In the face of considerable uncertainty and change, we stayed true to our mission of improving the wellbeing of Canadians, never losing sight of our vision to be a leading health solutions partner to those we serve.

I was never prouder to be part of Medavie than in 2020, seeing how our team stepped up to help Canadians, when they needed us most, spurred by our values of being Caring, Accountable, Responsive, Innovative and Community-minded.

Throughout the year, while managing through the pandemic, our unwavering commitment and strong tradition of supporting our communities guided our actions — enabling better health outcomes and more access points to care for Canadians. That’s why, through our Foundation, we committed $5 million through a COVID-19 Relief Fund to improve access to food and mental health services — the most we have ever given through our Foundation in a single year.

As an organization, we came together to quickly adapt to our new reality and were flexible in actioning plans we had in place in case of disruption.

Emerging from 2020 stronger

We turned the calendar a lot stronger as an organization because of the firm partnerships we have in place, the core values we live by and the significant investments we made prior to the pandemic. We’re stronger because we have deeper relationships with our group, individual and government clients. We’re stronger because we have greater engagement with our employees. We’re stronger because we listened, learned and acted on important member feedback. We’re stronger because we aimed to be there to support our communities in a time of need.

Responding to the pandemic

We played and continue to play a pivotal role in delivering integrated care programs and bringing high-quality care to patients directly in their homes and communities; more important than ever in the age of COVID-19.

Our frontline teams have been engaged to help slow the spread of the virus by bringing COVID-19 screening tests directly to patients in long-term care facilities and helping to expand community testing through mobile drive-thru clinics. Throughout, we made sure our frontline workers had the Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) needed to keep them safe.

Importantly, all our teams across Medavie Health Services — from nurses and paramedics to medical 911, pilots and our telecommunications staff — united to quickly address the evolving COVID-19 situation and provide the stability and continuity of care that people need most during times of crisis. Now, our teams are beginning to engage in the COVID-19 vaccine roll-out — with various on-the-ground teams being trained to administer the vaccine to residents in community long-term care homes.

At Medavie Blue Cross, we continued to align our products and service offerings to the needs of today and in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic — and found ways to deliver for our plan sponsors, plan member, partners and employees. We focused on providing greater flexibility, offering more virtual care options and mental health supports, while providing premium relief for small- and medium-sized business to ease the burden of COVID-19.

Looking ahead

We look to the future with cautious optimism.

As COVID-19 taught us, we never know what might be around the corner, nor can we afford to be complacent. The world is evolving very quickly around us, and we have to focus on our purpose and accelerate our transformation.

COVID-19 also reminded us that crisis can bring about transformative change if we are open and receptive to the possibilities.

It is in that spirit, and with the lessons we learned from COVID-19 in mind, that we will continue to fulfill our mission and achieve our vision. We will do this focusing on the people we serve, growing and diversifying our offering, enhancing operational and clinical excellence, taking a digital-first approach and strengthening our partnerships with individuals and patients, groups, governments and our communities.

Rest assured we will be there for you in 2021, just as you were there for us in 2020. Thank you and we look forward to healthier days ahead!