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Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Rhode Island Launches 2015 Annual Report
PROVIDENCE, RI – New customer initiatives, expanded partnerships with providers and local community organizations, and innovative contracting models made 2015 a year of continued healthcare transformation and financial strength for Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Rhode Island (BCBSRI), which today released its 2015 Annual Report. BCBSRI’s efforts in 2015 met key goals of improving the customer experience, creating a more collaborative healthcare environment and improved patient experience and producing cost savings. These same efforts, combined with continued focus on low administrative costs, resulted in a $21.6 million gain on operations and a $29.7 million addition to reserves, assuring the company’s continued stability and ability to invest in transformative initiatives.
“We continue to believe that the only avenue to a sustainable, affordable, and simple healthcare system for our state is through collaboration—among providers of healthcare, state leadership, customers, and regulators,” said BCBSRI President and CEO Peter Andruszkiewicz in the opening of the online report. “Simply put, it takes a team.”
Throughout 2015, BCBSRI introduced several initiatives to further enhance service and simplify the healthcare experience for customers, including:
- A new retail store location and innovative offerings to meet customers’ active lifestyles. Locations include Your Blue Store Lincoln, Bristol and Warwick.
- Seven-day-a-week customer service, a 24/7 Nurse Care Line, HouseCall by Blue appointments for members struggling with complex medical needs, and enhanced online shopping capabilities.
- Collaboration with Care New England’s Women & Infants Hospital to offer a free in-home doula visit through a first-in-Rhode Island partnership between an insurer and provider for free doula services.
BCBSRI generated impressive results through team-based provider partnerships committed to delivering on the triple aim of improving population health, patient experience and cost of care. BCBSRI’s five-year study of patient-centered medical homes (PCMHs) showed improved health outcomes compared to standard primary care providers—and a savings of $30 million in healthcare costs. BCBSRI also realized $43M in healthcare cost avoidance by integrating pharmacists into primary care offices through the Medication Therapy Management Program.
The collective impact of grant programs, volunteer efforts and in-kind donations – which support more than 190 local non-profits – is highlighted in the companion 2015 Community Report. BCBSRI’s Blue Angel Community Investment Program supports nonprofits and programs that address the most critical health issues facing Rhode Islanders, from childhood obesity to health literacy to quality care for the uninsured.
In addition to stories that feature BCBSRI’s customers and provider partners, the annual report includes an overview of 2015 business results and examples of the company’s leadership and ongoing investments in corporate citizenship and diversity and inclusion.
About Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Rhode Island 
Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Rhode Island is the state’s leading health insurer and covers more than 450,000 members. The company is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association. For more information, visit http://www.bcbsri.comwww.bcbsri.com, follow us on Twitter @BCBSRI, and like us on Facebook at fb.com/bcbsri.
The Shadows are Illuminated at Save The Bay’s Exploration Center and Aquarium in April
NEWPORT, RI – This month at Save The Bay’s Exploration Center and Aquarium in Newport, the vast, hidden world of the deep sea becomes a backyard of discovery. Visitors will learn about the types of fish that light the way with bioluminescence, as well as other adaptations these animals have to living in darkness. The aquarium, open from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays, and daily throughout school vacation week, April 15 – 24, will hold special activities centered on this strange realm of the ocean.
Far below the visible ocean is a landscape of deep crevices and alcoves where light barely penetrates the water. As a result, many native species that live there have developed a unique trait. Called bioluminescence, a chemical reaction in their bodies allows them to literally light themselves up, as though they are fireflies in the water. This is a crucial adaptation without which very few of the fish would find their way in the dark for food and shelter from larger predators. They also use their light in other ways, such as distracting prey before catching it or navigating through often perilous deep sea canyons . The most commonly found luminescent creature native to Narragansett Bay is the ‘comb jellyfish,’ identified by its glowing ‘veins’ beneath its transparent body.
Visitors will be able to see a fluorescent fish up close, the resident Chain Catshark, which has a scale pattern that lets it blend in with the substrate found in dark waters. Chain Catsharks have been photographed in the ocean glowing a brilliant green color, which is invisible to the human eye. A yellow filter is needed to block out blue hues in order to observe this beautiful coloration. Also, educators will share stories about the importance of sunlight below the ocean surface. Inside the aquarium, visitors are challenged to find a brilliant orange fish with large eyes that calls the deep sea home. Children can also go on a scavenger hunt for a prize, take a stroll along the shore if the weather permits, and join in an assortment of other activities throughout the day:
Daily Schedule:
11:00 Story Time: “Ocean Sunlight”
12:00 Science Experiment
01:00 Scavenger Hunt “Can you find all the deep sea creatures?”
02:00 Deep Sea Lesson
03:00 Beach Walk (weather permitting)
The Exploration Center and Aquarium is located in the Easton’s Beach Rotunda at 175 Memorial Blvd. in Newport, R.I. General admission is $8 with discounts for military and senior citizens. Save The Bay Family Members can enjoy FREE admission for 2 adults and up to 4 children. For more information about the Exploration Center and Aquarium, visit www.savebay.org/aquarium or call 401-324-6020.
About Save The Bay 
Founded in 1970, Save The Bay works to protect and improve Narragansett Bay and its watershed through advocacy, education, and restoration efforts. It envisions a fully swimmable, fishable, healthy Narragansett Bay, accessible to everyone and globally recognized as an environmental treasure.
A New Bill Seeks To Improve Gender Diversity on Corporate Boards
In March of this year, U.S. Rep. Carolyn Maloney of New York introduced the Gender Diversity in Corporate Leadership Act. The bill is intended to increase the number of women on corporate boards, and would require public corporations to report the gender composition of their boards and board nominees to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”). It would also create an SEC advisory group to study and recommend ways to increase gender diversity on corporate boards.
In January, the Government Accountability Office (“GAO”) released a study showing that women held just 16% of seats in corporate boardrooms. This number was up from 8% in 1997. Based on these numbers, even if equal proportions of women and men joined boards each year beginning in 2015, it would take until 2065 for women’s representation on boards to be on par with that of men’s.
Proponents of the Bill argue that what gets measured, gets results. The theory is that, by turning the resources of Congress to the issue of board diversity, it is likely that public companies will devote more effort to diversifying their boards. Research shows that public companies with boards that are reflective of the diversity of the population of the United States have better decision-making processes and overall stronger organizational health. In other words, diverse boards are good for business and this translates into being good for the economy.
Those opposed to the Bill suggest that it is an unnecessary intrusion into the boardroom. Importantly, however, the Bill stops short of creating any mandatory quotas. Many European countries, on the other hand, have attempted to achieve boardroom diversity through quotas.
Germany recently became the latest country so far to pass a law that requires some of Europe’s biggest companies to give 30% of supervisory seats to women. In passing the law, Germany joined a trend in Europe to accomplish what has not happened organically, or through general pressure: to legislate a greater role for women in boardrooms.
Norway was the first country in Europe to legislate boardroom quotas, joined by Spain, France and Iceland, which all set their minimums at 40%. Italy has a quota of 1/3 and Belgium of 30%. Britain has not legislated quotas, but a voluntary effort, known as the 30% Club, has helped to substantially increase women’s representation. The group has used persuasion to help double the percentage of women on the boards of major British companies since 2010 – up to 23%.
The notion of government quotas for company boards has met substantial resistance in the United States. Representative Maloney’s Bill is one example of an advocate attempting to achieve boardroom diversity in another way. The Bill has been referred to the House Committee on Financial Services.
If you have questions or would like to speak to Attorney Sally P. McDonald, please call 401-824-5100 or email her at smcdonald@pldw.com.
Sally P. McDonald, Esq.
Attorney, Pannone Lopes Devereaux & West LLC
The Woman Business Enterprise
In my forty-three years of working in and around the earth/road construction field, being impressed has not been a regular occurrence! However, when I began working in thearea of supportive services with the Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE), Minority-Owned Business Enterprise (MBE), and Women-Owned Business Enterprise (WBE) community, I’ve been in awe on several occasions. This month we look at woman-owned businesses and what this special group is about–in issues past we’ve reviewed, exposed, and dissected a wide range of topics regarding MBE/DBE community however–full disclosure here–with little focus on our women. Why?
I am guilty of “lumping” this group right in with all small business in an attempt to generalize and stick to our mission of support on the broad view. Not this month! WBE’s are a very different type of business and should be recognized as such for the distinctive set of challenges these owners and operators face each and every day! We can’t ignore the fact that woman have been faced with the “glass ceiling,” sexism, and equality issues simply because of their gender and that’s just in their employment role.
When a woman answers the entrepreneurial call, she now magnifies these issues in the eyes of her peers and is now positioned to engage her competition, mostly men, by a whole different set of rules. She must always be the best she can be, always ready to prove that she “belongs,” and is always the expert in her field. Now, all things being equal, it needs to be said that gender issue is not unique to small business. I’ve been in the company of moderate to large size companies where women head-up projects, represent the owner or, in rare cases, own the company themselves and I have to say…it isn’t much different!
Obviously we as a small state have a long way to go (as does the rest of the country) but we have made progress. In my role in supportive services, I’ve seen woman start-ups do very well in these men dominated markets, although not easy when dealing with some of the stereotypes and bias attitudes, it can be done! As I’ve focused on in prior articles, any change in social thinking rarely is effective within the target generation, it has to be initiated in the prior one. Young women should be shown that there are better and more effective ways to establish themselves in the business market. Young men need to be educated regarding the contribution of all individuals, male or female, as well as how to interact with them.
I’m not attempting to create anything new here, we have amazing organizations dealing with these issues, with great success right here in the Ocean State! As always I offer Rhode Island resources for you; Mission (360) 275-5840, the Center for Women & Enterprise (401) 277-0800, RI Small Business Development Center (401) 598-2702. These are just a few organizations that are willing to get WBE off on the right track through group, one-on-one, and various mentoring models available. As usual, if I can help, my phone is always on –see you on the job site!
