Two California insurers announced Tuesday that they are partnering for an ambitious project to establish one of the nation's largest health-information exchanges, an effort they hope will reduce duplication and improve patient outcomes. The not-for-profit Blue Shield of California and Anthem Blue Cross, a subsidiary of private insurance giant WellPoint, announced that they are starting the California Integrated Data Exchange, medical-sharing portal with information about 9 million plan members. The health plans will provide $80 million in seed money for the first three years of the information exchange, known as Cal INDEX. It will launch at the end of the year and adhere to state and federal privacy laws.
