Lehigh Valley Business Coalition on Healthcare Q1 2023 Employer Meeting

Thank you to those who were able to attend the Coalition’s Employer Group meeting on March 7. If you could not attend or would benefit from a recap, here are some important takeaways from the meeting. Please reach out to your Capital Blue Cross account executive if you have any questions or would like a copy of the meeting presentation.

Capital Blue Cross multi-session coaching programs

Gina McDonald, a Capital Blue Cross Senior Health Coach, provided an overview of Capital’s four multi-session health coaching programs:

  • EMPOWER, a six-session weight management program that focuses on nutrition, fitness and mindfulness.
  • Take Charge, a six-session diabetes information and nutrition class, facilitated by a Capital Blue Cross registered dietician.
  • Transform, a four-session goal setting skill development program.
  • Balance, a six-session mindfulness and stress management program.

Gina closed by sharing the benefits that both employers and employees can realize by engaging with the programs

  • Employers
    • Establish the organization as an advocate for supporting the mental health and wellness needs of their workforce.
    • Gain valuable information on the successes and continued needs of their employees via each program’s evaluation process.
  • Employees
    • Build new knowledge and skills in areas that impact their day-to-day lives.
    • Enhance an employee’s engagement at the workplace by reducing stress and increasing morale and energy.

All of the programs discussed are available onsite, virtually or a combination of the two. Across all of the coaching programs, each of the individual sessions are one hour in length.

For more information, please contact your Capital Blue Cross account executive.

Population Health Management programs update

Mary Elizabeth Myers, a population health expert, delivered a comprehensive update on Capital’s approach to whole-person care, an effort with four key elements:

  • Identifying at-risk patients
  • Developing best-in-class solutions that support individual member needs
  • Effectively supporting members in their health journey and
  • Driving down utilization costs

Capital supports whole-person care through its Capital Blue Cross Connect stores and other programs including VirtualCare, Blue365, Care Management and its various health and wellness promotion programs.

Mary Elizabeth went on to provide an overview of Ovia Health, Capital’s new digital women’s health platform, which is focused on improving outcomes, reducing costs, and providing women self-directed programs focused on their unique needs. Ovia is a collection of 3 separate applications:

  • Ovia Fertility, which considers each person’s situation and needs to support family planning accordingly.
  • Ovia Pregnancy, which provides support for a healthy pregnancy and can help reduce the number of preterm deliveries, NICU stays, and cesarean section rates.
  • Ovia Parenting, which offers child health and development resources, and helps new moms keep a healthy work/life balance, find mental health support, and keep track of their baby’s vaccination schedule.

Having launched in November 2022, Capital has already seen positive program feedback and outcomes across its book of business. Ovia’s program is available to active Capital subscribers and dependents ages 18 to 65. Employers are supported in the effort through the use of a toolkit to assist with employee communications and program promotion.

Mary Elizabeth also updated the group on another key Capital Blue Cross initiative, its collaboration with digital diabetes solution, Virta. This app-based program allows eligible members to take the next step in managing their diabetes – reversal. Using digital tools, members engage directly with a Virta clinical team to employ a multi-faceted strategy for reversing their diabetes diagnosis.

Since the program’s roll-out in November 2021, Capital Blue Cross has seen favorable clinical outcomes across its book of business in the areas of A1C change, medication management and weight change. The program has also seen strong patient retention across 90-day and 180-day program thresholds.

Lastly, Mary Elizabeth shared the behavioral health resources available to Capital members and their employers. Members can access programming through Capital’s Care Management department, VirtualCare, Social Workers and its Health Promotion and Wellness team. Employers can work with their account team to access tool kit resources and even Capital’s provider partners are given communication and educational pieces to support their patients.

Capital’s Health Promotion and Wellness team can support a variety of initiatives and topics with communications and subject matter expert resources. Please contact your Capital Blue Cross account executive if you have questions or would like more details about any of these programs.

Save the date

The next Capital/Coalition quarterly employer meeting will be on Tuesday, June 13th at 9am. We hope to see you there!

Until then, thank you for your partnership and for trusting us to continue going the extra mile for you and your employees!