With the pandemic, every stakeholder is facing new uncertainties. BHI is committed to providing data-driven insights that help health plans, employers, providers, and members understand the economic and public policy impacts of COVID-19.

COVID-19 Descriptive Analytics
We leverage clinical informatics and data science to describe and predict the impacts of COVID-19. Our descriptive analytics have revealed noteworthy data trends in preventative evaluation and management (E&M) services and telemedicine.

Whyzen Analytics COVID-19 Reporting
Whyzen Analytics was named a quarterfinalist in the 2020 UCSF Digital Health Awards for its excellence in COVID-19 tracking and reporting. These new tools within our account-level analytics and reporting solution help plans, employers, and brokers adjust healthcare benefits, interventions, and support programs to better serve high-risk populations.

BHI's Long-Term COVID-19 Research
We are working with some of the nation's leading health economists and researchers to study the economic, social, and public health implications of COVID-19.

While there have been many hypotheses about the impact of the coronavirus on healthcare costs and utilization, BHI’s analysis of paid medical and pharmacy claims from over 200 million commercially insured Americans offers substantiated proof of the latest healthcare trends.

BHI's most recent data brief (released December 2020) looks at COVID's impacts on preventive services and telehealth utilization through September 2020. Two of the findings are summarized here. Access the full study using the button below.

* January – August have a one-month runout; September has no runout.

In January and February of 2020, there was little difference in the utilization of preventive services among commercially insured individuals compared to 2019. In March, April, and May, given shelter-in-place orders and intensified fears of infection, use of preventive services decreased dramatically.

* January – August have a one-month runout; September has no runout.

Conversely, the use of telehealth skyrocketed. BHI noted a 50-fold increase in the utilization of virtual healthcare services by commercially insured individuals from March 2019 to March 2020, and a 100-fold increase from April 2019 to April 2020. While telehealth utilization began to decline in late summer, the healthcare industry continues to prepare for a much larger reliance on virtual care options.

As fourth quarter 2020 claims data becomes available, BHI will continue to assess the impact of COVID-19 on preventive services and telehealth utilization. Examining these trends with the inclusion of data from the second wave of the pandemic will help to quantify the longer-term, lasting impact on population health and healthcare service delivery in the U.S.

In these difficult times, actionable information is priceless. Reliable analytics can help employers, health plans, and brokers protect their employees and businesses. Whyzen Analytics was named a quarterfinalist in the 2020 UCSF Digital Health Awards for its excellence in COVID-19 tracking and reporting. Its analytic and reporting functionality helps healthcare decision makers better allocate care management resources for targeted and impactful interventions.

Mary Henderson, BHI senior vice-president of Product Development and Account Management discusses how our company is:

• Using clinical informatics and data science to describe and predict COVID-19
• Designing peer-reviewed studies to better understand COVID-19
• Using our Whyzen Analytics solution to help health plans, employers, and brokers explore and address account-level risk