Blue Distinction Provider Performance Measurement and Improvement Program was launched in 2005 to encourage consistent quality of patient care. It began with a hospital measurement initiative and will eventually include physicians.

Through this program Blue Cross and Blue Shield companies work with network hospitals, using  quality-of-care data to provide an open, consistent approach to gathering and sharing quality information among physicians and other medical professionals. For instance, the program uses information from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) and the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), focusing on the appropriateness of care for common conditions such as heart disease and pneumonia, as well as surgical infection prevention and patient safety.

View more information on the measures used in the Blue Distinction Provider Performance Measurement and Improvement Program.