Looking Back, Moving Forward

NEWARK, New Jersey, April 26 -- The Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey issued the following news release:

In 2018, Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey continued to make important strides in transforming health care in New Jersey. We expanded our value-based approaches to promote the delivery of quality health care, created stronger connections with our members through new technology tools, and continued to offer new and more valuable services built around our members' most pressing health care needs.

The common thread behind these initiatives is our recently adopted mission statement. Everyone at Horizon BCBSNJ - from Board members to every level of manager and employee - is aligned around our new mission:

"We empower our members to achieve their best health by leading with strength, integrity and innovation to generate substantial improvements in health care quality, affordability and member experience.

Kevin Conlin

At the heart of this statement is a simple but inspiring idea: that all of us at Horizon BCBSNJ can play vital roles in helping our 3.7 million members achieve their best health. You can draw a straight line between that commitment and many of the actions we took in 2018.

At the heart of this statement is a simple but inspiring idea: that all of us at Horizon BCBSNJ can play vital roles in helping our 3.7 million members achieve their best health. You can draw a straight line between that commitment and many of the actions we took in 2018.

We worked hard to enhance care and make it more affordable for our members. We reduced premiums by an average of 7 percent on our individual market products during last year's open enrollment period. We also made a commitment early in the year to use a significant part of a one-time federal tax refund to help our members. This included a one-time $132 million distribution to eligible members and $125 million in significant investments in initiatives to drive improvements in our members' health.

These investments will expand programs and platforms that connect members with important behavioral and mental health services, promote important programs that address social determinants of health, and enrich our members' experience through new technology tools. Our Horizon Blue App is a one-stop-shop where members can view claims, access information about coverage and link to our Get Care App, where they can find health care professionals, schedule appointments, chat with a nurse or see a doctor online.

Collaborating with community leaders across the state, we are addressing the social factors that can prevent our members from achieving their best health - issues like transportation, housing and the availability of healthy food. One such program, our Newark Initiative in our home town, improved health outcomes and also cut the total cost of care by 25 percent within a 12-month period.

In 2018, we also redoubled our efforts to fight opioid abuse, which remains a significant crisis in New Jersey as well as across the nation. We expanded our prevention and community outreach efforts, partnering with organizations as diverse as the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, the Milken Institute and RWJBarnabas Health's Institute for Prevention. The Horizon Foundation for New Jersey was deeply involved in these efforts - completing a two-year series of "Knock Out Opioid Abuse" Town Hall meetings across our state with the Partnership for a Drug-Free New Jersey, and making grants to Community in Crisis for community-level education programs.

All of these efforts underscore our deep commitment to New Jersey. Horizon BCBSNJ is the largest and oldest health insurer in the state and the only New Jersey-based health plan with nearly 5,500 employees dedicated to serving our members with excellence every day.

Thanks to their dedication, Horizon BCBSNJ was named by Insure.com's national customer satisfaction survey as the Best Health Insurance Company for 2018. And for the second year in a row, J.D. Power recognized us for "Highest Member Satisfaction among Commercial Health Plans in New Jersey."

As we enter our 87th year of service, we are proud of these achievements. But we also recognize the significant work that lies ahead if we are to truly empower our members to achieve their best health. Our new mission statement reflects the commitment of everyone at Horizon BCBSNJ to work together to generate substantial improvements in health care quality, affordability and member experience, and do all of this with strength, integrity and innovation.