Consumerism

Guiding members on the next right thing to do in their health care journey…

That’s the goal at Onlife Health, one of GuideWell’s consumer-engagement businesses, providing health and wellness solutions to 13 million health plan members across 13 states through their user-friendly engagement platform.

The health and wellness company, which serves health plans and employers across the country, is committed to delivering a personalized wellness program to help members achieve their personal health goals.

But Onlife Health acknowledges that helping someone make improvements to their diet or exercise routine cannot be done without first understanding that person’s social determinants of health (SDoH), the conditions in the places where people live, learn, work and play that can affect health outcomes.

The three innovative ideas from North Florida organizations advancing to the finals include:

GuideWell today selected three Central Florida organizations to receive seed money to implement their innovative ideas to address barriers to health access and health literacy. The Center for Multicultural Wellness and Prevention, the Alzheimer’s & Dementia Resource Center and the Center for Quality Medication Management at the University of Florida were selected from a group of 10 regional innovators across Central Florida to receive $5,000 in funding. In addition, they will advance to GuideWell’s Reshaping Health Access challenge finals where they’ll have the opportunity to compete for a $40,000 state grand prize. Funds will be used to address health and racial inequities that exist in their respective local communities.

The three innovative ideas from Central Florida organizations advancing to the finals include:

It remains of critical importance to maintain vigilance in our response to COVID-19.

As we all work to stop the spread, the most important step is still one of the easiest---wear a mask.

Masks help prevent respiratory droplets from traveling into the air and onto others. This can happen when you sneeze, cough or talk wearing a mask isn't just about keeping you safe. It helps protect our families and neighbors because symptoms often don't appear for several days after infection, a mask can help ensure that you don't spread the virus without knowing.

Welcoming a new baby can be a special time in a parent’s life. It can also be overwhelming when things don’t go according to plan.

That’s what happened to Dion Moffett. His daughter was born three months early, weighing one pound and five ounces. Fortunately, his baby girl beat the odds, but she required a three-month hospitalization that left Dion’s family with a $500,000 medical bill.

GuideWell Connect is currently hiring licensed health insurance agents to assist with the upcoming Annual Election Period. We sat down with Melanie McCloud, a licensed health insurance agent from GuideWell Connect, to hear firsthand why she finds her role as a health insurance agent rewarding.

How did you become a licensed health insurance agent?

I love the health care field and wanted to become a nurse. After going to nursing school, I got a job at a hospital but had difficulty with some of the physical demands during my clinicals. I wanted to find another role in the health care field that would allow me to sit at a desk but would be just as rewarding as nursing. When I came upon a news article about GuideWell hiring licensed health insurance agents, I applied and here I am.

Why do you enjoy being a licensed health insurance agent?

Innovation continues to be an increasingly important tool as we work to reimagine how care can and should be delivered. For us, being able to provide access to high quality, affordable health care is our top priority. We can’t do this without outside-the-box thinking and a creative approach.

It has become especially apparent how critical innovation is as the world fights back against COVID-19. Researchers, scientists and innovators across the globe are working to develop a vaccine for the virus. While that happens, we are relying on accurate and accessible testing. Currently, most of the COVID-19 tests are slow, expensive and – if you’ve had to take one – they can be pretty invasive.

GuideWell Mutual Holding Corporation (GuideWell), the parent to a family of forward-thinking companies focused on transforming health care, in collaboration with XPRIZE, OpenCovidScreen, Anthem, Inc. and other Blue Cross and Blue Shield plan partners, as well as other innovative organizations announced the $5 million XPRIZE Rapid Covid Testing competition to accelerate the development of high-quality COVID-19 testing that is low cost, easy to use, and quick-reporting, paving the way for more frequent testing.

Trying to navigate the complexities of the health care system can be challenging for anyone. But when English is not your native language, trying to find answers to your health insurance questions can be even more difficult.

Nellie Coronel understands this firsthand. Her parents are from Ecuador and sometimes lean on her bilingual skills to help interpret their health-related questions.

“I see them struggle with the language barrier and it can be frustrating for them.”

Helping her own parents is part of what inspired Nellie to become a Bilingual Member Care Specialist at Florida Blue. In her role, she assists members with their billing questions, helps them find in-network providers and directs them where they can go for medical care and lab work.

“I enjoy the fact that I can help them with their claim information or with pharmacy issues and just make their life a little bit easier,” she said.

Confused, lost and frightened. That’s how Sckary Hurtado describes a health insurance member who was recently diagnosed with breast cancer.

One of the woman’s first phone calls following her diagnosis was to her health insurer. Although she had health insurance---she didn’t speak English and wasn’t sure how to navigate the health care system.

Sckary, a member care specialist, was the caring voice on the other end of the line. When the member broke down, Sckary got emotional too. Her role was to help guide this member on her health care journey and that’s just what she did. She provided the member with a list of in-network oncologists, explained how her providers would need to obtain authorizations and let her know who to contact to make sure her prescriptions would be covered.

When the call was over, the member was grateful for the help and better prepared to begin her breast cancer journey.