Health insurance providers helped vaccinate more than 2 million seniors against COVID-19 in under 100 days as a result of the Vaccine Community Connectors (VCC) program. The VCC leveraged data on social determinants of health to improve equity and break down barriers to vaccine access for Americans in the most at-risk communities.
- Mass participation: More than 50 health insurance providers are now participating in this public-private partnership, launched by AHIP and the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association. Lessons learned will help health insurance providers connect more effectively with communities to tackle other pressing health challenges.
- Disparities: “Throughout the pandemic, racial and geographic gaps in our nation’s health care system have shown disproportionate harm to many Black, Hispanic, rural, and other underserved communities,” said Tonya Adams, national spokesperson for the VCC program and senior vice president of customer experience and operations at Regence BlueCross BlueShield. “Our collaborative effort reached and vaccinated more than 2 million seniors – but we’re not stopping there. In addition to continuing COVID-19 vaccinations, health insurance providers will continue to break down long-standing barriers to access for other vaccines, as well as to help people in these communities manage their chronic diseases.”
- Health initiative: The VCC program was initiated to encourage the vaccination of people over the age of 65 in socially vulnerable communities. As organizations like the Association for Community Affiliated Plans have joined the VCC program, these efforts have extended to encompass Medicaid enrollees and other underserved populations.
- Positive investments: Health insurance providers continue to invest to encourage every eligible American to get vaccinated to protect themselves and their communities from this deadly virus. By scaling personalized solutions, health insurance providers helped break down barriers to vaccine access by covering vaccines free of charge to individuals, answering questions about vaccine effectiveness and cost, providing transportation to clinics, facilitating in-home vaccinations, conducting targeted education, and more.
- Overcoming health challenges: “The COVID-19 vaccines are saving lives and are our best tool for stopping this pandemic so all of us can enjoy the moments we’ve missed over the past year. That’s why health insurance providers have been working with federal, state, and local leaders to connect Americans with vaccines, especially in hard-hit and often hard-to-reach communities as quickly and equitably as possible,” said Matt Eyles, AHIP president, and CEO. “Along the way, we’ve also gained a real insight into how we continue this work to overcome other pressing health challenges. While we can’t fix health inequities overnight, we must learn the lessons this pandemic has taught us to deliver more focused, impactful policies that improve health equity.”