Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina (Blue Cross NC) announced that its industry-leading Blue Premier program saved members $130 million in health costs in 2021, reaching a milestone of nearly half a billion dollars in cost savings, according to an analysis from Blue Cross NC. 

Blue Premier modernizes health care by rewarding quality of care, resulting in fewer unplanned hospital admissions and more preventative care, saving lives and making health care more affordable. Hospital and doctor payments are based on successful treatments rather than only the number of procedures or tests performed. This program is helping to create a system where high-quality care is affordable for all. 

“The results show Blue Premier is working for our members by improving quality of care, and that’s our number one priority,” said Dr. Stephen Friedhoff, senior vice president of health care services at Blue Cross NC. “When we can help make health care more affordable, accessible, and easier to navigate, we make it better for all.”

Providers participating in Blue Premier met their performance goals by delivering high-quality, cost-effective care for the nearly 1.4 million members they served in 2021. That’s up from 857,000 members in 2020. Specific quality improvements through Blue Premier in 2021 include:

• A 5% reduction in unplanned hospital readmissions among adult members seeking care at a Blue Premier facility, compared to 2020 
  
• A 12% increase in the percentage of members who took steps to manage blood pressure in 2021, compared with 2020 
• Approximately 24,000 more colorectal screenings than in 2020, averting up to 570 preventable deaths from colorectal cancer, according to health screening calculations from the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force

For more information, read the full press release in our Media Center.