Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Massachusetts signs contract with Informed Access Systems to provide members 24-hour care coordination service.BROOMFIELD, Colo.--(HealthWire)--Aug. 12, 1996--Blue Cross and Blue Shield Blue Shield A US not-for-profit health care insurer that is a reimbursement intermediary for physicians. Cf Blue Cross. of Massachusetts (BCBSMA BCBSMA Bluecross Blueshield of Massachusetts ) has signed a contract with Informed Access Systems Inc. (IAS See iPlanet Application Server. 1. (computer) IAS - The first modern computer. It had main registers, processing circuits, information paths within the central processing unit, and used Von Neumann's fetch-execute cycle. ) to provide its patient assessment and care coordination care coordination Managed care 1. The brokering of services for Pts to ensure that needs are met and services are not duplicated by the organizations involved in providing care 2. service, FirstHelp(TM), to BCBSMA's 1.8 million members. When implemented in early September, the service will be called the Blue Care Line(TM). With the Blue Care Line, BCBSMA's members will be able to call a toll-free number 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and speak with a registered nurse about their symptoms or health questions. By asking a series of questions in a set order, the nurse will be able to accurately assess the urgency of the caller's symptoms and provide a recommendation on care options, including self-care. The Blue Care Line will be available to BCBSMA members beginning Tuesday, Sept. 3, 1996. "We are pleased to be one of the first health care organizations in New England New England, name applied to the region comprising six states of the NE United States—Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut. The region is thought to have been so named by Capt. to offer its members round-the-clock telephone access to registered nurse counselors and symptom assessment," said Mark Kelley Mark Kelley is a Canadian journalist. He currently serves as a correspondent and substitute anchor for The National, and was formerly a host of . A graduate of Concordia University in Montreal, the fluently bilingual Kelley began reporting from within Quebec in the 1980's , vice president, local markets division, BCBSMA. "After a thorough review, we selected IAS because of the clinical superiority of its systems. "This is a service that complements physician-patient relationships, while helping our members make better-informed decisions about their medical care, no matter what time of day or night." IAS, a privately held health care information services See Information Systems. firm, is an innovator in the growing field of health care coordination, which provides health plan members with an integrated approach to accessing health information, services and care. The company developed and markets FirstHelp, the world's only patented, algorithm-based patient assessment and care coordination service. Medical algorithms are a type of clinical decision architecture that, when followed, results in specific, accurate and consistent recommendations on the appropriate level of care for each caller. Most patient assessment services are based on a less precise approach known as protocols. "We are pleased to partner with another prominent Blue Cross Blue Shield plan in providing its constituents with care coordination services," said Joe Tallman, president of IAS. "We feel that this initiative is another example of BCBSMA's commitment to effectively manage utilization in ways that also benefit their members and providers." BCBSMA is the largest health services health services Managed care The benefits covered under a health contract organization in New England, providing a full range of managed care and traditional benefits, products and services to businesses and individual customers, to health care providers, and to federal, state and local government. IAS' FirstHelp is currently available to nearly seven million people through a range of health plans, health care providers and insurers. CONTACT: IAS, Broomfield Lauren M. Immel, 303/443-4600 x1826 BCBSMA Judith M. Tortolano, 617/832-4824 |
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