Blue Cross Blue Shield Association Report Finds Link between a Population's Health and a Growing Economy, Higher Incomes and Lower Unemployment
Wednesday, April 5th, 2017
The Blue Cross Blue Shield Association released the second edition of a Moody's Analytics report that finds a direct link between a population's health and a growing economy, higher incomes and lower unemployment.
Moody's Analytics utilized the Blue Cross Blue Shield Health Index – a first-of-its-kind measurement of health for nearly every county in America. The BCBS Health Index identifies the health conditions with the greatest impact on the commercially insured and – paired with an analysis by Moody's Analytics – how those conditions impact the economic well-being of communities.
The BCBS Health Index, powered by de-identified data from more than 40 million commercially insured members of Blue Cross and Blue Shield companies, finds that five conditions nationally are responsible for 30 percent of the adverse health of this population. Those conditions are: depression, anxiety and other mood disorders; hypertension; diabetes; high cholesterol; and substance use disorders.
An analysis of the BCBS Health Index by Moody's Analytics also found a direct link between healthy people and a healthy economy with healthier counties having lower unemployment and higher incomes. When compared to counties with a median BCBS Health Index result, counties within the top 10 percent had:
- A per capita income of $3,700 higher
- A 10-year economic growth of 3.5 percent higher
- An unemployment rate half a point lower
"Blue Cross and Blue Shield companies are committed to transforming our health care system and the health of our nation through actionable data," said Scott Serota, president and CEO for BCBSA. "This Index uses the breadth and depth of BCBS data to bring critical health insights to policymakers, community leaders, business leaders and health care professionals, helping them further focus efforts to improve their communities' health."
"The BCBS Health Index shows that health and the economy's performance go hand in hand," said Mark Zandi, chief economist of Moody's Analytics. "Policymakers can use the BCBS Health Index to better understand how health outcomes impact economic growth."
