BCBSRI launches new wellness platform with Virgin Pulse

DR. RAJIV KUMAR said, “We are delighted to partner with BCBSRI to bring our wellbeing tools, programs and platform to the local Rhode Island community.” Kumar is president and chief medical officer, Virgin Pulse, and founder of ShapeUp. / COURTESY SHAPEUP
DR. RAJIV KUMAR said, “We are delighted to partner with BCBSRI to bring our wellbeing tools, programs and platform to the local Rhode Island community.” Kumar is president and chief medical officer, Virgin Pulse, and founder of ShapeUp. / COURTESY SHAPEUP

PROVIDENCE – Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Rhode Island has announced a new contract with Virgin Pulse to offer its members a customized wellness platform.

Beginning next year and continuing through 2017, all BCBSRI members will get access to Virgin Pulse’s global online solution to encourage, improve and sustain healthy habits.

Earlier this year, Virgin Pulse acquired Rhode Island-based health software startup ShapeUp Inc. Virgin Pulse designs technology to help employers cultivate healthier lifestyle habits for their employees. Part of Sir Richard Branson’s Virgin Group, the company will deliver customized wellness tools and offerings to all BCBSRI members.

“In the Virgin Pulse team, we found a partner that not only offered a dynamic set of tools, but that would also bring ideas to the table and engage with us in developing a wellness strategy,” Melissa Cummings, BCBSRI’s senior vice president and chief customer officer, said in a statement. “[BCBSRI] is committed to helping our members live healthier lives through better access to care and wellness resources, and we do it by pursuing partnerships that push the boundaries of a typical health plan.”

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With more than 450,000 members, BCBSRI is the first health insurer to make the Virgin Pulse platform available to all of its insureds, the company reported. The platform’s customized features will respond to individual preferences (for example, delivering more nutrition or fitness content based on user engagement); compatibility with all major wearable devices; the ability to create challenges to engage employees in meeting milestones; nutrition planning and tracking tools and health-risk assessments and quizzes, all in a mobile-driven platform. Employers may amend content to fit their respective cultures.

“We are delighted to partner with BCBSRI to bring our wellbeing tools, programs and platform to the local Rhode Island community,” Dr. Rajiv Kumar, president and chief medical officer, Virgin Pulse, and founder of ShapeUp, said in the jointly issued statement. “Rhode Island has always been incredibly supportive of the employee wellbeing space. I’m so pleased that Virgin Pulse will be partnering with the largest health plan in Rhode Island to bring healthy habits and positive change to our state.”

Analytics will allow employers to determine their wellness programs’ impact and levels of employee engagement. According to Virgin Pulse, robust employee participation in wellbeing programs improves workplace culture, increases productivity and boosts overall employee wellness through better nutrition, sleep and activity levels. In turn, such improvements can lower medical costs and improve business outcomes.

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