Blue Cross, Blue Shield Designated Hospitals Decreased C-section Rates, Improved Health of Mothers, Children

PITTSBURGH, Pennsylvania, July 3 -- Highmark, a health insurance company, issued the following news release:

The Blue Cross Blue Shield Association (BCBSA) reports that Blue Distinction(R) Centers for Maternity Care -- including 55 hospitals in Pennsylvania, Delaware and West Virginia -- achieved a 32 percent lower cesarean section (C-section) rate for first-time mothers compared to hospitals that are not in the program.

The Blue Distinction Centers average C-section rate of 23.7 percent surpasses the Healthy People 2020 federal goal to reduce C-section rates for first-time, low-risk mothers in the U.S. to 23.9 percent by 2020.

In order to qualify for a Blue Distinction Centers for Maternity Care designation, a hospital has to achieve a C-section rate of 27 percent or lower, among other patient health outcomes and quality measures that are reviewed. Compared to other hospitals, Blue Distinction Centers also have 70 percent fewer early (37-39 weeks) elective deliveries and 53 percent fewer episiotomies.

"We are fortunate to have so many hospitals in our service area with the Blue Distinction Centers for Maternity Care designation," said Rhonda Moore-Johnson, MD, senior medical director for Highmark Inc. "Even in today's modern hospitals, giving birth can be risky for the mother. The Maternity Care designation helps ensure consumers that the hospital they chose provides the best, highest quality care."

In addition to higher complications for babies and mothers, C-sections that are not medically necessary also add cost to the health care system. For commercially insured Blue Cross and Blue Shield (BCBS) members, the average cost difference between vaginal and cesarean deliveries was $4,157 ($13,325 versus $17,482), according to a Blue Cross Blue Shield Health of America Report.

Nearly four million babies are born in the U.S. annually, making childbirth the most common reason for hospitalization. BCBSA announced the national designation in 2016 to help prospective parents find hospitals that deliver quality, affordable maternity care. Today, BCBS companies across the nation have recognized more than 1,080 hospitals for quality maternity care.

The Blue Distinction Centers for Maternity Care program selection criteria also considers a hospital's implementation of consistent maternal safety bundles developed by the Council on Patient Safety in Women's Health Care, a multi-stakeholder group, in which the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) is a core partner, that drives cultural change to improve women's health. The bundles consist of best practices for providers to implement, to prevent or respond promptly to common pregnancy-related conditions, such as hemorrhage and hypertension, which can often lead to adverse outcomes or death.

Since 2006, the Blue Distinction Specialty Care program has recognized hospitals for delivering quality specialty care safely and effectively based on objective measures developed with input from the medical community. It has helped patients find quality providers for their specialty care needs in the areas of bariatric surgery, cardiac care, cancer care, knee and hip replacements, spine surgery and transplants. Research shows that, compared to other facilities, those designated as Blue Distinction Centers demonstrate better quality and improved outcomes for patients. On average, Blue Distinction Centers+ are also 20 percent more cost-efficient than non-Blue Distinction Center+ designated health care facilities.

For more information about the program, and to see a complete list of facilities designated as Blue Distinction Centers and Blue Distinction Centers+ for Maternity Care, please visit www.bcbs.com/bluedistinction.