Top Centers for Specialty Care | Wellmark Blue Cross and Blue Shield

Top Centers for Specialty Care

Blue Distinction^® is a designation awarded by Wellmark Blue Cross and Blue Shield to high-performing medical facilities in these areas:

Bariatric Surgery
Cardiac Care
Complex and Rare Cancers
Knee and Hip Replacement
Spine Surgery
Transplants

Facilities designated Blue Distinction Centers + for Specialty Care^® and Blue Distinction Centers for Specialty Care^® have met stringent selection criteria.

Blue Distinction Centers + for Specialty Care^® include facilities that are recognized for delivering expert specialty care in quality and cost efficiency.

Blue Distinction Centers for Specialty Care^® include facilities that are recognized for delivering expert specialty care in quality and efficiency.

Blue Distinction Centers^® in Iowa and South Dakota are listed below. You can find Blue Distinction Centers outside of Iowa and South Dakota on the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association Web site. Learn more about why to choose a Blue Distinction Center for your treatment.

Bariatric Surgery

Blue Distinction Centers for Bariatric Surgery^® provide a full range of bariatric surgical care services including inpatient care, post-operative care, follow-up, and patient education. Selection criteria included*:

Quality of post surgical follow-up care
Ability of clients to maintain their weight loss
Morbidity/mortality rates
Pre- and post-surgical education for patients and plans for follow-up care
Appropriate equipment for managing care for morbidly obese members
Ongoing quality management and improvement programs
Physician and staff experience and credentials

If you're considering bariatric surgery, please review these important prerequisites.

Iowa facilities include:

Facility	Location	Plans Accepted
Genesis Health System	Davenport	Wellmark Health Plan of Iowa and PPO/Indemnity
Sartori Memorial Hospital	Cedar Falls	Wellmark Health Plan of Iowa and PPO/Indemnity
University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics	Iowa City	Wellmark Health Plan of Iowa and PPO/Indemnity

South Dakota facilities include:

Facility	Location	Plans Accepted
Avera McKennan Hospital	Sioux Falls	Wellmark Health Plan of Iowa and PPO/Indemnity
Sanford USD Medical Center	Sioux Falls	Wellmark Health Plan of Iowa and PPO/Indemnity

*Please Note: Although the Blue Distinction Centers have met specific criteria and standards, this does not imply any guarantee of a positive outcome or endorsement by Wellmark. In addition, coverage for bariatric surgery services is subject to all of the terms of the member's benefits certificate or policy.

Cardiac Care

Blue Distinction Centers for Cardiac Care^® provide a full range of cardiac care services, including:

Inpatient cardiac care
Cardiac rehabilitation
Cardiac catheterization (including percutaneous coronary interventions)
Cardiac surgery (including coronary artery bypass graft surgery)¹

Iowa facilities include:

Facility	Location	Plans Accepted
Allen Hospital	Waterloo	Wellmark Health Plan of Iowa and PPO/Indemnity
Genesis Health System	Davenport	Wellmark Health Plan of Iowa and PPO/Indemnity
Iowa Lutheran Hospital	Des Moines	Wellmark Health Plan of Iowa and PPO/Indemnity
Iowa Methodist Medical Center	Des Moines	Wellmark Health Plan of Iowa and PPO/Indemnity
Mercy Medical Center	Dubuque	Wellmark Health Plan of Iowa and PPO/Indemnity
Mercy Hospital	Iowa City	Wellmark Health Plan of Iowa and PPO/Indemnity
Mercy Medical Center^*	Cedar Rapids	Wellmark Health Plan of Iowa and PPO/Indemnity
Mercy Medical Center	Des Moines	Wellmark Health Plan of Iowa and PPO/Indemnity
Mercy Medical Center – North Iowa	Mason City	Wellmark Health Plan of Iowa and PPO/Indemnity
St. Luke’s Hospital	Cedar Rapids	Wellmark Health Plan of Iowa and PPO/Indemnity
University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics (UI Heart and Vascular Care)	Iowa City	Wellmark Health Plan of Iowa and PPO/Indemnity

*Cardiac surgical services (Coronary Artery Bypass Graft Surgery) are not available at this facility.

South Dakota facilities include:

Facility	Location	Plans Accepted
Avera Heart Hospital	Sioux Falls	Wellmark Health Plan of Iowa and PPO/Indemnity
Sanford USD Medical Center	Sioux Falls	Wellmark Health Plan of Iowa and PPO/Indemnity

Complex and Rare Cancers

Blue Distinction Centers for Complex and Rare Cancers^® focus on facilities that offer comprehensive inpatient, adult cancer care programs for these types of cancer:

Acute leukemia (inpatient/non-surgical)
Bladder cancer
Bone cancer
Brain cancer – primary
Esophageal cancer
Gastric cancer
Head and neck cancers
Liver cancer
Ocular melanoma
Pancreatic cancer
Rectal cancer
Soft tissue sarcomas
Thyroid cancer – medullary or anaplastic

Iowa facilities include:

Facility	Location	Cancer Types	Plans Accepted
Iowa Methodist Medical Center (John Stoddard Cancer Center)	Des Moines	Bladder Esophageal Gastric Pancreatic Rectal	Wellmark Health Plan of Iowa and PPO/Indemnity
University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics (Holden Comprehensive Cancer Center)	Iowa City	Bladder Brain – Primary Esophageal Gastric Head and Neck Pancreatic Bone Ocular Melanoma Rectal Thyroid – Medullary and /or Anaplastic	Wellmark Health Plan of Iowa and PPO/Indemnity

Knee and Hip Replacement

Blue Distinction Centers for Knee and Hip Replacement^SM have demonstrated experience in comprehensive inpatient knee and hip replacement services, including total knee replacement and total hip replacement.

Iowa facilities include:

Facility	Location	Blue Distinction Center	Blue Distinction Center +
Alegent Health Mercy Hospital	Council Bluffs		x
Genesis Health System	Davenport		x
Iowa Lutheran Hospital	Des Moines		x
Mary Greeley Medical Center	Ames		x
Methodist West Hospital	West Des Moines		x
Mercy Medical Center	Dubuque		x
Mercy Hospital	Iowa City		x
Mercy Medical Center	Cedar Rapids		x
Mercy Medical Center	Des Moines		x
St. Luke’s Methodist Hospital	Cedar Rapids		x
The Finley Hospital	Dubuque		x
Trinity Hospital	Bettendorf		x
University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics	Iowa City		x

South Dakota facilities include:

Facility	Location	Blue Distinction Center	Blue Distinction Center +
Avera McKennan	Sioux Falls	X
Sanford USD Medical Center	Sioux Falls		X

Spine Surgery

Facilities that have received the Blue Distinction Centers for Spine Surgery^SM designation have demonstrated experience in comprehensive inpatient spine surgery services, including discectomy, fusion and decompression procedures.

Iowa facilities include:

Facility	Location	Blue Distinction Center	Blue Distinction Center +
Covenant Medical Center	Waterloo		X
Genesis Health System	Davenport		X
Iowa Methodist Medical Center	Des Moines		X
Mary Greeley Medical Center	Ames		X
Methodist West Hospital	West Des Moines		X
Mercy Hospital	Iowa City		X
Mercy Medical Center	Cedar Rapids		X
Mercy Medical Center	Des Moines		X
Mercy Medical Center	Sioux City		X
St. Luke's Methodist Hospital	Cedar Rapids		X
University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics	Iowa City	X

South Dakota facilities include:

Facility	Location	Blue Distinction Center	Blue Distinction Center +
Avera McKennan	Sioux Falls	X
Sanford Medical Center	Sioux Falls	X

Transplants

The Blue Distinction Centers for Transplants^® program looks at eight types of transplants:

Heart
Lung (deceased and living donor)
Combination heart bilateral lung
Liver (deceased and living donor)
Simultaneous pancreas kidney (SPK)
Pancreas (PAK/PTA)
Combination liver kidney
Bone marrow/stem cell (autologous & allogeneic)

Facility	Location	Transplant Type	Plans Accepted
University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics	Iowa City	Bone Marrow/Stem Cell (Autologous and/or Allogeneic)	Wellmark Health Plan of Iowa and PPO/Indemnity

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