Early Evaluation of the Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts Multilevel Strategy to Advance Health Equity

For the first part of the project, the team will interview alternative quality contract (AQC) participants to explore the effects of the pay-for equity requirements and learn about barriers to and facilitators of incorporating equity into value-based contracts. The interviews will take place as new requirements are being implemented and at least six months after. Second, the team will compare performance on data collected before and after pay-for-equity was implemented to assess whether disparities across race and ethnicity were reduced. Lastly, the team will interview representatives of large employers, payers, and other stakeholders to hear their perspectives on how BCBSMA’s investments have affected health equity in the past two years.