November 2023 Internet and Phone Service Outage

Update as of November 30 @ 9:30 a.m.

Phone and internet issues have been resolved and we are fully operational during our normal business hours. We anticipate a high volume of phone calls and emails, which may result in longer wait times than usual. If you have emailed us over the past four business days, we are working diligently to get back to you as soon as possible. Please note that as our systems come back online, data may not be the most recent as our team works to update the systems as quickly as possible. We appreciate your patience and apologize for the inconvenience. 

What Happened?

On Monday, November 27, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Vermont’s internet service provider, Lumen, experienced a storm-related outage and fire. This impacted the fiber optic lines, causing our internet and phone systems to go down for three days. Late in the afternoon on Wednesday, November 29, the situation was resolved and business returned to normal on Thursday, November 30.

What You Can Do Now

  • Plan Information: You can access your health plan information through our online resource centers. Members can view their benefit details and past claim information. Please be aware that the information you see in the resource center is updated through Sunday, November 26.
  • Pharmacy: If you need help with prescriptions, call Vermont Blue Rx at (877) 493-1947.
  • Medicare Part D: If you have Medicare Part D and need assistance, call (888) 620-1746.
  • Prior Authorizations
    • Pharmacy and Advanced Imaging Prior Authorizations: The prior authorization processes for pharmacy and medications via Vermont Blue Rx, and advanced imaging through Carelon, are proceeding without any disruption through their respective portals.
    • Other In-Network Services: We are waiving the prior authorization for in-network services that are occurring from Wednesday, November 22, 2023, through Sunday, December 3, 2023 that are not related to pharmacy or advanced imaging.
    • Out-of-Network Services: For urgent prior authorizations for out-of-network services occurring this week, providers can call our answering service at 802-371-0130. The answering service will alert the on-call nurse for urgent prior authorizations.
  • Immediate Assistance: If you need immediate assistance, please reach out to us as follows:
    • Access to Care, Benefits, and Claims: Log in to the Member Resource Center and send us a secure email message.
    • Providers: Log in to the Provider Resource Center and send us a secure email message.
      • For questions regarding Prior Authorizations, see the section above.
  • Questions: Check out our FAQ section below on this page.

Once Service is Restored

As our systems come back online, we will return all communications from our members, customers, and providers as quickly as possible. If you sent us an email while we were closed for the Thanksgiving holiday (3 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 22 through Friday, Nov 24) or since Monday morning when the outage began, we will reply to your message as soon as we can. At this time, it appears we were receiving email and there is no need to send it again. But if you haven't heard from us after we're back online, you are welcome to email us again.

We anticipate there will be a high call volume and you may experience a delay in getting in touch with us. If a member of our staff isn't available when you call, please leave a message and we will return your call as quickly as possible. Thank you for your patience and understanding as we work through the backlog. 

Looking Ahead

Our organization takes this unprecedented incident and the impact it has had very seriously. Please be assured that we are doing everything we can to return to normal operations as soon as possible. We will be reviewing this incident in detail to develop a plan to prevent it from happening again and will be taking steps to mitigate future risk. We will be revising this page frequently as the situation changes and more information becomes available, so please check back here for updates.

Frequently Asked Questions

How will I know when the phones and internet will function again?
We will post an announcement on the home page of our website when services are restored.

Has my health care data been impacted?
No health care data has been compromised with this outage.

What have we learned?
Our organization takes this unprecedented incident and the impact it has had very seriously.
Please be assured that we are doing everything we can to return to normal operations as soon
as possible. We will be reviewing this incident in detail to develop a plan to prevent it
from happening again and will be taking steps to mitigate future risk. We will be revising this
page frequently as the situation changes and more information becomes available, so please
check back here for updates.

What is working?

  • Resource Centers: Customers may access our resource centers for plan information. While not all functions may be available, information in the systems is up to date as of November 26, 2023. This includes accessing claims information and general plan information. If you have not registered for the resource center, we encourage you to do so.
  • Pharmacy Assistance: For customers needing pharmacy help, they can access those services directly. Vermont Blue Rx can be reached at (877) 493-1947.
  • Medicare Part D Assistance: For customers needing Medicare Part D assistance, they can call (888) 620-1746.

How can I get answers to questions about benefits and claims?
The best way to get information about your benefits and view claims information is through our Member Resource Center (MRC), which is still operating and accessible through our website. Claims data in the MRC is current up to November 26.

If you haven’t already registered to use the MRC, it’s easy to do through our website. All you’ll need is your member ID card to register. After registering, you’ll be able to immediately log in and view your information.

What if I need Prior Approval?
Providers can continue to manage prior approvals. While our team is unable to process any prior approvals through our Prior Authorization Portal, providers can continue to submit them.

  • Pharmacy or Advanced Imaging Prior Authorization?
    The prior authorization processes for pharmacy and medications via Vermont Blue Rx, and advanced imaging through Carelon, are proceeding without any disruptions through their respective portals.
  • Other In-Network Services?
    We want members to access the care they need. If members are scheduled for care this week, we are waiving the prior authorizations for in-network services until Sunday, December 3, 2023. If pharmacy or advanced imaging related, please see the question above.
  • Out-of-Network Service?
    For urgent prior authorizations for out-of-network services occurring this week, providers can call our answering service at 802-371-0130. The answering service will alert the on-call nurse for urgent prior authorizations. Non-urgent calls will follow their regular process and be forwarded to the utilization management email.

Can I get help with open enrollment?
Yes, we will be glad to respond to general questions about open enrollment. Until our systems are operating again, we cannot provide answers to specific questions, such as your enrollment status, or provide help with completing forms. Once we’re operating normally, please give us a call and we’ll be glad to answer your specific questions and help you enroll in one of our plans.