|
Press Release Contact: Peggy Hinz, (805) 557-6791 www.bluecrossca.com
Health Plan is Among First in State to Receive Quality Plus Distinction for Physician and Hospital Quality Standards
Thousand Oaks, CA. (March 30, 2007) – Blue Cross of California announced today it is among the first health plans in California to achieve Quality Plus Distinction for Physician and Hospital Quality (PHQ) from the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA).
Quality Plus is a voluntary program for all NCQA-accredited organizations. Blue Cross of California is also accredited with an “Excellent” status for its combined HMO/POS (Point of Service) product and “Full” status for its PPO product, the highest possible accreditation levels plans can achieve. Blue Cross of California remains the only PPO health plan accredited by NCQA in the state.
The Physician and Hospital Quality standards are focused on four areas:
- Standardization – NCQA supports standardized measures; where it is not possible, it encourages the drive towards standardization. Quality and resource use measures must be evidence-based, reliable and valid.
- Transparency – These standards require that measurement specifications be available to the organizations being measured and the public.
- Collaboration – These standards encourage collaboration between organizations by streamlining the review process for organizations participating in collaborative initiatives. The standards also support collaboration between organizations and providers—a key to successful measurement activities.
- Action – The objective of measurement is quality improvement and affordability. Organizations should take specific actions to improve performance; such as reporting and engaging in quality improvement activities or using payment and product design strategies.
“Blue Cross of California is to be commended for meeting our new Physician and Hospital Quality standards,” said NCQA President Margaret E. O’Kane. “By adopting these standards Blue Cross of California is providing members with important information about physicians and hospitals within their network, allowing them to make better health care decisions for themselves and their families.”
“This Distinction further demonstrates that we are a leader among health plans in California,” said Brian Sassi, President of Blue Cross of California. “The Physician and Hospital Quality standards assess how organizations measure the quality provided by network physicians and hospitals, which is information that our employers and consumers are asking us to provide.” Blue Cross of California’s participation in the Integrated Healthcare Association’s (IHA, see www.iha.org) quality collaborative helped satisfy the Physician and Hospital Quality standards.
NCQA’s Distinction standards are intended to help organizations achieve the highest level of performance possible, reduce patient risk for untoward outcomes, and create an environment of continuous improvement.
About NCQA
NCQA is an independent, not-for-profit organization dedicated to improving health care quality. NCQA is committed to providing information on the quality of health plans and physicians. Consumers can easily access an organization’s Health Plan Report Card, Distinction status and other information on health care quality on http://hprc.ncqa.org.
About Blue Cross of California
Blue Cross of California is a subsidiary of WellPoint, Inc. (NYSE: WLP). WellPoint’s mission is to improve the lives of the people it serves and the health of its communities. WellPoint, Inc. is the largest publicly traded commercial health benefits company in terms of membership in the United States. WellPoint, Inc. is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association and serves its members as the Blue Cross licensee for California; the Blue Cross and Blue Shield licensee for Colorado, Connecticut, Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, Maine, Missouri (excluding 30 counties in the Kansas City area), Nevada, New Hampshire, New York (as Blue Cross Blue Shield in 10 New York City metropolitan counties and as Blue Cross or Blue Cross Blue Shield in selected upstate counties only), Ohio, Virginia (excluding the Northern Virginia suburbs of Washington, D.C.), Wisconsin; and through UniCare. Additional information about Blue Cross of California is available at www.bluecrossca.com.
To get your free Aetna Individual, Family or Small Business Health Insurance Quotes enter your zip code at the top of the page.Back to top
|
