May 17, 2018
At the end of April, Premera began notifying primary care providers about their Medicare Advantage customers who’ve had recent fractures and need a bone mineral density test.
We encourage primary care providers to contact these at-risk patients and offer to schedule a DEXA scan, which can identify osteoporosis. If primary care providers are unable to schedule a scan, we’ll offer our customer an in-home bone mineral density test through our vendor, MedXM. Test results will be sent to each customer’s primary care provider via letter or fax.
Why we’re notifying providers
Osteoporosis affects 10 million Americans. Despite its prevalence, less than 50 percent of cases are diagnosed and less than 40 percent of seniors with a fracture get screened.
This initiative is part of Premera’s commitment to the quality standards outlined by the National Committee on Quality Assurance (NCQA). If you have any questions, email ProviderClinicalConsulting@Premera.com.