Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield in Missouri Earns NCQA Accreditation Status
of Excellent
ST. LOUIS, Oct. 27 /PRNewswire/ -- Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield announced
today that its Missouri plan has maintained the accreditation status of
Excellent from the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA). NCQA is an
independent, not-for-profit organization dedicated to assessing and reporting
on the quality of managed care plans, managed behavioral healthcare
organizations, preferred provider organizations, new health plans, physician
organizations, credentials verification organizations, disease management
programs and other health-related programs Anthem's Accreditation status --
the highest possible level -- is based on a voluntary review of how a health
plan ensures that its members are receiving high quality care.
"NCQA's Excellent Accreditation status is reserved for the best health plans
in the nation," said Margaret E. O'Kane, president of NCQA. "It is only
awarded to those plans that meet or exceed NCQA's rigorous requirements for
consumer protection and quality improvement and deliver excellent clinical
care."
The Missouri Blue Cross and Blue Shield Plan first received an excellent
accreditation in 2002. The initial NCQA Accreditation survey process includes
on- and off-site evaluations of more than 60 standards and selected HEDIS®
performance measures conducted by a team of physicians and managed care
experts. Maintenance of status is based on 2009 HEDIS results. HEDIS is a tool
used by more than 90 percent of America's health plans to measure performance
on important dimensions of care and service.
"We are an organization committed to continuous quality improvement, and I
believe that has again been validated by NCQA," said Dennis Matheis, president
of Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield in Missouri. "Anthem is proud to have
improved both its CAHPS® member satisfaction and HEDIS® effectiveness of care
scores in the 2009 collection of these measures. We have a long and proud
tradition of ensuring that our members receive high-quality service. Receiving
objective recognition of that is rewarding for all of us."
*CAHPS(R) is a registered trademark of the Agency for Healthcare Research and
Quality (AHRQ).
*HEDIS(R) is a registered trademark of the National Committee for Quality
Assurance (NCQA).
About Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield in Missouri
In Missouri (excluding 30 counties in the Kansas City area) Anthem Blue Cross
and Blue Shield is the trade name for RightCHOICE® Managed Care, Inc. (RIT),
Healthy Alliance® Life Insurance Company (HALIC), and HMO Missouri, Inc. RIT
and certain affiliates administer non-HMO benefits underwritten by HALIC and
HMO benefits underwritten by HMO Missouri, Inc. RIT and certain affiliates
only provide administrative services for self-funded plans and do not
underwrite benefits. Independent licensees of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Association. ®ANTHEM is a registered trademark of Anthem Insurance Companies,
Inc. The Blue Cross and Blue Shield names and symbols are registered marks of
the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association. Additional information about Anthem
Blue Cross and Blue Shield in Missouri is available at www.anthem.com.
SOURCE Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield in Missouri
Deb Wiethop of Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield in Missouri, +1-314-923-4767,
deborah.wiethop@bcbsmo.com
