  • OAKLAND, Calif., Jan. 30, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Blue Shield of California today unveiled its Virtual Blue health benefits plan offering members easy-to-access, comprehensive care through a team of "virtual-first" primary, behavioral, and specialist healthcare professionals.
  • In addition to virtual care, members can access Blue Shield of California's statewide preferred provider organization (PPO) network for in-person care, plus national BlueCard and global GeoBlue coverage when care is needed outside of California.
  • All virtual care, including mental health and specialty care, is available on a single platform.
  • While virtual care accessed through the Virtual Blue platform comes at no out-of-pocket cost to the member, copay and deductible costs will apply for in-person care and virtual care outside of the platform.

Medi-Cal Members Can Now Get Innovative Digital Programs to Prevent, Treat, Reverse Chronic Conditions

Retrieved on: 
Monday, January 23, 2023

LOS ANGELES and SAN DIEGO, Jan. 23, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Blue Shield of California Promise Health Plan is now offering its Medi-Cal members Wellvolution, a digitally based lifestyle medicine and mental health support program that can be personalized to address individual health needs and preferences.

Key Points: 
  • Created in collaboration with Solera Health, Wellvolution offers four pillars of health support through its app-based programs: disease prevention; chronic-condition reversal; mental health support; and tobacco cessation.
  • "Wellvolution improves access to care, which we know helps to close healthcare gaps for our members."
  • Wellvolution programs that Medi-Cal members can access include:
    Diabetes Prevention - A Centers for Disease Control and Prevention-approved Diabetes Prevention Program (DPP).
  • For more information about digital resources available to Medi-Cal members through Blue Shield's Wellvolution platform, go to wellvolution.com/medi-cal .

Blue Shield of California Introduces At-Home Care Services to Accommodate Members' Busy Lives

Retrieved on: 
Wednesday, December 7, 2022

LOS ANGELES, Dec. 7, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Blue Shield of California members living in Southern California now have access to additional medical care services for a range of illnesses and injuries in the comfort and convenience of their homes through a collaboration with DispatchHealth.

Key Points: 
  • "With our DispatchHealth collaboration, Blue Shield can provide a convenient way for members to access quality care directly in their homes," said Peter Long, executive vice president of Strategy and Health Solutions at Blue Shield of California.
  • We are grateful to deliver on the benefits of home-based care with Blue Shield of California."
  • This collaboration is part of Blue Shield of California's Health Reimagined strategy to transform health care through innovations that advance personalized, holistic, tech-enabled patient care.
  • Blue Shield of California is a tax-paying, nonprofit, independent member of the Blue Shield Association with 4.7 million members, 7,800 employees, and $22.9 billion in annual revenue.

Arine and Gemini Health Announce New Collaboration to Optimize Medications While Lowering Prescription Drug Costs for Blue Shield of California Plan Members

Retrieved on: 
Wednesday, October 26, 2022

SAN FRANCISCO, Oct. 26, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Arine, a next-generation medication intelligence company, and Gemini Health LLC, a drug cost transparency platform, today announced an integration of the two companies' platforms to optimize value-based care for members of Blue Shield of California (Blue Shield). The collaborative effort will bolster the ability of Blue Shield's care team and affiliated pharmacist provider network to coach and counsel Blue Shield members with real-time and accurate medication recommendations and related cost information. This integration is designed to help members take and stay on the right medications while minimizing out-of-pocket expenditures.

Key Points: 
  • This integration is designed to help members take and stay on the right medications while minimizing out-of-pocket expenditures.
  • "Combining our complementary services allows Blue Shield care teams to provide members with data-driven recommendations that resolve medication gaps while potentially lowering member out-of-pocket costs."
  • "The integrated offering will help Blue Shield of California reach the next level of personalized medication management for its members."
  • Gemini Health LLC delivers Drug Cost Transparency Services to providers and members to reduce drug and administrative costs for patients, providers, and payers.