Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Rhode Island (BCBSRI), in partnership with Eliza Corporation (Eliza), a leader in the area of health engagement management solutions, will soon begin a voluntary health risk assessment (HRA) survey of all of BCBSRI’s 50,000+ Medicare Advantage members.

Eliza will contact all Medicare members by phone for a roughly 15-minute survey, beginning 8 de fevereiro and extending into March – it’s expected to take four to six weeks to contact all members. After the initial outreach, Eliza will contact new BCBSRI Medicare members each month.

Particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic, it’s critically important that we better understand the health status of this population, who are even more vulnerable now. This is a proactive step we’re taking on behalf of our members to ensure that we’re aware of any untreated conditions they may be suffering from. This will allow us to actively work with our providers and community partners to help address and close some of those gaps in care together.

The purpose of the survey is to gauge how members would rate their own health. The survey will touch on social determinants of health and members’ perceptions of their health issues, as well as many measures tied to the CMS Health Outcomes Survey (HOS) or CMS Star ratings, such as fall risks and bladder control.

If any member health issues are identified during a call, those will be shared with the member’s PCP and care team, as well as with BCBSRI community partners if warranted. Depending on the nature of the issue, some members may also be referred to partners such as the United Way or Meals on Wheels of Rhode Island, to address issues such as food insecurity, housing or transportation needs, loneliness, or lack of Internet access.

Any issues that arise will also be referred to our care management team for immediate follow-up – BCBSRI will receive daily alerts for issues like the ones mentioned above.

Eliza will identify themselves as calling from Blue Cross, and members will be asked to confirm their name but will not be asked for any PHI, such as their member ID or their address. Please reiterate the importance of taking this survey to your Medicare-age patients, and reassure them that it is a valid BCBSRI survey and Eliza is an approved partner.

Thank you for helping us learn more about our Medicare members so we can help them stay healthy, and thank you for all you are doing to keep all Rhode Islanders safe and healthy right now.