Blue Shield of California Helps Members Connect to Physicians Online with Office Ally's New Patient Portal

SAN FRANCISCO & VANCOUVER, Wash.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Blue Shield of California and Office Ally today announced the launch of a new Internet portal that will let Blue Shield members arrange online "e-visit" consultations with physicians, view lab results and immunization records, order prescription refills, get appointment reminders, and more. The portal, called Patient Ally, is now available to all Blue Shield of California members at PatientAlly.com.

Developed by Vancouver, Washington-based Office Ally, Patient Ally provides a new level of convenience and value for physicians and patients. "Blue Shield of California is committed to providing easy access to high-quality health care at a reasonable price, and Office Ally helps us to achieve that goal," noted Jim Orchison, director of network design and programs for Blue Shield of California. "We've made this new online patient portal free to all our members and to all the physicians in our network -- and we think that it will boost both efficiency and satisfaction."

Roughly 92 percent of all Independent Practice Associations (IPAs) in California already use Office Ally's clearinghouse for claims submissions. With the addition of Blue Shield's 3.4 million members, more than one-third of all Californians' medical records will now be stored in Office Ally's secure, HIPAA-compliant patient registry.

Patient Ally is designed to work easily into providers' daily routines. It enables physicians with Electronic Health Records (EHR) to continually update their patient records, and allows those without EHRs to easily move to an electronic form of patient record.

"We think the benefits of a patient portal for members, health plans, and providers are just phenomenal," said Brian O'Neill, president and CEO of Office Ally. "Blue Shield is at the forefront of national efforts to improve health outcomes and the lives of members, and to control costs through greater use of technology. Patient Ally is helping Blue Shield to achieve their cost and quality goals by creating the circle of easy communication between patients, providers, and payers."

There is no registration necessary to access appointment schedulers, prescription refills or other basic services. However, to utilize the e-visit feature, patients and providers must sign up with Patient Ally. For more information or to register, visit www.patientally.com or call (888) 747-4255.

About Blue Shield of California

Blue Shield of California, an independent member of the Blue Shield Association, is a not-for-profit health plan dedicated to providing Californians with access to high quality care at a reasonable price. Founded in 1939, it now has 3.4 million members, 4,700 employees, one of the largest provider networks and more than 20 office locations, providing a wide range of commercial and government products throughout the state. The company has contributed $100 million over the past three years to the Blue Shield of California Foundation to fund nonprofit organizations that improve access to quality health care in California.

About Office Ally

Office Ally is a national full service medical claims clearinghouse and electronic connectivity company based in Vancouver, Washington. The company offers effective free or low-cost IT services that help to lower health care costs and provide more efficiencies for physicians, payors, and patients, including medical claims filing, practice management, electronic medical records, and personal health records systems. For more information, visit www.officeally.com or call (866) 575-4120.