Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Rhode Island Safe Zone Program
Thank you for expressing your interest in Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Rhode Island’s LGBTQ Safe Zone Program. When you see a BCBSRI Safe Zone logo at a provider’s office, this identifies a healthcare practice that provides safe, affirming, and inclusive care to the LGBTQ community. This certification reflects one of BCBSRI’s primary goals of fostering environments in which LGBTQ members feel welcome and safe in their health community.
This application will measure your commitment to inclusive treatment of LGBTQ patients. Certification requirements for this program include: staff training specific to the care of trans and LGB people; protection for patients and staff from discrimination based on gender identity or expression; gender neutral bathrooms; inclusive forms and procedures; and a public commitment to connecting with and serving the LGBTQ community.
To ensure that policies, procedures, and physical space at each Safe Zone location are safe and inclusive for LGBTQ patients, BCBSRI verifies application responses. Response must be verified for each application question. You will have the option to upload files that may help verify your answers. For example, you may upload your non-discrimination policy to verify it includes the terms "gender identity" and "sexual orientation". The upload feature is meant to make the application process more efficient. If you reach the upload limit or are unable to verify every response, BCBSRI’s Safe Zone Certification team will reach out to verify application responses that were not verified via the file upload feature.
You will be answering the following questions for 1 physical location of your practice. If you wish to certify multiple locations, you will have the opportunity to do so at the end of the survey. The application for one physical location ends at Question 47. The application features 150+ total questions only to allow applicants to certify multiple locations.
All applications will be reviewed on a bi-annual basis following the bi-annual application deadlines in February and August.
Please note: To receive a passing score, each answer must affirm the best practices in working with LGBTQ people.
