Blue Cross And Blue Shield Of Florida Launches Recognizing Physician Excellence Program

JACKSONVILLE, Fla., Oct. 7 /PRNewswire/ -- With a focus on promoting preventive health and managing chronic illness, as well as greater patient satisfaction with their doctors, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Florida, Inc. (BCBSF) is launching a program to recognize and reward physicians who demonstrate a commitment to quality care and excellent service.

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The Recognizing Physician Excellence(SM) (RPE) Program will reward physicians who excel in serving patients. Eligible doctors will be rewarded on several criteria, including patient satisfaction, clinical quality and efficiency, and administrative efficiency.

"It is widely accepted that preventive medicine and appropriate care of chronic conditions are key to maintaining health and wellness," said Robert Forster, M.D., vice president, health care services, and chief medical officer, BCBSF. "By recognizing and rewarding physicians who offer patients high-quality service, Floridians will experience better health care and improved quality of life."

The program will initially be available to family practice, general practice, internal medicine, pediatric medicine, obstetrics and gynecology physicians who meet eligibility requirements.

A focus of the RPE Program is to reward physicians who encourage patients to receive appropriate health screenings and to take other preventive measures to maintain health. Such measures include mammograms and pap smears to aid in the prevention of breast cancer and cervical cancer, as well as cholesterol management to aid in the prevention of heart disease.

For those patients with chronic diseases such as diabetes or asthma, physicians are encouraged to be proactive in providing care to manage the illnesses. Maintaining regular patient contact to monitor health conditions, prescribing eye exams for diabetics and long-term medications for asthmatics are examples of measures for quality patient care.

Physicians can also improve office efficiency and receive added rewards for filing insurance claims and other administrative information electronically, as well as updating directory information. These innovations enhance the accurate processing of claims and permit BCBSF and its members to have access to the most current provider information.

Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Florida (BCBSF) is a leader in Florida's health industry. BCBSF and its subsidiaries serve more than 6.6 million Floridians. Celebrating its 60th anniversary this year, the company has been dedicated since 1944 to meeting the diverse needs of all those it serves by offering an array of choices. Headquartered in Jacksonville, Fla., BCBSF is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association, an association of independent Blue Cross and Blue Shield companies. For more information concerning BCBSF, please see its Web site at http://www.bcbsfl.com/ .

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CONTACT: Mark Wright of Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Florida,+1-904-905-6935, or mobile, +1-904-233-3481

Web site: http://www.bcbsfl.com/