PROVIDENCE – Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Rhode Island said that it has no plans to tier hospitals according to costs, according to spokeswoman Kimberly Reingold.
In Massachusetts, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts recently announced plans to launch a new health coverage option that encourages consumers to avoid 15 so-called “high-cost” hospitals.
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Under the Massachusetts’ insurer’s plan, employers who choose the new plan would reportedly benefit from a much smaller premium increase than they would have faced if they kept their same health plan. As a result, businesses would see an average premium increase of about 4.5 percent, compared with about 10 percent, according to a Massachusetts Blue Cross Blue Shield spokesperson.
“We don’t do this,” Reingold said. “As you know, we are committed to moderating the three primary drivers of health care costs and health insurance premium, including prescription drug costs, hospital costs and physician and clinical services. We are doing many things to make this happen.”
But, related to primary care, she continued, “our hope is that our investment in the patient-centered medical home [program] will yield positive quality results for members and providers, which will help to us to successfully reduce system inefficiencies, while also improving healthcare delivery and affordability.”
