There is a strong link between education and health, and adults with higher education attainment often live healthier and longer lives. Recognizing this, Blue Shield of California Promise Health Plan (Blue Shield Promise) announced last week that it is working with the GED Testing Service to help members earn a General Educational Development (GED) diploma for no cost. A GED credential is a high school equivalency diploma.
“We know that a lack of education is a social barrier to health and an equity issue for many people trying to improve their lives,” said Jennifer Schirmer, vice president of Blue Shield Promise, in an interview. “And we really feel that by removing that barrier and offering this program, members that obtain a high school equivalency diploma can improve their career prospects and opportunities that otherwise they may not have either considered or even been qualified for.”
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Blue Shield Promise is a managed care organization that offers Medi-Cal, California’s Medicaid program. It has more than 530,000 members across Los Angeles and San Diego counties.
By working with the GED Testing Service, Blue Shield Promise is offering the GEDWorks program to its Medi-Cal members. GEDWorks allows employers, health plans and nonprofit organizations to sponsor their employees and members to receive their GED.
Blue Shield Promise members can register online and gain access to GED study materials in both English and Spanish. They can also receive online support through one-on-one tutoring and practice tests. In addition, they can work with personal advisors, who can coach and support students. Most people complete the GEDWorks program in four months. Participants can receive career and college planning services as well.
“Earning a GED credential can change a learner’s life trajectory, helping them develop their skills and confidence,” said Vicki Greene, president of GED Testing Service and senior vice president of Pearson’s Workforce Skills Division for the Americas, in a statement. “Our GEDWorks program is designed to meet the unique needs of working adults who aspire to earn their GED credentials, and our results show that these participants are 39% more likely to earn their diplomas than students who study on their own.”
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Those who participate in the program must be at least 18 years old and cannot have a high school diploma or equivalent. They also can’t be currently enrolled in high school.
Blue Shield Promise claims to be the first health plan in California to have partnered with the GED Testing Service to offer a GED credential to members. However, UCare, a nonprofit health plan with more than 260,000 Medicaid members in Minnesota, launched a GEDWorks program in 2019, according to the GEDWorks website. Blue Shield Promise is the ninth Medicaid plan provider to add this type of program in the last couple of years, GED Testing Service told MedCity News.
Schirmer said that Blue Shield Promise chose to launch this program because managed care organizations should be responsible for the social drivers of health, and education is a key part of that.
“Lack of education leads to low income and low income leads to lack of transportation,” Schirmer said. “Lack of transportation leads to or has the potential to lead to housing insecurity and food insecurity. … So we really felt that education was a root cause to a lot of those other social determinants of health drivers like housing and food insecurity.”
She added that there is a common misconception that Medicaid patients are unable to access digital programs, such as the GEDWorks program. In fact, a recent Boston Consulting Group study found that 91% of Medicaid members have internet either in or out of their homes, and 9% have internet access both in and out of their homes. The GEDWorks staff will also help people find libraries and other community resources if they don’t have access to the internet.
To track the success of the program, Blue Shield Promise will be following employment rates, as well as if members continue their education, according to Schirmer.
Photo: krisanapong detraphiphat, Getty Images
