BCBS Health Services Research Overview

• Introduction
• Evaluation Guidelines for Grant Proposals Submitted in Collaboration with BCBS Foundation on Health Care
• Examples of HSR Topics of Interest to Health Plans and Public and Private Funding Organizations
• Definition of Health Services Research
• Printable Brochure (PDF)

Introduction

The Blue Cross and Blue Shield Foundation on Health Care (Foundation) Board of Directors approved the creation of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Health Services Research (HSR) Advisory Council, a group of external health services researchers and Blue Cross and Blue Shield Plan executives, that provide feedback and strategic direction on health services research to the Foundation. The Blue Cross and Blue Shield HSR Alliance is a group of health services researchers from eleven Blue Cross and Blue Shield Plans and two external research organizations.

The Foundation leverages and promotes the strengths of organized multi-plan research to compete for external funding. The Foundation has recognized a unique opportunity to contribute to the public good by focusing on evidence and population based studies as the most effective way to influence health outcomes, health policy and the quality of health services and delivery.

The Blue Cross and Blue Shield HSR Advisory Council identified three goals that this research agenda addresses:

• Increase HSR capacity within and across individual health plans and partners collaborating on multi-site studies.
• Develop a research agenda that strikes a balance between health policy/operational issues and academic/funder-based priorities.
• Identify government, academic and private partners whose interests align with the Foundation.

This section focuses on the goals identified by the HSR Advisory Council. It also serves as a set of guiding principles for decision making as the Foundation moves forward in its pursuit of external funding for HSR projects and activities. Outlined in this section are the Foundation's current strategies in pursuing health services research grant support, core criteria for HSR projects that are supported by the Foundation and priorities for Foundation decision making.