The Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association and Walgreens announced Wednesday a massive partnership to educate the public on the health care reform law.
The Blue Cross companies and Walgreens said they are opening LearnAboutReform.com and distributing brochures in nearly all Walgreens stores across the country.
The effort, which takes advantage of both companies’ nationwide presence, is aimed at providing a simple, nonpartisan explanation of the law. Walgreens will place the brochures near its pharmacy departments.
The literature plainly describes the law, the requirement to buy health insurance, the new requirements for insurance companies, key dates and links to Blue Cross insurance websites.
The partnership shows the strong role the private sector could have in explaining the health care reform law to a public that largely does not understand it.
“There’s a lot of confusion, a lot of questions and it’ll take a tremendous collaborative effort to make sure people have the information they need to make informed choices,” said Brad Fluegel, a Walgreens senior vice president and chief strategy officer.
As many as 7 million Americans are expected to get private health insurance from Blue Cross and other companies through the exchanges next year. Enrollment begins on Oct. 1.
“Our partnership with Walgreens is another example of our commitment to ensuring that all Americans have the tools they need to understand these changes and access affordable health insurance coverage that meets their needs,” said Maureen Sullivan, senior vice president of strategic services at BCBSA.
A BCBSA spokesman said the effort was entirely driven by the two companies and was not coordinated with any outside groups promoting the law.
Several of the Blue Cross plans already have started aggressive education efforts around enrollment.
Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Vermont has hosted more than 40 community meetings about the state’s exchange.