Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota Partners with Sharecare to Provide Health and Wellbeing Solutions

EAGAN, Minn., May 14, 2018 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota (Blue Cross) today announced that it is partnering with Sharecare, the digital health company that helps people manage all their health in one place, to offer its popular and groundbreaking personalized health platform to Blue Cross commercial customer groups and members starting in 2019. This agreement will provide exclusivity to Blue Cross as the only Minnesota-based plan to offer the Sharecare platform.

In this agreement, Sharecare will serve as the foundation for Blue Cross' digital health management offerings that are part of the health insurer's do.^® health and wellbeing platform. The do. approach, which can be customized to the unique needs of a specific business and its workforce, is centered around a "small steps" concept that empowers people to take an active role in gradually and consistently improving their own health.

Sharecare provides people with a comprehensive and ultra-personalized health profile that drives personal engagement and connections to relevant information and evidence-based programs. The Sharecare engagement platform includes the following features:

• RealAge^®, Sharecare's proprietary and scientifically validated health risk assessment, which provides people with an accurate measure of the actual age of their body, versus their calendar age. After completing the assessment, Sharecare members receive personalized content and recommendations aimed at lowering their RealAge. To date, more than 45 million people have taken the RealAge test.
• AskMD^®, Sharecare's award-winning symptom checker, which can get someone from finding out "what's wrong" to understanding what they can do about it.
• Daily tracking and motivation via targeted messaging that can drive long-term health habits.

Additionally, numerous configurable health management options for employers through Blue Cross will be available on the Sharecare platform starting in 2019. Examples include:

• Customized reward programs to incentivize employees in taking those next steps to improve their health;
• Wellness challenges to create fun and healthy competition to increase engagement;
• Health screening options through BioIQ^®, which provides employers and their employees an easy-to-use screening platform to help members stay informed and identify opportunities for health improvement; and
• Powerful analysis and deep insights on the overall health of an employee population, with recommendations on how to address the behaviors and factors that are driving results.

"Sharecare is a great match with the health and wellbeing programs we offer at Blue Cross," said Cain A. Hayes, president and chief operating officer of the Health Business for Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota. "Both of our organizations are focused on bringing about real change in people's health through meaningful experiences and information that inspire action and reward progress. Empowering and encouraging people on their health journeys is at the heart of what we do and is central to our mission of making a healthy difference in people's lives."

According to the 2017 state rankings from the Gallup-Sharecare Well-Being Index, Minnesota ranked fourth for overall well-being in the United States. While the state displayed very strong positions in financial, community and physical well-being, it has opportunities to improve in the areas of social and purpose well-being, as well as specific markers including the number of Minnesotans who are overweight (37.8%) or obese (23.9%), and have had high blood pressure (25.2%), high cholesterol (21.2%) or been diagnosed with depression (21.2%) within their lifetime.

"In addition to its leading position in the Gallup-Sharecare Well-Being Index state rankings, Minnesota is widely recognized as one of the most innovative states in the country, and their first-mover status in healthcare is a significant contributor to their reputation in that regard," said Jeff Arnold, co-founder, chairman and CEO of Sharecare. "We are proud to join forces with Blue Cross not only to push the healthcare innovation envelope further but also inspire and empower the people of Minnesota to live their healthiest, happiest, most productive lives so they, too, can continue to positively impact their communities and our world."

About Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota
Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota, with headquarters in the St. Paul suburb of Eagan, was chartered in 1933 as Minnesota's first health plan and continues to carry out its charter mission today: to promote a wider, more economical and timely availability of health services for the people of Minnesota. A nonprofit, taxable organization, Blue Cross is the largest health plan based in Minnesota, covering 2.9 million members in Minnesota and nationally through its health plans or plans administered by its affiliated companies. Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association, headquartered in Chicago. Go to bluecrossmn.com to learn more.

About Sharecare
Sharecare is an independent company providing digital health services to help people manage all their health in one place. The Sharecare platform provides each person – no matter where they are in their health journey – with a comprehensive and personalized health profile, where they can dynamically and easily connect to the information, evidence-based programs and health professionals they need to live their healthiest, happiest and most productive life. In addition to providing individual consumers with direct access to award-winning and innovative frictionless technologies, scientifically validated clinical protocols and best-in-class coaching tools, Sharecare also helps providers, employers and health plans effectively scale outcomes-based health and wellness solutions across their entire populations. To learn more, visit sharecare.com.

SOURCE Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota

Related Links

http://www.bluecrossmn.com