Connecticut Health Foundation Selects FAIR Health to Develop Health Insurance Literacy and Cost Transparency Mobile App

NEW YORK, Oct. 27, 2015 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Connecticut Health Foundation awarded a grant to FAIR Health to develop a mobile app to help improve health insurance literacy, increase consumer engagement in healthcare and promote transparency in medical and dental costs among Connecticut residents. 

The development of the app comes at a time when dramatic changes across the healthcare landscape are having major implications for individual consumers. The advent of public and private healthcare exchanges, the growth of health plans with increased member cost-sharing and narrow networks and the overall drive toward value in healthcare are requiring patients to make complex healthcare decisions and to become more aware of the costs associated with their care.

Available in both English and Spanish, the app will include a feature that enables consumers to estimate the costs of medical and dental procedures received throughout Connecticut.  Cost data also will be included for New York, Massachusetts and Rhode Island to assist Connecticut residents who seek care in neighboring states.  The app also will provide educational materials that explain the fundamentals of health coverage as well as state-specific healthcare resources.

In addition to the app's development, the 15-month program titled, Engage Health CT, entails an information-gathering process that will use market research to shape and enhance the program. This effort is intended to make the app culturally relevant and to encourage its use among insured and uninsured consumers.

The grant also funds collaborations with community-based organizations particularly those that serve the Latino community, and also to health exchange navigators in order to disseminate information about the app, particularly its Spanish-language capability, and to promote its use.

FAIR Health President Robin Gelburd stated, "Research continues to show that most consumers, especially the newly insured, lack the necessary understanding of health insurance basics required to make informed healthcare decisions—whether selecting a plan or managing healthcare and related costs.  FAIR Health is honored to be given the opportunity to advance healthcare literacy and decision making among Connecticut residents."

"The Foundation is proud to support FAIR Health's program to advance health insurance literacy and consumer engagement through a mobile interface," said Tiffany Donelson, CT Health vice president of program. "Indeed, the program creatively addresses the widespread need for Connecticut residents to access critical cost information that will enable them to participate as informed healthcare decision makers, thereby maximizing the impact of health coverage expansion under the healthcare reform law. This effort will help to progress-health equity across the state."

The new app is driven by charge information based on FAIR Health's database of over 19 billion claims for privately billed medical and dental procedures dating back to 2002.  FAIR Health receives data from contributors that collectively insure more than 150 million individuals in the private healthcare system.  FAIR Health's English-language consumer app, FH^® Cost Lookup; English-language website (www.fairhealthconsumer.org) and Spanish-language website (www.consumidor.fairhealth.org) also were developed from this robust database.

About FAIR Health

FAIR Health is a national, independent, nonprofit corporation dedicated to bringing transparency to healthcare costs and health insurance information through comprehensive data products, consumer resources and health systems research support.  FAIR Health uses its database of billions of privately billed medical and dental services to power an award-winning free website available in English and Spanish and to create data products serving a wide range of healthcare stakeholders. Government officials, employers, brokers, hospitals, medical facilities, doctors, insurers and others use FAIR Health data for a variety of purposes.  For more information, visit www.fairhealth.org.

About the Connecticut Health Foundation

The Connecticut Health Foundation (CT Health) is the state's largest independent health philanthropy dedicated to improving lives by changing health systems. Since it was established in 1999, the foundation has supported innovative grantmaking, public policy research, technical assistance and convening to achieve its mission – to improve the health of the people of Connecticut. Over the past 16 years, CT Health has awarded grants totaling close to $57 million in 45 cities and towns throughout the state.

 In 2013, CT Health announced a five-year strategic plan that made expanding health equity the foundation's central focus. For CT Health, health equity means helping more people gain access to better care, especially people of color and underserved populations. Better care includes physical, mental, and oral health.

For more information about the foundation, please visit www.cthealth.org.

CONTACT: Anayo Afolabi, 646-741-9029, [email protected]

SOURCE FAIR Health