As estimated 86 million Americans have prediabetes, with most unaware of their condition. If left untreated, prediabetes progresses to type 2 diabetes, which is associated with heart disease, stroke, kidney failure, lower-limb amputations, and adult-onset blindness, in addition to the estimated $245 billion in annual medical costs and lost work and wages.
To confront this major challenge, Florida Blue, the state’s largest health plan with over 5 million members, introduced the National Diabetes Prevention Program as part of its health and wellness program Better You. The National Diabetes Prevention Program is led by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to prevent diabetes. For nearly five years, AHIP and several of its member health plans, including Florida Blue, have participated in the CDC program, where plans are testing different approaches to scale and sustain diabetes prevention programs that encourage their members to make healthy lifestyle changes.
Consistent with the CDC model, the Better You Diabetes Prevention Program is a structured, year-long program designed to help participants lose a minimum of 5 percent of body weight through healthy eating and increased physical activity. To help participants make and stick to healthy lifestyle changes, Florida Blue offers advice and coaching on nutrition and coping skills.
The program is available at convenient locations throughout the state, including at YMCA facilities, employer worksites, patient-centered medical homes, Florida Blue-operated community-based retail centers, and online. Florida Blue offers its Diabetes Prevention Program as a covered benefit for Medicare Advantage beneficiaries and as a wellness program for fully insured commercial group members.
Download the full case study to learn more about Florida Blue’s Diabetes Prevention Program and how it’s fulfilling the plan’s mission to help its communities achieve better health.