ALEXANDRIA — Twenty-three executives and board members from Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota recently rode a charter bus from Blue Cross headquarters in the Twin Cities to Alexandria, where they spent the day on a “listening tour” at Alomere.
According to Alomere’s leadership, Blue Cross traditionally meets with community leaders to have constructive conversations about how to work together on the future of health care. The goal of the visit was to listen and learn what is working and where changes may be needed.
The executives and board toured the facility and discussed the health care needs of communities in the region and similar communities outside the Twin Cities.
“We greatly appreciated the unique opportunity to meet with the board and leadership of Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota,” said Carl Vaagenes, CEO of Alomere, in a press release. “We both share a shared mission to strengthen and promote health and wellness to help people live the healthiest lives possible, and we were grateful to be given this platform to showcase our organization and the amazing team here at Alomere Health while discussing some of the challenges we face as an independent rural health system. Through transparency and open dialogue, such as we were able to have, we are more likely to find ways we can work together to better align health care financing and delivery for the benefit of the patients we are both privileged to serve.”
“It was a privilege to visit West Central Minnesota and speak directly with so many dedicated health professionals and Blue Cross members who truly care about the health of their communities,” said Dana Erickson, president and CEO of Blue Cross, in a press release. “This trip was a great opportunity to listen, learn and collaborate on ways we can all work to make the region even healthier. I think these conversations can serve as a model for similar trips Blue Cross plans to take to other parts of the state.”
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