Elevance Well being will launch a brand new program that can present smartphones with limitless information, discuss and textual content for no value to some Medicaid members, the corporate introduced Wednesday at CES 2024 in Las Vegas. It would assist sufferers entry digital healthcare instruments which will have been beforehand inaccessible, Elevance mentioned.
Indianapolis, Indiana-based Elevance Well being is a well being insurer that serves about 117 million individuals. The corporate’s new program is in partnership with Samsung, Verizon, AT&T and T-Cell. It’s supported with funding from the Federal Communications Fee’s Inexpensive Connectivity Program. This system will likely be obtainable in a number of states in 2024 and goals to achieve “tons of of 1000’s of members inside Elevance Well being’s affiliated Medicaid plans,” in line with a information launch.
Throughout a hearth chat at CES, Elevance President and CEO Gail Boudreaux harassed the significance of partnership in addressing points with healthcare entry. This program helps obtain that.
“[This is] a partnership that you just wouldn’t consider usually,” Boudreaux mentioned. “It’s exterior of healthcare per se, however I feel there’s a giant alternative to make that digital divide smaller throughout populations.”
The smartphones given to Medicaid members will permit them to achieve their Medicaid well being plan care crew, which might tackle their well being wants. They’ll additionally obtain instructional supplies that designate the best way to use the system. As well as, members will be capable of contact a customer support name middle for assist if required.
“Elevated availability of digital applied sciences, comparable to a smartphone, in addition to quick, dependable web is important to supporting an individual’s well being journey,” mentioned Omid Toloui, vp of innovation at Elevance Well being, in a press release. “We imagine the digital instruments and the customized, curated expertise supplied by this program may help enhance well being, make healthcare extra inexpensive, and serve individuals extra equitably.”
This system comes at a time of immense want for a lot of People. A couple of quarter of U.S. adults with family incomes beneath $30,000 a 12 months do not need a smartphone, and 43% don’t have dwelling broadband web providers, in line with Elevance. Half of those people blame the price of connectivity for these points.
“The shortage of enough web connectivity and know-how entry stays a big barrier for a lot of – rising well being inequities,” mentioned Kurt Small, president of Elevance Well being’s Medicaid enterprise, in a press release. “This program goals to straight tackle this problem and helps enhance the well being of the individuals we serve.”
To take part in this system, people will work with their Elevance-affiliated Medicaid plan to find out in the event that they’re eligible.
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