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Customers

When a parent takes their child to the doctor, or a patient faces a new diagnosis, they need support. Our members and customers trust us to make quality healthcare easier to find and easier to understand. Whether we’re answering questions or delivering groceries, we’re building relationships to help our members live their best lives.

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Explore Report

customers

Earning members’ trust

BCBSRI members rewarded our focus on their health and well-being by giving us top marks on multiple surveys.

We take great pride in helping our members get the most from their health plan. Satisfaction with their plan means members are more likely to use their benefits to reach their health goals.
Melissa Cummings, Chief Customer Officer, BCBSRI

5-Star rating for Medicare plans

As a result of member feedback, our 2022 Medicare Advantage plans have earned the highest rating from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS): 5-out-of-5 Stars. BCBSRI is the only Rhode Island health insurer to receive 5-out-of-5 Stars for all 2022 Medicare Advantage plans.

We’re proud to say we received 5-Stars in the following member-focused categories:

  • Customer service
  • Staying healthy: Screenings and tests
  • High levels of member retention

Members enrolled in 5-Star plans generally experience lower out-of-pocket costs, high member satisfaction, better health outcomes, and best-in-class service.

Why 5-Star matters for our Medicare members

For more details about any of our 2022 5-Star plans, visit our Medicare site.

hands raised to vote
Blue Cross offers many benefits that really help promote wellness. Thank you for helping keep me fit.
Ken Camilucci, BCBSRI member
JD Power award

#1 in member satisfaction — J.D. Power

Highest member satisfaction among commercial health plans in the Northeast Region. BCBSRI achieved the highest scores in the following factors:

  • Coverage and Benefits
  • Provider Choice
  • Information and Communication

For J.D. Power 2021 award information, visit jdpower.com/awards.

High rating from NCQA again

We earned a 4.5 out of 5 rating on our preferred provider organization (PPO) products from the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) for the seventh time, recognizing our commitment to service and clinical quality. The rating of BCBSRI PPO products is part of the Private Health Insurance Plan Ratings for 2021.

This makes BCBSRI one of only 12 plans in the country to have received a score of 4.5 or above.

“The 4.5 rating is also a testament to our ongoing collaboration with the provider community and how that approach can result in a better member experience.”
— Dr. Matt Collins, Chief Medical Officer, BCBSRI
rating
4.5/5
top
6%

out of 274 PPO plans

customers

Making health more accessible

Our efforts to help more Rhode Islanders rise above the challenges they face and lead healthy lives take many forms, from a new, more inclusive health plan to extra benefits that assist members with basic needs, like food security.

New plan for Rhode Islanders

In 2021, we took an important step toward making healthcare more accessible and affordable with a new Dual Eligible Special Needs Plan (D-SNP). It’s designed to support people who need a high level of support and care. BlueRI for Duals (HMO D-SNP) is now available for Rhode Islanders who qualify for both Medicare and Medicaid.

In this plan, members work with health navigators who help them reach their health goals and assist with setting up appointments, scheduling transportation, and connecting with community resources for food or housing.

See how BlueRI for Duals helps
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Hear how this can help more Rhode Islanderslisten to podcast

Who can benefit

Nearly
41,000
Rhode Islanders are fully dual-eligible
9,000
have partial Medicaid
SOURCE: “Data book: Beneficiaries dually eligible for Medicare and Medicaid,” February 2022, MedPAC MACPAC

Why Duals can help
How Rhode Islanders rate their well-being

67 / 100
Services for older adults
64 / 100
Economic situation
73 / 100
Healthcare access
SOURCE: 2021 RI Life Index
man delivering groceries

Groceries at the doorstep

As we learned from the RI Life Index and from surveying our own members, too many older Rhode Islanders are worried about getting enough healthy food. That’s why we continued a successful program started in 2020 that helps our at-risk Medicare members: delivering no-cost groceries to their homes with West Warwick-based Millonzi Fine Catering.

“It really attacks that food insecurity piece. You’re really helping people from an economic standpoint and also a nutritional standpoint.”
— Kevin Millonzi, President, Millonzi Fine Catering (as told to WPRI)
See how groceries help our Medicare members

Helping employers help their workers

Our group customers now have an easier way to find the information they need, from plan details to insightful commentary about healthcare trends that will affect their businesses. We redesigned our B2B web presence, incorporating customer research, and we expanded the resources in our Employer Toolkit, where employers can find materials to share with their employees on topics like COVID-19 and behavioral health help.

Toolkit website on cell phone

See why our members appreciate outdoor classes

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Bringing Your Blue Store to the community

Our members have enjoyed coming to a Your Blue Store location for fitness classes, educational seminars, and in-person help with their plans. And they’ve joined our Facebook group—Your Blue Store Studio—for online classes. In 2021 we broadened our reach and took Your Blue Store into the community with outdoor fitness classes and a foldout store that moved through the community helping customers understand health insurance, in English and Spanish.

For older people, it can be harder to get out of chairs or up the stairs. Being active helps a lot, and I’d tell my family and friends to come to the Blue Cross classes.
Elliott Clement, BCBSRI member
The traveling Your Blue Store setup and welcoming customers.

See why our members appreciate outdoor classes

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customers

Delivering digital tools for members

We continue our push to make health insurance and healthcare easier for our members with new tools they can use online or on their phones. That gives members more time to focus on their personal goals.

phone

myBCBSRI mobile expansion

In 2021 we expanded the digital choices for our members by introducing the myBCBSRI app. Now members can check benefits, review claims, and go paperless—wherever they are.

  • One login for website and app
  • Face or Touch ID
  • Digital member ID
12,600
downloads
mobile phone screenshots
piggy bank

Doctors Online for behavioral health

Our members continued to turn to the various ways they can use telehealth, from phone and video chats with their local doctors to visits on the BCBSRI Doctors Online platform. In 2021 members more than doubled their use of Doctors Online for behavioral health visits from the previous year.

124%
increase in Doctors Online behavioral
health visits, 2020 to 2021
Doctors Online is a telemedicine service provided by American Well®, an independent company.
piggy bank

SmartShopper savings

BCBSRI introduced another tool to help reduce costs throughout the healthcare system and benefit our members at the same time. With SmartShopper®, members can compare quality, in-network providers and find the most cost-effective location of their choice—and earn up to $500 in cash rewards as a share of the savings.

The SmartShopper program is offered by Sapphire Digital, an independent company.

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See how members can save
doctor

Find a Doctor enhancements

Members now can find help more easily with a redesigned Find a Doctor tool that includes intuitive, one-tap searches and more information about specialists.

See how simple it is for members
piggy bank

SmartShopper savings

BCBSRI introduced another tool to help reduce costs throughout the healthcare system and benefit our members at the same time. With SmartShopper®, members can compare quality, in-network providers and find the most cost-effective location of their choice—and earn up to $500 in cash rewards as a share of the savings.

The SmartShopper program is offered by Sapphire Digital, an independent company.

Video
Play Video
See how members can save
piggy bank

Doctors Online for behavioral health

Our members continued to turn to the various ways they can use telehealth, from phone and video chats with their local doctors to visits on the BCBSRI Doctors Online platform. In 2021 members more than doubled their use of Doctors Online for behavioral health visits from the previous year.

124%
increase in Doctors Online behavioral
health visits, 2020 to 2021
Doctors Online is a telemedicine service provided by American Well®, an independent company.
women walking holding hands

Amava connections

We want our members to live healthy, fulfilling lives. So, we offer our Medicare members another opportunity for staying active. They can join live, guided discussions on traveling, writing memoirs, and aging independently, to name a few, through Amava Circles, available online—and at no cost. Members also can sign up for volunteer opportunities with leading local and national organizations.

Amava Circles is provided by Amava, an independent company.

Amava is a great way to connect with other people. I’ll definitely continue with them even now that things have opened up.
Sheila, BCBSRI Member
customers

Including more Rhode Islanders

Diversity extends beyond the traditional categories of race, gender, and ethnicity, encompassing the rich variety of Rhode Islanders in all forms. Through our actions, we hope we show that we are committed to embracing diversity, inclusion, and equity to best serve the needs of all Rhode Islanders.

Recognition for our inclusion

As employers, we have a responsibility to ensure that all of our employees feel safe, respected, and valued at work. We’re proud that our efforts have been recognized by these important groups.

Read why this matters for Rhode Island businesses
man smiling
Bell Seal for Mental Health
Mental Health America
2021 Disability Equality Index
American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD) and Disability:IN®
2021 Corporate Equality Index
Human Rights Campaign Foundation
Listen to our employees discuss the invisibility of disabilitylisten to podcast

Diversity week celebrations

In 2021 our annual Diversity Week looked at “Our Journey Ahead” and coincided with the Juneteenth holiday. We learned from each other and from outside experts about:

“Black Motherhood Through the Lens”

This documentary portrays four women and the topic of maternal health in the Black community.

Juneteenth Celebration

This coffee chat was led by Black Council @ Blue, one of several employee business resource groups that help us understand issues affecting many diverse groups at BCBSRI.

Caring for the LGBTQ+ Community

We discussed how BCBSRI, Rhode Island’s largest health insurer, can help reduce barriers to care for the older LGBTQ+ population.

Hear why Juneteenth matterslisten to podcast
mother and child

Still driving forward

Beyond awards and celebrations, we continue taking steps to help all Rhode Islanders feel like they belong:

  • In July, BCBSRI signed on to support the Business Coalition for Equality Act, federal legislation that would provide the same basic protections to LGBTQ people as are provided to other protected groups under federal law.
  • We continue to encourage all employees to add pronouns to their email signatures. Why? Listen to why pronouns matter
  • We are actively exploring how we can act to improve the safety of pregnancy and childbirth for women of color and provide support for women experiencing postpartum depression. Learn what maternal health equity means
  • BCBSRI CEO Martha Wofford signed the CEO Pledge for Diversity & Inclusion. The pledge outlines a specific set of four commitments organizations will take to cultivate an environment where employees feel comfortable and empowered to have discussions about diversity and inclusion.