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Press Release

Independence Blue Cross to Join Cover the Uninsured Week

This week's events complement IBC's year-round commitment to helping the uninsured

Philadelphia, PA - May 4, 2006 - Independence Blue Cross will hold special outreach activities to enroll the uninsured in low-cost or free health insurance programs during “Cover the Uninsured Week,” May 1-7, 2006, to compliment its ongoing efforts on behalf of the uninsured.

“Helping uninsured people gain access to quality medical care not only helps them live healthier lives, but ultimately helps rein in medical costs for everyone,” said Joseph A. Frick, IBC president and CEO.   “It’s the right thing to do and a good investment to make in our community.”

“Joining Cover the Uninsured Week is a natural extension of the work we do year-round to meet the health care needs of our community’s most vulnerable citizens,” he added.

During Cover the Uninsured Week, thousands of activities across the nation will mobilize people from all sectors of society to focus attention on the need for health care coverage for the uninsured. Key issues include:

  • Nearly 46 million Americans, including more than eight million children are living with out health insurance, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Locally, nearly 1.5 million Pennsylvanians – or 11.9 percent of the population – are uninsured.

  • The cost of the uninsured is shouldered by everyone. The nation loses $65 billion to $130 billion every year because of the poor health and premature deaths of uninsured Americans, according to the Institute of Medicine , a nonprofit organization that provides perspective on health, medical and biomedical science issues. For many communities, the higher the rate of uninsured, the more negative the effect on how health care is delivered to everyone in the community, according to the Institute.

  • Living without health insurance can have serious consequences. Research shows that the uninsured live less healthy lives and die earlier than those with health insurance. Roughly 18,000 Americans die unnecessarily every year because they lack health insurance, according to the Institute of Medicine .  

  • The uninsured are not necessarily poor. Although one-third of uninsured adults earn less than $20,500 a year, one-fifth of uninsured individuals earn at least $50,000 annually.

IBC works year-round to reduce the number of uninsured in this region. The organization participates in the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP), Special Care and adultBasic programs, which provide free or low-cost health insurance to more than 55,000 individuals who would otherwise be uninsured.

In addition, IBC tackles the problem of the uninsured through a two-year-old program that provides operational funding to non-profit, privately-funded clinics in southeastern Pennsylvania: the Charitable Medical Care Grant Program. To date, the program has awarded more than $4.7 million to 25 area clinics that provide quality care to nearly 60,000 uninsured and underinsured patients each year. These clinics ultimately reduce the number of uninsured individuals who require treatment at area hospitals. In addition, the program has allocated up to $2 million per year through 2010 for clinic funding and for special projects that improve care or access to care for the uninsured.

During Cover the Uninsured Week, Independence Blue Cross will participate in the following activities in Philadelphia :

  • Enrollment Fair (Wednesday-Thursday, May 3-4). Help enroll uninsured children in the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) at Temple University Children’s Medical Center, at 3509 North Broad Street in Philadelphia.

  • Business SummitBreakfast (Thursday, May 4).  Provide information and answer questions about CHIP, adultBasic and Special Care. The breakfast summit will bring together business and community leaders to discuss the challenges of providing affordable health care to employees. The event will take place at the Park Hyatt at Broad and Walnut Streets in Philadelphia.

  • Health and Enrollment Fair (Friday, May 5).  Provide free health screenings and CHIP enrollment at Congreso de Latinos Unidos at 216 West Somerset Street in Philadelphia.
  • Community Health and Resources Fair (Saturday, May 6). Provide information about CHIP, adultBasic and Special Care at this event, which was organized by the Caring Foundation, founded by Independence Blue Cross and Highmark Blue Shield to provide free or low-cost health care coverage to children and uninsured adults in southeastern Pennsylvania. The fair will feature local agencies, such as Intercultural Family Services and the Philadelphia Health Management Corporation (PHMC), and will reach out to the Asian community at 6th and Washington Avenue, outside the 1st Oriental Supermarket in south Philadelphia.

Independence Blue Cross, an administrator of the CHIP program with the Caring Foundation, has provided coverage to 171,969 children in Bucks, Chester, Delaware , Montgomery and Philadelphia counties since 1990. CHIP is free for most children, but for those whose families have slightly higher incomes, the Caring Foundation subsidizes the monthly payment so that parents pay a reduced monthly premium of only $35 per child instead of the regular monthly premium of $72.11 per child. This year alone, the Caring Foundation will dedicate over $800,000 to help make health care more affordable for nearly 30,000 uninsured children.

In addition to CHIP, IBC also offers Special Care and adultBasic to provide low-income area residents with affordable access to health care. The programs can provide help for people who are temporarily uninsured and need “gap” coverage or for those who have been uninsured for a long time. IBC also subsidizes the two programs to make insurance more affordable to families and individuals.

IBC is the sole administrator in southeastern Pennsylvania for the adultBasic program, which offers Keystone Health Plan East HMO coverage for adults ages 19 to 64. adultBasic is a state-funded program through Pennsylvania’s Tobacco Settlement Fund. Over 13,000 adults are currently enrolled in adultBasic.

Special Care is a low-cost, limited benefit policy providing traditional fee-for-service health coverage for uninsured individuals and families in southeastern Pennsylvania who cannot afford to purchase private health care coverage, yet are not eligible for Medicaid or Medicare. Currently, 13,900 people have coverage through Special Care.

Independence Blue Cross is the leading health insurer in Southeastern Pennsylvania . Nationwide, IBC and its affiliates provide coverage to nearly 3.4 million people. For more than 65 years, Independence Blue Cross has offered quality health care products and services tailored to meet the changing needs of members, employers, groups and providers.

Independence Blue Cross recently received the highest ratings from the National Committee for Quality Assurance for its HMO and PPO health care plans. In addition, in 2005, Independence Blue Cross’s Personal Choice was rated the No. 1 PPO in the nation and its Keystone HMO was ranked the No. 1 HMO in the region by health care consumers in a leading independent consumer magazine.