LOS ANGELES, Sept. 23, 2019 /PRNewswire-HISPANIC PR WIRE/ — Blue Shield of California and UCLA Health have signed a new multi-year agreement that gives the nonprofit health plan’s Medicare Advantage plan members in-network access to UCLA Health providers as of October 1, 2019.

The new agreement expands the network relationship between the two organizations. Blue Shield of California members enrolled in its commercial plans already have been enjoying in-network access to UCLA Health. In addition to UCLA Health, Blue Shield offers a wide-range of in-network medical providers for its Medicare Advantage plan members.

“At Blue Shield, we are passionate about offering our members many options when choosing in-network medical providers who share in our vision of providing quality healthcare that is worthy of our family and friends and sustainably affordable,” said Krista Bowers, general manager and vice president of Medicare for Blue Shield of California. “We are very pleased to offer our Medicare Advantage plan members access to UCLA Health and look forward to working with their team to help improve the health and wellness of our members.”

“UCLA Health looks forward to becoming a participating provider in Blue Shield’s Medicare Advantage plan to offer Medicare enrollees expanded access to UCLA physicians and services for their healthcare needs,” said Johnese Spisso, president of UCLA Health and CEO of its hospitals and clinics.

Medicare’s Annual Election Period is October 15, 2019 to December 7, 2019. For more information about Blue Shield’s Medicare plan offerings, please visit https://blueshieldcamedicare.com/.

About UCLA Health
UCLA Health includes four hospitals on two medical campuses — Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center; UCLA Medical Center, Santa Monica; Mattel Children’s Hospital UCLA; and Resnick Neuropsychiatric Hospital at UCLA — and more than 180 primary care and specialty offices throughout Southern California. UCLA Health ranks #1 in California and Los Angeles, and #6 in the nation in U.S. News & World Report’s Best Hospitals survey. Click here for more information.

About Blue Shield of California
Blue Shield of California strives to create a health care system worthy of our family and friends that is sustainably affordable. We are a not for profit, independent member of the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association with 4 million members, 6,800 employees and more than $20 billion in annual revenue. Founded in 1939 and headquartered in San Francisco, Blue Shield of California and its affiliates provide health, dental, vision, Medicaid and Medicare health care service plans in California. The company has contributed more than $500 million to Blue Shield of California Foundation since 2002 to have an impact on California communities.

For more news about Blue Shield of California, please visit news.blueshieldca.com. 
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SOURCE Blue Shield of California

MIAMI, Sept. 20, 2019 /PRNewswire-HISPANIC PR WIRE/ — As part of a commitment to building healthier communities, CVS Health (NYSE: CVS) celebrated the expansion of its annual Project Health free health screening campaign with a community event that took place on Thursday, September 19^th at CVS Pharmacy, 8330 Mills Dr., Miami. Thursday’s event was one of 48 free health screenings taking place in the Miami area between now and the end of the year.

State Senator Annette Taddeo and Miami Heat center Bam Adebayo were on hand at the event, along with Mayra Boitel of CVS Health, community members and CVS Pharmacy field leadership to discuss the importance of being proactive about your health, eating well and not smoking.

“Early screenings and health prevention is critical in our community and these funds will help provide free health services to those in need,” said state Senator Taddeo. “Project Health will be vital to ensuring basic and much needed health care is available for residents in our community and it was an honor to join community leaders in presenting the check to the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation.” 

“CVS Health is committed to expanding access to quality and affordable care, both through our retail footprint and with national and local non-profits and organizations who share our belief that better health starts at the community level,” said Mayra Boitel, vice president, Chief Merchant of Alternative Products, CVS Health. “We were thrilled to be in Miami to celebrate the expansion of Project Health and look forward to providing local residents with free health screenings throughout the rest of the year, as part of our commitment to building healthier communities.”

Project Health events, which will be held Thursdays – Sundays in select stores across Miami through the end of the year, are open to everyone and do not require an appointment. Once screened, patients have access to on-site consultations with bilingual nurse practitioners or physician assistants who will analyze results and refer patients who require additional medical care and follow up to no-cost or low-cost medical facilities nearby or to their primary care physician.

“Maintaining a healthy lifestyle is important, on and off the court, for me,” said Adebayo. “I’m excited to be here today to see firsthand how Project Health is helping people keep tabs on their blood pressure, weight and cholesterol through free health screenings because events like this set the Miami community up for a healthier future.”

An array of free comprehensive health assessment screenings are available at these events, including blood pressure, body mass Index (BMI), glucose and total cholesterol screenings, which can help detect risk for chronic conditions like diabetes, hypertension, and heart disease. The expansion of Project Health will also do more to screen for social determinants of health that affect personal health and communities. A study has shown that up to 60 percent of life expectancy may be driven by behavioral, social and environmental factors including family, education, housing, and access to affordable healthy food.^[1] 

Through Project Health, CVS Health has hosted over 1,000 preventive care events across Miami since 2007, conducting 127,000 free health screenings, counseling 1,723 people on how to stop smoking and donating over $16 million worth of free medical services.

Project Health events have a proven track record of improving patient engagement and ultimately, healthier outcomes. More than 87 percent of patients who attend Project Health events report following-up with their primary care physician and were significantly more likely to proactively discuss their blood pressure, BMI and blood sugar levels, according to the company’s own metrics.

Since it was established in 2006, Project Health has delivered more than $127 million in free health care services to nearly 1.7 million people in multicultural communities with a large number of uninsured or underinsured Americans.

For a full calendar of Project Health events, visit www.cvs.com/project-health (in Spanish: www.cvs.com/proyectosalud).

About CVS Health                                            

CVS Health is the nation’s premier health innovation company helping people on their path to better health. Whether in one of its pharmacies or through its health services and plans, CVS Health is pioneering a bold new approach to total health by making quality care more affordable, accessible, simple and seamless. CVS Health is community-based and locally focused, engaging consumers with the care they need when and where they need it. The Company has approximately 9,900 retail locations, approximately 1,100 walk-in medical clinics, a leading pharmacy benefits manager with more than 102 million plan members, a dedicated senior pharmacy care business serving more than one million patients per year and expanding specialty pharmacy services. CVS Health also serves an estimated 38 million people through traditional, voluntary and consumer-directed health insurance products and related services, including rapidly expanding Medicare Advantage offerings and a leading standalone Medicare Part D prescription drug plan. The Company believes its innovative health care model increases access to quality care, delivers better health outcomes and lowers overall health care costs. Find more information about how CVS Health is shaping the future of health at https://www.cvshealth.com.

Media Contact: 
Ethan Slavin
[email protected]
860-273-6095

[1] Schroeder, SA. (2007). We Can Do Better — Improving the Health of the American People. NEJM. 357:1221-8. https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMsa073350

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SOURCE CVS Health

LOS ANGELES, Sept. 20, 2019 /PRNewswire-HISPANIC PR WIRE/ — As part of a commitment to building healthier communities, CVS Health (NYSE: CVS) celebrated the expansion of its annual Project Health free health screening campaign with a community event that took place on Thursday, September 19^th at CVS Pharmacy, 2011 E. La Palma Ave., Anaheim. Thursday’s event was one of 93 free health screenings taking place in the Los Angeles area between now and the end of the year.

State Senator Ling Ling Chang and LA Clippers power forward Mfiondu Kabengele were on hand at the event, along with community members and CVS Pharmacy field leadership to discuss the importance of being proactive about your health, eating well and not smoking.

“As a legislator, I’ve made it a priority to improve access to preventative care, and I’m grateful to work with CVS Health to bring free health screenings to my constituents in Anaheim,” said Senator Chang. “This is a great opportunity for us to work together to serve the community.”

“CVS Health is committed to expanding access to quality and affordable care, both through our retail footprint and with national and local non-profits and organizations who share our belief that better health starts at the community level,” said Douglas Chang, Region Director for CVS Health. “We were thrilled to be in Los Angeles to celebrate the expansion of Project Health and look forward to providing local residents with free health screenings throughout the rest of the year, as part of our commitment to building healthier communities.”

Project Health events, which will be held Thursdays – Sundays in select stores across Southern California through the end of the year, are open to everyone and do not require an appointment. Once screened, patients have access to on-site consultations with bilingual nurse practitioners or physician assistants who will analyze results and refer patients who require additional medical care and follow up to no-cost or low-cost medical facilities nearby or to their primary care physician.

“Keeping track of your blood pressure, weight and cholesterol are critical to staying healthy,” said Kabengele. “The work being done through Project Health helps thousands of peoples in communities like Los Angeles get the quality care that they might otherwise not receive.”

An array of free comprehensive health assessment screenings are available at these events, including blood pressure, body mass Index (BMI), glucose and total cholesterol screenings, which can help detect risk for chronic conditions like diabetes, hypertension, and heart disease. The expansion of Project Health will also do more to screen for social determinants of health that affect personal health and communities. A study has shown that up to 60 percent of life expectancy may be driven by behavioral, social and environmental factors including family, education, housing, and access to affordable healthy food.¹ 

Through Project Health, CVS Health has hosted over 1,500 preventive care events across California since 2007, conducting 196,000 free health screenings, counseling 2,164 people on how to stop smoking and donating over $27 million worth of free medical services.

Project Health events have a proven track record of improving patient engagement and ultimately, healthier outcomes. More than 87 percent of patients who attend Project Health events report following-up with their primary care physician and were significantly more likely to proactively discuss their blood pressure, BMI and blood sugar levels, according to the company’s own metrics.

Since it was established in 2006, Project Health has delivered more than $127 million in free health care services to nearly 1.7 million people in multicultural communities with a large number of uninsured or underinsured Americans.

For a full calendar of Project Health events, visit www.cvs.com/project-health (in Spanish: www.cvs.com/proyectosalud).

About CVS Health

CVS Health is the nation’s premier health innovation company helping people on their path to better health. Whether in one of its pharmacies or through its health services and plans, CVS Health is pioneering a bold new approach to total health by making quality care more affordable, accessible, simple and seamless. CVS Health is community-based and locally focused, engaging consumers with the care they need when and where they need it. The Company has approximately 9,900 retail locations, approximately 1,100 walk-in medical clinics, a leading pharmacy benefits manager with more than 102 million plan members, a dedicated senior pharmacy care business serving more than one million patients per year and expanding specialty pharmacy services. CVS Health also serves an estimated 38 million people through traditional, voluntary and consumer-directed health insurance products and related services, including rapidly expanding Medicare Advantage offerings and a leading standalone Medicare Part D prescription drug plan. The Company believes its innovative health care model increases access to quality care, delivers better health outcomes and lowers overall health care costs. Find more information about how CVS Health is shaping the future of health at https://www.cvshealth.com.

Media Contact

Ethan Slavin;  [email protected]
860-273-6095

___________________________
¹ Schroeder, SA. (2007). We Can Do Better — Improving the Health of the American People. NEJM. 357:1221-8. https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMsa073350

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SOURCE CVS Health