MIAMI, Dec. 21 -Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Florida announced it has signed an agreement with Baptist Health South Florida, bringing the Baptist Health hospitals in Miami-Dade County into NetworkBlue, the network of physicians, hospitals and ancillary providers that is the foundation for the BCBSF BlueOptions products. The agreement is effective Jan. 1, 2006.
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BlueOptions, with more than 300,000 members, and growing at a rate of 20,000 members per month, is the fastest-growing segment of BCBSF business. BlueOptions is a family of "consumer-driven" health plan designs that offer individual purchasers and employers great flexibility in creating benefit programs.
Baptist Health South Florida contracts with BCBSF for all lines of business in South Florida, including BlueOptions, BlueChoice (PPO), BlueCare (HMO), traditional indemnity insurance, and Medicare & More.
"We are delighted to continue our ongoing relationships with Baptist Health South Florida," said Dr. Barry Schwartz, vice president, network management, BCBSF. "We are particularly happy to be able to include these facilities in NetworkBlue."
The Baptist Health South Florida facilities bring to 54 the number of hospitals in Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties that participate in NetworkBlue. The new agreement includes Baptist Hospital, South Miami Hospital, Doctors Hospital and Homestead Hospital, as well as Baptist Outpatient Services (the neighborhood diagnostic and urgent care facilities), and Medical Arts Surgery Centers at Baptist and South Miami Hospitals.
Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Florida is a leader in Florida's health industry. BCBSF and its subsidiaries serve more than 7.2 million people. Since 1944, the company has been dedicated to meeting the diverse needs of all those it serves by offering an array of choices. BCBSF is a not-for-profit, policyholder-owned, tax-paying mutual company. Headquartered in Jacksonville, Fla., BCBSF is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association, an association of independent Blue Cross and Blue Shield companies. For more information concerning BCBSF, please see its Web site at http://www.bcbsfl.com .
