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Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield and the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association Designate Area Hospitals Blue Distinction Centers for Cardiac Care

Posted on: Monday, 11 December 2006, 12:01 CST

PITTSBURGH, Dec. 11 /PRNewswire/ -- The Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association (BCBSA) has designated 16 area hospitals as Blue Distinction Centers for Cardiac Care for 2007. This national program, developed by BCBSA and administered locally through Highmark will create an unprecedented level of transparency with two goals -- engaging consumers to make more informed health care decisions and collaborating with providers to improve quality outcomes and affordability.

Blue Distinction Centers for Cardiac Care provide a full range of cardiac care services, including inpatient cardiac care, cardiac rehabilitation, cardiac catheterization (including percutaneous coronary interventions) and cardiac surgery (including coronary artery bypass graft surgery). Institutions that are a part of the program are also subject to periodic re-evaluation of their clinical outcome and compliance with program criteria.

"There is great variation among providers in terms of how specialty cardiac patients are evaluated and treated," said Highmark Medical Director Carey Vinson, M.D. "These designated facilities meet stringent quality criteria as established by expert physician panels and national organizations. By meeting these requirements, the centers demonstrate better outcomes and consistency of care and provide greater value for Blue members."

The hospitals that have earned this designation are: - Allegheny General Hospital - Altoona Regional Health System - Butler Memorial Hospital - Conemaugh Valley Memorial Hospital - DuBois Regional Medical - Hamot Medical Center - Jefferson Regional Medical Center - Saint Vincent Health Center - St. Clair Memorial Hospital - The Medical Center of Beaver - The Mercy Hospital of Pittsburgh - The Washington Hospital - The Western Pennsylvania Hospital - Westmoreland Regional Hospital - UPMC Presbyterian Shadyside - UPMC Passavant

"We want to get consumers more involved in their health care decisions," said Vinson. "The goal of the Blue Distinction Centers is to give consumers the information they need about complex conditions and procedures and specialty care resources, empowering them to be more effective with their choices."

As part of the Blue Distinction program, Highmark is also in the process of evaluating facilities on their bariatric surgery care.

About Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield

As one of the state's leading health insurers and with nearly 70 years of community involvement, Pittsburgh-based Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield serves 3.1 million members. The company's mission is to provide access to affordable, quality health care enabling individuals to live longer, healthier lives. Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield employs more than 5,000 people in the region and provides the resources to give its members a greater hand in their health.

Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association, an association of independent Blue Cross and Blue Shield Plans. For more information about Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield, visit http://www.highmark.com/.

Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield

CONTACT: Denise Grabner of Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield,+1-412-544-7826, or denise.grabner@highmark.com

Web site: http://www.highmark.com/

Source: PRNewswire

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