HCSC and Community Partners Impact More Than 6.3 Million Children in 2014, Reaching More Than 13 Million Overall

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Apr 06, 2015, 08:00 ET

CHICAGO, April 6, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Health Care Service Corporation (HCSC), partnering with more than 100 community organizations, last year doubled the number of children reached through its Healthy Kids, Healthy Families® initiative, improving the health and wellness of more than 6.3 million children in the communities it serves. In the four years since its inception, the initiative has served 13 million children in Illinois, Montana, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas.

See highlights of our social responsibility efforts from 2014 and read our newest Social Responsibility Report at http://www.hcsc2014srr.com.

Additionally, the company's employees volunteered more than 86,000 hours to community organizations, nearly twice the previous year's total, and the equivalent of having 42 full-time employees work for a non-profit for a year.

HCSC's just-released Social Responsibility Report, which can be found online at www.hcsc2014srr.com, demonstrates how the company made significant gains in the number of children impacted through its Healthy Kids, Healthy Families® initiative by targeting its community investments in the areas of nutrition, physical activity, disease prevention and management, and supporting safe environments.

"By using our own member's claims data, we are able to align our community investments with our business objectives and partner with organizations that allow us to address the most pressing health needs in our local communities," said Dr. Stephen Ondra, chief medical officer, HCSC. "These investments work hard to decrease the incidence of illness and growing chronic trends such as diabetes and childhood asthma."

As part of its effort to address asthma in the communities it serves, HCSC has partnered with the American Lung Association of the Upper Midwest (ALAUM) to offer community-based interventions for asthma patients, while simultaneously working to enhance care management strategies to reduce inappropriate health care usage. Case studies from first-year cohorts of the "Enhancing Care for Children with Asthma Project" found a 65 percent improvement within 12 months of intervention and 75 percent improvement after 18 months. This translates to better care, which produces measurable improvements in health outcomes for patients with asthma.

Another one of HCSC's most significant social investments was the decision to offer health insurance through the Affordable Care Act (ACA) in every community it serves. During this time of historic expansion of access to health care, the company enabled nearly eight million health care services to our retail members, including mammograms and wellness visits, to many individuals receiving health care coverage for the first time. Additional highlights in the company's 2014 Social Responsibility Report include:

Awards: HCSC was recognized as one of America's most community-minded companies as part of The Civic 50, an annual initiative of Points of Light, in partnership with Bloomberg LP.
Diversity and Inclusion: HCSC ranked #6 on Diversity MBA's 50 Out Front Best Places to Work for Women & Diverse Managers.
Sustainability: The company's ongoing sustainability efforts resulted in the recycling of more than 1,741 tons of paper and saved nearly seven million kilowatts of electricity.

As in past years, the 2014 report was produced digitally, reducing environmental impact and enabling a more dynamic presentation of community partnerships through videos and social media integration. Readers can instantly share and comment on a specific page of the report through Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter or email the entire report to family, friends and colleagues.

About Health Care Service Corporation

Health Care Service Corporation is the country's largest customer-owned health insurer and fourth largest insurer overall, with nearly 14.7 million members in its Blue Cross and Blue Shield plans in Illinois, Montana, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas. A Mutual Legal Reserve Company, HCSC is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association. For more information, please visit www.HCSC.com, visit our Facebook page or follow us at www.twitter.com/HCSC.

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SOURCE Health Care Service Corporation