EmblemHealth Awarded Prestigious Health Equity Accreditation from NCQA

Contact:

EmblemHealth Public Relations Office | Email: press@emblemhealth.com

NEW YORK – September 5, 2023 – EmblemHealth, one of the nation’s largest nonprofit health insurers, has earned Health Equity Accreditation from the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) for its commercial HMO and POS products, Medicaid HMO products, and Medicare HMO products.  EmblemHealth is the first insurer in New York State to receive accreditation across three product lines.

The NCQA Health Equity Accreditation program gives healthcare organizations an actionable framework for improving health equity and focuses on the foundational work of:  

• Building an internal culture that supports the organization’s external health equity work,
• Collecting data that help the organization create and offer language services and provider networks mindful of individuals’ cultural and linguistic needs and
• Identifying opportunities to reduce health inequities and improve care.

“We are committed to reducing health inequities in our members and the communities we serve. This award recognizes our work in meeting New Yorkers where they are in their personal health journey and closing gaps in care,” said Abdou Bah, Senior Vice President and Chief Health Equity Officer at EmblemHealth. “We’re taking a multipronged approach to this work with the goal of reducing health disparities in underserved populations, leading to better health outcomes and improved member satisfaction.”

EmblemHealth works to address health equity issues directly with its members and through their doctors. EmblemHealth has Neighborhood Care locations strategically located in ethnically diverse communities and within AdvantageCare Physicians, a primary and specialty care practice serving half a million patients across the greater New York City area. The Neighborhood Care sites offer many services, including in-person assistance and language translation services, onsite and virtual health and wellness classes, and personalized connections to community resources, health care providers, and other EmblemHealth resources. The centers are staffed with Customer Care Navigators who represent their communities, many of whom are bilingual. EmblemHealth collects information such as preferred language, cultural and religious preferences, and health literacy as it applies to medication and shares the data with the member’s health care provider. This information helps doctors treat their patients, close gaps in care, and work with EmblemHealth to address social determinants of health.

“This rigorous NCQA Health Equity accreditation process validates the path-breaking work that our team is doing to remove the intractable social barriers to accessing health care services,” said Karen Ignagni, EmblemHealth’s CEO. “We are proud to be the first plan to obtain this important designation in New York for multiple product lines.”

Learn more about EmblemHealth at emblemhealth.com.

About EmblemHealth

EmblemHealth is one of the nation’s largest nonprofit health insurers, with 3.2 million members and an 80-year legacy of serving New York’s communities. The company offers a full range of commercial and government-sponsored health plans to employers, individuals, and families, as well as convenient community resources. As a market leader in value-based care, EmblemHealth partners with top doctors and hospitals to deliver quality, affordable care. For more information, visit emblemhealth.com.

About NCQA

NCQA is a private, nonprofit organization dedicated to improving health care quality. NCQA accredits and certifies a wide range of health care organizations. It also recognizes clinicians and practices in key areas of performance. NCQA’s Healthcare Effectiveness Data and Information Set (HEDIS®) is the most widely used performance measurement tool in health care. In recognition for its leadership in diversity, equity and inclusion, NCQA has won the Excellence in Diversity Award from the Chesapeake Human Resources Association. NCQA’s website (ncqa.org) contains information to help consumers, employers and others make more-informed health care choices. NCQA can be found online at ncqa.org, on Twitter @ncqa, and on LinkedIn at linkedin.com/company/ncqa.