Blue Shield of California targets patients with complex needs in house call program
| by: Paige Minemyer | FierceHealthcare.com
Blue Shield of California has teamed up with Landmark Health to offer more house calls to members with chronic conditions—at no additional cost.
The insurer has enrolled 3,500 people in the program over the last year and has provided 15,000 in-home visits in that opening window, Blue Shield announced Wednesday. The key, the team told FierceHealthcare, is making sure both members and physicians understand that this is not meant to replace primary care providers (PCPs).
Instead, Landmark’s providers work alongside a patient’s existing PCP to provide care, particularly in the case of an urgent emergency to avoid a pricey, unneeded hospital admission.
“We see this as a real strategy—comprehensive, coordinated care for a physically vulnerable population,” said Malaika Stoll, M.D., senior medical director at Blue Shield of California. Read the full article