CHICAGO, June 17 /PRNewswire/ -- At its second annual awards dinner Excellence in Health Care Leadership Awards, The AHIP Foundation presented its 2004 leadership awards to deserving individuals and member organizations who were honored for their outstanding contributions in health care.
2004 AHIP Ellis J. Bonner Community Leadership Awards
The AHIP Ellis J. Bonner Community Leadership Awards seek to showcase those organizations who demonstrate excellence in community outreach by identifying a specific problem in the community, designing innovative solutions, and leading community partnerships for success. The award is supported by grants from AstraZeneca and Aventis.
Named for the late Ellis James Bonner, this award is presented to the health insurance plans that best exemplify the community outreach and spirit that were an integral part of his life’s work. Mr. Bonner was a Board member of the Group Health Association of America and served as president and CEO of Detroit-based The Wellness Plan/Comprehensive Health Services beginning in 1980. Mr. Bonner was known throughout the health care community as a leader in ensuring that the underprivileged had access to quality health care. In addition, he was instrumental in developing what has evolved into the AHIP Foundation’s Minority Management Development Program -- a program that aids in the professional development of minority candidates as they pursue careers in health management.
* Award Winner -- Large/Affiliated Category: Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts - Boston, Massachusetts for its Jump Up and Go! program that promotes increased physical activity and nutritional habits in youth -- in their homes, at schools, in physicians’ offices, and in the community. * Award Winner -- Small/Independent Category: Health Plus PHSP, Inc. - Brooklyn, New York for its Keeping Kids in School Asthma Education Program that improves the quality of life of children with asthma in underserved communities through partnerships with the New York City Department of Education and other agencies. 2004 AHIP Innovators Award
Health care today is a study in contrasts. Beyond the daily headlines is another world -- one in which health plans and insurers are continually finding new and better ways to deliver health care services. Innovation is the key to effective patient care, to continual quality improvement, and to the design and implementation of health care financing and services that meet consumers’ changing needs and expectations. Innovation empowers us as a nation to make the most efficient use of our health care resources.
AHIP, in partnership with National Underwriter and Witt/Kieffer, is pleased to sponsor the 4th Annual Innovators Award, recognizing innovative leadership in the health plan and health insurance industry. The Innovators Award seeks to recognize industry leaders whose projects, products, services and contributions lead to true industry advancement.
* Award Winner: George DeVries -- Chairman, President & CEO, American Specialty Health (ASH), San Diego, California, for establishing ASH, the first national specialty benefits insurance company for complementary health care. * Honorable Mention: Jon M. Kingsdale, PhD -- Senior Vice President, Planning and Development, Kevin J. Counihan -- Senior Vice President, Sales, Marketing and Member Services, John Freedman, MD -- Medical Director for Clinical Quality and Informatics, all of Tufts Health Plan - Waltham, Massachusetts, for leading a team that provides consumers with comprehensive information on cost and quality choices in the health insurance plan’s provider network. 2004 Public Health Leadership Award Addressing Tobacco Control: Leading By Example
AHIP is pleased to announce a new award, the Public Health Leadership Award. This annual award honors one member health insurance plan for its outstanding efforts to improve the public’s health. For 2004, this award, Addressing Tobacco Control: Leading By Example, is sponsored by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, and recognizes one health insurance plan for its leadership efforts to help smokers quit and to prevent tobacco use among youth and/or adults.
* Award Winner: Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota -- St. Paul, Minnesota -- for creating and broadly disseminating a model approach to tobacco control. Through its collaboration with partners across Minnesota, this year’s honoree has contributed to an overall 10% decrease in tobacco use among adults. * Honorable Mention: Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield -- Denver, Colorado -- for leading a collaborative of local health insurance plans and other health care stakeholders in developing comprehensive resources on tobacco cessation and counseling for physicians and their staff. America’s Health Insurance Plans -- Providing Health Benefits to More Than 200 Million Americans
America’s Health Insurance Plans
CONTACT: Mohit Ghose of America’s Health Insurance Plans,+1-202-778-8494
Web site: http://www.ahip.net/
