Laws put in place to protect consumers from high costs associated with freestanding emergency rooms may not be working as intended. Dr. Vivian Ho, a health economist at Rice University's Baker Institute, Dr. Paul Hain, BCBSTX North Texas Market...

One of the country’s leading health care economists says freestanding emergency rooms are hurting Texas’ rural hospitals. Dr. Vivian Ho, a health economist at Rice University's Baker Institute, Dr. Paul Hain, BCBSTX North Texas Market...

Our data shows emergency room costs have gone up by 182 percent in the last four years in Texas. What is going on in the market and what can we do to slow runaway health care costs? Dr. Vivian Ho, a health economist at Rice University's Baker...

In Texas, there were nearly 200,000 family and dating violence incidents in 2016. In this Blue Promise, we dig into our data to determine the impact of this type of violence on health. What are the costs associated with family violence and what...

In this edition of Blue Promise, we discuss the intersection of family violence and health with a panel of experts. A look at BCBSTX data shows family violence is a big issue in Texas. What trends are we seeing in our data and how does this type...

If current policies and procedures aren’t turning the tide against the opioid epidemic, what more should be done? Dr. McCoy speaks with Leanne Metcalfe, PhD, Executive Director of Planning and Research, Phiyen Tra, PharmD, Director of Clinical...

The current opioid epidemic is the deadliest drug crisis in U.S. history. In this edition of Blue Promise, we take a deeper dive to understand what caused the epidemic and just how addictive opioids are. The current opioid epidemic is the deadliest...

Policymakers attempted to combat the opioid epidemic by placing regulations on the prescribing and dispensing of opioids. How well did those rules work? We discuss in this Blue Promise. Policymakers attempted to combat the opioid epidemic by placing...

Why are advocacy groups opposing short-term limited duration insurance, or STLDI? Find out in this edition of Blue Promise. Advocacy groups filed thousands of comments in opposition to short-term limited duration insurance, or STLDI. Why are they...

In this edition of Blue Promise, we discuss new policy changes that could lead more people to buy unregulated short-term limited duration insurance (STLDI) products. Even if you don’t have short-term limited duration insurance (STLDI), you...

We’re helping school nurses learn to treat childhood asthma more effectively. Our partnership with the American Lung Association is keeping kids in the classroom and out of the doctor’s office. The "Enhancing Care for Children with...

We started our energy vertical to help our oil and gas clients with their unique health benefit needs. Take a look inside one of the energy vertical’s meetings and find out why this program makes us the health insurer of choice for the energy...

Health insurance companies are a big part of the health care system at large, but what is their role? It’s easy to get frustrated as medical costs continue to rise and sometimes get confused about who plays what role in the healthcare system...

A recent article in a professional journal states that physicians aren't feeling valued in value-based care programs. How can we fix this problem? How do we help physicians feel valued in value-based care programs? Dr. Bharath Thankavel, BCBSTX...

Artificial intelligence, or AI, is a new technology that could make a big impact in health care. What exactly is artificial intelligence and how does it fit in the health care landscape? Vijay Murugappan, BCBSTX Vice President of Strategy and Value...