February 2020
Partnership with the American Hospital Association (AHA) to Help Illinois Hospitals Eliminate Health Care Disparities
By: Dr. Derek J. Robinson, M.D., MBA, FACEP, CHCQM, Vice President and Chief Medical Officer, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois (BCBSIL)
In a press release on Dec. 16, 2019, the AHA’s Institute for Diversity and Health Equity (IFDHE) and BCBSIL announced a joint collaboration and one-year Health Equity Grant Program to support hospitals in eliminating health care disparities. This collaboration will work toward helping to ensure individuals in every Illinois community have access to and receive safe, equitable, quality health care.1 The Request for Proposal outlines grant program guidelines, available funding, review process, terms and conditions for receiving a grant, and other details. The original announcement stated that proposals would be accepted through late January 2020. Recently, the deadline was extended, and proposals will be accepted through Feb. 10, 2020.2
After participating in the grant proposal process, 13 AHA member hospitals that are part of the BCBSIL provider networks will have an opportunity to participate. Among other activities, grantees will be asked to sign the AHA’s #123forEquity Pledge to Act to Eliminate Health Care Disparities and complete a performance improvement project that promotes health equity. Program funding will support efforts that are focused on maternal and child health, pediatric asthma, adult diabetes, breast cancer and geographic disparities, including rural access to care.
We’re excited to partner with the AHA to empower hospitals with the additional tools they need to help ensure equitable health outcomes for our members and communities across Illinois. This new grant program is part of our broader quality strategy, which includes innovative partnerships with providers to reduce health care disparities and increase opportunities for all people to achieve their best possible health. My colleague, Jenné Johns, Director of Quality Improvement and Health Equity at BCBSIL adds, “Hospitals who faced challenges addressing and meeting the needs of target populations, will now have technical assistance, resources and the support of senior level executives within their institutions to strengthen their commitment to reduce health care inequities. Our goal is to accelerate internal operations and innovation to reduce racial, ethnic and geographic disparities, and we believe that this program will get us closer to realizing that goal.”
As Jay Bhatt, D.O., senior vice president and chief medical officer at the AHA said, “It is essential to reduce health inequities and increase access to care in communities, and this innovative grant offers a unique opportunity for providers and payers to work together toward these shared goals.”3 As a provider-payer collaboration, this grant program will help BCBSIL gain actionable insights that will better equip us and our hospital partners to address health care disparities in the communities we serve. By meeting providers where they are on their health equity journeys, this program is just one of the ways we’re helping to clear the path to the next milestone – for all of us.
Where are you in your health equity journey? What challenges are you facing? What successes have you achieved? Your input will help us continue to enhance the Health Equity and Social Determinants of Health section of our Provider website with ways you can take action, along with helpful links and related resources. Please complete our brief survey now! |
Learn more about Dr. Derek J. Robinson
1,3 IFDHE, Current Headlines, Diversity Issues (Dec. 16, 2019). AHA Institute for Diversity and Health Equity and Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois Announce Joint Collaboration and Grant Opportunity. Accessed Jan. 10, 2020, at http://www.diversityconnection.org/diversityconnection/ifd-inc/dhtml/blog-article.dhtml?dcrpath=DIVERSITYCONNECTION/blog-entry/data/12_16_19_BCBS.
2IFDHE, Health Equity (December 2019). Guidelines for the American Hospital Association’s Institute for Diversity and Health Equity and Blue Cross Blue Shield of Illinois’ Health Equity Grant Program. Accessed Jan. 10, 2020, at http://www.diversityconnection.org/diversityconnection/homepage/Institute-files/RFP_AHA_HCSC_Grant%20Program_12.11.19.LH.final.pdf.
The above material is for informational purposes only and is not a substitute for the independent medical judgment of a physician or other health care provider. Physicians and other health care providers are encouraged to use their own medic judgment based upon all available information and the condition of the patient in determining the appropriate course of treatment. The fact that a service or treatment is described in this material is not a guarantee that the service or treatment is a covered benefit and members should refer to their certificate of coverage for more details, including benefits, limitations and exclusions. Regardless of benefits, the final decision about any service or treatment is between the member and their health care provider.