Terms and conditions

This website and the services offered through this website (collectively, this "Site") are operated and maintained by Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Rhode Island ("BCBSRI"). PLEASE READ THESE TERMS AND CONDITIONS CAREFULLY BEFORE USING THIS SITE.

Internet Terms & Conditions

The following terms and conditions ("Terms") govern your use of this Site. By accessing, viewing, or using the material on the Site, you indicate that you understand and accept these Terms. We may revise and update these Terms at any time. Please periodically review these Terms as posted on this Site, because your continued use of this Site after changes to these Terms have been posted will mean that you accept those changes.

Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Rhode Island is an independent corporation operating under a license from the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association (the "Association"), which permits BCBSRI to use the Blue Cross and Blue Shield service marks in the State of Rhode Island; (ii) BCBSRI is not contracting as the agent of the Association; (iii) you have not agreed to these Terms based upon representations by anyone other than BCBSRI, and that no person, entity or organization other than BCBSRI shall be held accountable or liable to you for any of BCBSRI's obligations to you under these Terms.

No Solicitation or Offer

This Site is designed to provide general information about BCBSRI, its products, services, and plans. Information on the Site is not intended to constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of any particular product or service. Some products and/or services may not be available for all employees, members, or in all areas of the State of Rhode Island.

Geography

This Site may be available for users outside of the United States only for purposes of information only. The Site is controlled by BCBSRI from its offices in the State of Rhode Island in the United States of America.

No Medical or Legal Advice

The information provided on this Site is for general informational purposes. It is not medical or legal advice and is not a substitute for obtaining up-to-date, professional advice from a qualified person. Always consult with your doctor for appropriate examinations, treatment, testing, and care recommendations. Do not rely on information on this Site as a tool for self-diagnosis. If you have questions about any law or requirement referenced in this Site, you should contact your own legal counsel.

If your use of this Site involves exercise, please consult with a physician prior to beginning any exercise or exercise program. When undertaking any exercise activity, there is a risk of injury. Although we try to outline the safest and most effective methods of fitness training, we cannot prevent injuries from occurring. You should be healthy and familiar with the proper form, techniques, and preparation for the exercises you undertake and the equipment you use. Always use safe techniques and protective equipment when engaging in exercise. If you are unfamiliar with the proper and safe techniques and equipment for the exercises you intend to perform, please seek advice and assistance before performing them. Discontinue exercising if you experience any headaches, dizziness, shortness of breath, or discomfort, and consult your physician or other health care provider. BCBSRI is not responsible or liable for any injury that may result from your exercise. BCBSRI assumes no liability or responsibility for damage or injury to persons or property arising from any use of any product, information, idea, or instruction contained in the materials provided to you.

Privacy and Security

BCBSRI has a Privacy Statement disclosing what information we collect about visitors to this Site, how we use such information, the steps we take to secure such information, how you can view and correct such information, and how you can decline to have information about you collected or used. The Privacy Statement also discloses information about the security and confidentiality of information that you submit to us via e-mail or this Site. Click here to view the Privacy Statement. Please be advised that the confidentiality of any communication or material transmitted to BCBSRI via this Site or Internet electronic mail cannot be guaranteed. To ensure private and personalized attention, you may contact BCBSRI by telephone at 401-459-1000 or at the telephone numbers provided at various locations on our Site, or by writing to us at Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Rhode Island, 500 Exchange Street, Providence, Rhode Island 02903-2699, Attn. Web Services. The security of your electronic communications to BCBSRI is discussed in further detail in our Privacy Statement.

Electronic Communications

When you provide us with your email address or telephone number, we may communicate with you through (a) electronic delivery of communications about existing benefits, programs, products, services, or tools and/or general health information via email, websites, and mobile applications (collectively, "Informational Electronic Communications") and (b) informational calls and text messaging ("Informational Calls and Texts"), regarding the programs, products, or services that we make available to you.

Informational Electronic Communications include, but are not limited to, information about your benefit plan, programs, products, or services that are or may be available to you in connection with your transactions with us, online services updates, general wellness reminders or information, general health information, newsletters, and surveys. They do not include communications we are required by law to provide to you in writing ("Required Notices"), described more fully in Required Notices Information.

When you provide us a telephone number, whether landline or mobile, we may contact you, using automated, pre-recorded, or non-automated means, to provide you information about your existing benefits, programs, products, services, or tools. The Terms and Conditions of the texting programs we offer, such as Your Blue Wire, as well as those programs' specific requirements, apply to your interactions with us by text and are incorporated in these Terms by reference.

To opt out of Informational Electronic Communications and/or Informational Calls and Texts, please update your preferences on the Communications Preference page of our portal. You can also call us to let us know you no longer wish to receive these communications. Any request to opt out of receiving these communications will be effective only after we have a reasonable period of time to process your request. Opt-outs may not apply to certain types of communications, such as Required Notices, account status, Online Services updates, or other plan communications.

You have the opportunity to update your contact information and choose your communication preferences at any time through our Communications Preference page of our portal. It is your responsibility to provide us with accurate contact information, and to update any changes promptly. We may use the same contact information previously provided if you change or add a benefit plan, program, product or service that we make available to you. You understand that failing to update your contact information may delay providing you Informational Electronic Communications. You release and hold us harmless from any consequences of your failure to provide us accurate contact information or to update your contact information.

Your Use of this Site

User Responsibility for Site Use. You may NOT share your password or account with others or with any third party. You must notify BCBSRI at Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Rhode Island, 500 Exchange Place, Providence, RI 02903, Attn: Web Services, of any known or suspected unauthorized use(s) of your account, or any known or suspected breach of security, including, but not limited to, loss, theft or unauthorized disclosure of your password. You are responsible for all usage or activity on this Site with your account. Any fraudulent, abusive, or otherwise illegal activity may be grounds for termination of your access to this Site, at BCBSRI's sole discretion and BCBSRI may refer you to appropriate law enforcement agencies.

Restrictions. Subject to your acceptance and compliance with these Terms, BCBSRI grants you a nonexclusive, nontransferable, revocable, limited right and license to access and make personal use of the Site and the material provided hereon for your personal, noncommercial use. BCBSRI authorizes you to view, download and/or print a small number of copies of the content on this Site solely for your personal, noncommercial use, provided you keep intact all copyright and other proprietary notices. Otherwise, no content from this Site may be reproduced, modified, republished, transmitted, displayed, performed, or distributed in any way. You may not modify, sell, assign, or transfer the content or reproduce, display, distribute or otherwise use the content in any way for any public or commercial purpose or otherwise except as expressly permitted herein. You may not reverse-engineer, disassemble, decompile, or create any derivative works based on the content. Content is subject to change without notice at the discretion of BCBSRI.

Use of Interactive Areas. BCBSRI may provide interactive forums, chat rooms, blogs, news groups, bulletin boards, scorecards, rating and review tools, and other interactive areas ("Interactive Areas") on this Site. Interactive Area postings do not represent the professional advice or opinions of BCBSRI or its staff. BCBSRI does not assume any responsibility for the truthfulness, accuracy, or reliability of any material posted on any Interactive Area, or of consequences of any Interactive Area communications on or arising from use of this Site. ANY RELIANCE ON CONTENT POSTED IN AN INTERACTIVE AREA IS AT YOUR OWN RISK. In cases where you feel threatened or believe someone else is in danger, you should contact your local law enforcement agency immediately.

You are responsible and liable for all activities conducted by you on this Site or in such Interactive Areas as well as the content of your messages. You are responsible for ensuring that you do not act in any manner which constitutes, or forms a part of a course of conduct amounting to, a violation of any state, federal or other applicable competition law. You specifically agree that you will not:

  • Violate any code of conduct or other guidelines which may be applicable for any particular Interactive Area;
  • Allow any other person or entity to use your identification to post or view comments;
  • Delete, modify, hack or attempt to change or alter any of the content on the Site;
  • Use the Interactive Area in connection with surveys, contests, pyramid schemes, chain letters, junk email, spamming or any duplicative or unsolicited messages (commercial or otherwise);
  • Use any device, software or routine intended to damage or otherwise interfere with the proper functioning of an Interactive Area or take any other action that interferes with other parties' use of the Site;
  • Use any robot, spider or other automatic or manual device or process for the purpose of harvesting or compiling information on the Site for purposes other than for a generally available search engine;
  • Advertise or offer to sell or buy any goods or services for any business purpose, unless such an Interactive Area specifically allows such messages;
  • Restrict or inhibit any other user from using and enjoying the Interactive Areas;
  • Publish, post, upload, distribute or disseminate any inappropriate, profane, obscene, indecent or unlawful topic, name, material or information; or
  • Defame, abuse, harass, stalk, threaten or otherwise violate the legal rights of any third party.

BCBSRI has no obligation to monitor any Interactive Areas on this Site. However, BCBSRI reserves the right to review, reprint, modify, distribute, remove or delete any posts in the Interactive Areas or this Site, regardless of whether such communication(s) violate these Terms. BCBSRI reserves the right at all times to disclose any information as BCBSRI deems necessary to satisfy any applicable law, regulation, legal process or governmental request, or to edit, refuse to post, or to remove any information or materials, in whole or in part, in BCBSRI's sole discretion. BCBSRI is not obliged to maintain back-up copies of any material submitted or posted on this Site.

USERS LESS THAN 18 YEARS OF AGE AND NOT AN EMANCIPATED MINOR MUST OBTAIN PARENTAL PERMISSION PRIOR TO ANY USE OF THE SITE. The parent or guardian assumes full responsibility for the interpretation and use of any information provided through this Site for the minor.

Links to Other Websites

This Site may contain links to other Internet Web Sites for the convenience of users. You acknowledge and agree that these third-party sites are maintained by persons or organizations over which BCBSRI exercises no control, and BCBSRI is not responsible for the content, the accuracy of the information, availability of such third-party site and/or quality of products or services provided by or advertised on these third-party sites. You further acknowledge and agree that, under no circumstances, will BCBSRI be held liable, directly or indirectly, for any loss or damage that is caused or alleged to have been caused to you in connection with your use of, or reliance on, any content, advertisements, products, services or other resources available from any other third-party site (regardless of whether we directly or indirectly link to such content, advertisements, products, services, or other resources). Unless otherwise stated, links do not represent an intent to promote or endorse information, products or services.

Proprietary Rights

All material compiled and contained in this Site including any trademarks, copyright, or other intellectual property, of BCBSRI, its affiliates, is protected by law, including but not limited to United States copyright law. BCBSRI and its affiliates are the owners of the trademarks, copyright, or other intellectual property in the entire content (including images, text and look and feel attributes) of www.BCBSRI.com and reserves all rights in that regard. All other trademarks, copyright, or other intellectual property, including any software not owned by BCBSRI or its affiliates that appear on this Site are the property of their respective owners, who may or may not be affiliated with, connected to, or sponsored by BCBSRI or its affiliates For purposes of these terms and conditions of use, the term "affiliates" means any entity or person, directly or indirectly, owning a controlling interest in, or under common ownership control with, BCBSRI, or any entity or person in which BCBSRI directly or indirectly, owns a controlling interest. Nothing contained on this Site should be construed as granting, by implication, estoppel or otherwise, any license or right to use any of the trademarks, copyrights or other intellectual property of BCBSRI, or its affiliates displayed or contained in the Website without the express, written consent of BCBSRI or its affiliates, or its respective owners. Any commercial use of Site content is prohibited without the prior written consent of BCBSRI.

Opinions, Comments and Suggestions

BCBSRI welcomes your comments and suggestions about how to improve our products and services and this Site in accordance with these Terms. BCBSRI may monitor and edit or remove any activity or content, but it has no obligation to do so. BCBSRI takes no responsibility and assumes no liability for any content posted by you or any third party, but BCBSRI and its affiliates reserve the right to refuse service, terminate accounts, remove or edit content, or revoke licenses to use the Site in its sole discretion. By transmitting any such comments and/or suggestions (collectively, "Content") to BCBSRI, you automatically grant BCBSRI the royalty-free, perpetual, irrevocable, non-exclusive right and license to use, distribute, and display such Content (in whole or part) and/or to incorporate it in other works in any form for the full term of any rights that may exist in such Content.

Disclaimer of Warranty and Liability

While we endeavor to keep the materials on the Site up-to-date, BCBSRI cannot assume responsibility for any errors or omissions in these materials. BCBSRI has no obligation to update this Site and any information presented may be out of date and contain inaccuracies or errors. To the fullest extent permissible by applicable law, BCBSRI disclaims all warranties, express or implied, including, but not limited to, implied warranties of merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose. BCBSRI may make changes to these materials, to the products or services described herein, or to these Terms, at any time without prior notice, except as prohibited by law. Neither BCBSRI nor your employer or plan sponsor makes any representation or warranty concerning errors, omissions, delays or other defects in the information supplied to users, or that its files are free of viruses, worms, Trojan horses or other code that include or manifest contaminating or destructive characteristics.

USERS OF THIS SITE AGREE THAT BCBSRI SHALL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY CLAIM, LOSS OR DAMAGES WHICH MAY RESULT FROM THE USE OF, ACCESS TO, OR INABILITY TO USE THIS SITE AND THE SITE IS PROVIDED BY BCBSRI ON AN "AS IS" AND "AS AVAILABLE" BASIS. YOU AGREE TO USE THIS SITE AND SUBMIT INFORMATION AT YOUR OWN RISK.

BY ENTERING OR USING THIS SITE, YOU HEREBY EXPRESSLY AGREE THAT BCBSRI, YOUR EMPLOYER OR PLAN SPONSOR, AND THEIR RESPECTIVE PARENTS, OFFICERS, DIRECTORS, AGENTS AND EMPLOYEES, SHALL NOT BE LIABLE TO YOU FOR ANY DAMAGES, CLAIMS, DEMANDS OR CAUSES OF ACTION, DIRECT OR INDIRECT, SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, EXEMPLARY, OR PUNITIVE, AS A RESULT OF YOUR USE OF THIS SITE OR ANY INFORMATION YOU OBTAIN ON IT OR ANY OTHER INTERACTION WITH THIS SITE. IN DOING SO, YOU AGREE THAT YOU ARE WAIVING VOLUNTARILY AND UNEQUIVOCALLY ANY LIABILITY OF BCBSRI, YOUR EMPLOYER OR PLAN SPONSOR. PLEASE NOTE THAT SOME JURISDICTIONS MAY NOT ALLOW THE EXCLUSION OR LIMITATION OF CERTAIN WARRANTIES, SO COME OF THE ABOVE EXCLUSIONS MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU.

Any claim or cause of action arising out of your use of this Site or these Terms must be filed within one (1) year after such claim or cause of action arose or it shall forever be barred, notwithstanding any statute of limitations or other law to the contrary. Within this period, any failure by BCBSRI to enforce or exercise any provision of these Terms or related right shall not constitute a waiver of that right or provision.

Resolution of Disputes

These Terms and the application of these provisions, disclosures and disclaimers and all other matters arising from your use of this Site, or of any information you obtain from this Site, shall be governed by the laws of the United States of America and the State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations and you agree to submit to the personal and exclusive jurisdiction of the courts located within the county of Providence, Rhode Island.

Other Terms of Use

Severability. If any part of these Terms is held by a court of competent jurisdiction to be invalid or unenforceable, that part will be enforced to the maximum extent permitted by law, and the remainder of these Terms will remain fully in force.

Notices. Any notice to BCBSRI shall be given in writing and sent by certified and registered mail to BCBSRI & Blue Shield of Rhode Island, 500 Exchange Place, Providence, RI 02903.

YOU HEREBY ACKNOWLEDGE THAT THE PROVISIONS, DISCLOSURES AND DISCLAIMERS SET FORTH ABOVE ARE FAIR AND REASONABLE, AND THAT YOUR AGREEMENT TO FOLLOW AND BE BOUND TO THEM IS NOT THE RESULT OF FRAUD, DURESS OR UNDUE INFLUENCE EXERCISED UPON YOU BY ANY PERSON OR ENTITY. BY USING THIS SITE OR ANY SERVICES OFFERED ON THIS SITE, YOU ACKNOWLEDGE AND CONFIRM THAT (I) YOU HAVE READ AND UNDERSTAND ALL OF THE ABOVE AGREEMENT, TERMS, POLICIES, PROVISIONS, DISCLOSURES AND DISCLAIMERS, (II) THAT THESE TERMS HAVE THE SAME FORCE AND EFFECT AS A SIGNED, WRITTEN AGREEMENT, AND (III) THAT YOU EXPRESSLY AGREE TO BE BOUND BY THESE TERMS.