Blue Cross Blue Shield of Arizona is looking to the payer-provider example set by Kaiser Permanente as the Phoenix-based company expands its primary care subsidiary Prosano Health Solutions, the Phoenix Business Journal reported Nov. 20.
BCBSAZ opened its first Prosano facility in Maricopa County this year, with several more locations opening in the Phoenix area in 2024. Prosano launched in January for BCBSAZ employees, with 1,800 employees and their dependents enrolling.
A new health plan, the BlueSignature Prosano PPO plan, will be offered to employer groups in 2024 and provide access to the Prosano care centers. The new care centers offer access to a primary care team, behavioral health practitioners, lab services, same-day appointments, virtual options, and a selection of the most needed prescriptions. An expansion to Tucson is planned for 2025.
BCBSAZ also plans to open a Prosano clinic for the thousands of employees at Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. in Phoenix, which recently chose BCBSAZ over Aetna as its health benefits provider.
"I arrived here five years ago and even before I joined these discussions were taking place," Beth Ginzinger told the Journal. Ms. Ginzinger is Prosano's president and chief transformation officer at BCBSAZ.
"The idea is to be involved directly with the patient from when an initial visit is booked to handling lab work on site, booking referrals with in-network specialists, and discussing which other providers might be used for surgeries and hospitalization, if needed," she told the Journal. "Kaiser does it well, and we're looking at [their] best practices. One of the biggest parts of the Prosano experience is that the clinics will not have any co-pays for patients."