Product News

(As of 8/2/10)

• Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Colorado opened its first retail location this month. The walk-in store, located in Littleton, will sell individual policies and offer health screenings, the company said. Anthem, a subsidiary of WellPoint, Inc., says the store is intended to complement its existing sales channels. The store also will have informational wellness kiosks, a juice bar and a play area for children. Staff will be on hand to answer questions about coverage options, according to the company. The Littleton store is part of a nationwide test for Anthem and, if successful, could be a model for future stores, the company says. In April, Highmark, Inc. announced plans to open four more retail insurance stores in Pennsylvania this year. The two existing Highmark Direct stores, which were opened in March 2009, have attracted more than 20,000 visitors, according to Highmark. Visit www.anthem.com.
• Beginning Aug. 1, San Francisco-based SeeChange Health Insurance Co. says it will offer a variety of new health savings account (HSA)-qualified products in parts of California. Unlike traditional health plans, SeeChange’s “value-based benefit” model seeks out chronically ill enrollees — as well as those at risk for developing chronic conditions — and offers them richer benefits in exchange for compliance in managing the condition. The company says it will be the first insurer to sell value-based HSA products to California employers. The new products will be made available in the Monterey and Fresno areas first and then expanded to the Los Angeles area later this year, the company says. Visit www.seechangehealth.com.
• Small employers in Dallas County, Texas now can offer low-cost coverage to their employees. A new not-for-profit group, The North Texas 3-Share Plan, says an estimated 100,000 participants will pay about $50 per month for coverage through the program, which began Aug. 1. Employers will pay 50% of the cost of coverage, and the remaining cost will be covered by Parkland Health & Hospital System and state and federal grants. Texas has the nation’s highest percentage of uninsured residents, according to data released recently by the U.S. Census Bureau. About two-thirds of the uninsured in Texas are working adults who either don’t have access to coverage or can’t afford it. Visit www.northtexas3share.org.
• Minnesota-based HealthPartners says its 1.3 million mobile subscribers will soon be able to communicate more easily with their care providers through an agreement with Diversinet Corp., a Canadian mobile-application company. HealthPartners says it intends to launch the applications this fall. The deal offers enrollees secure, two-way messaging via a variety of smart phones and other devices. The first applications will be aimed at women with high-risk pregnancies and chronically ill patients who have recently been discharged from hospitals, the health plan says, adding that the applications could help avoid premature births and reduce hospital readmissions. Contact Paul Moore at paul.d.moore@HealthPartners.com.
• Schenectady, N.Y.-based MVP Health Care says 100 of its network physicians can now conduct online visits and electronic communication. The insurer says participating network providers will receive immediate reimbursement and financial subsidies to defray the cost of deploying the technology from RelayHealth. The new service will allow members to complete online evaluations of their non-urgent symptoms, such as sinus or back pain. MVP says its “webVisit” offers users a step-by-step, clinically structured interview, which captures detailed information to help their physicians make an informed care decision. Visit MVP at www.mvphealthcare.com and RelayHealth at www.relayhealth.com.
• Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield in Virginia says it has created a Google Map that provides members with alternatives to hospital emergency rooms. The new tool was prompted by a study of claims data, which determined more than 60% of ER visits could have been treated at less costly urgent care centers. The cost of diagnosing and treating a patient with bronchitis, for example, averages $646 in an ER, but just $97 at an urgent care center and $54 at a retail clinic, the company says. In 2008 according to statehealthfacts.org, there were more than 3 million total ER visits in Virginia. The Google Map identifies all of the ER alternatives (e.g., retail health clinics, urgent care centers and walk-in doctor offices) throughout the state. To access the information, visit www.anthem.com/eralt, or type “Anthem urgent care” into Google or Bing. A link to the information also is available on the “member” home page at www.anthem.com.

(As of 5/17/10)

• Aetna Inc. on May 11 said its Benefits Advisor — along with a virtual benefits advisor dubbed “David” — will be made available to thousands of members through their employers. In 2009, seven pilot customers purchased the online plan-selection and benefits-education tool to help their employees sift through plan offerings and determine the best fit. The Aetna Benefits Advisor is now available nationwide to employers with more than 3,000 employees. An enhanced version of the tool will be available to support employers’ open-enrollment periods beginning in June. Some new features include guidance for flexible spending account and health savings account contributions, a visual comparison of medical plan costs and a personalized summary that participants receive via e-mail. To meet David, visit www.aetna.com/showcase/advisor.
• Blues plan operator Health Care Service Corp. has helped launch a childhood obesity portal, which is intended to be a non-commercial resource for the public. The portal, BeSmartBeWell.com, highlights health topics such as childhood obesity with videos, advice from experts and links to information sources. HCSC operates Blues plans in Illinois, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas. See all topics at BeSmartBeWell.com. Contact Susan Zimny at susan@besmartbewell.com or Ross Blackstone at ross_blackstone@HCSC.com.
• EGHC, which bills itself as a “hybrid health care company,” says it has launched Lumeris, a new business unit specializing in provider performance management technology and services for the health care industry. The company says the new unit will serve managed care and integrated delivery organizations that are looking for “a more integrated and collaborative approach” to containing costs and improving quality of care. Richard Jones, a former UnitedHealthcare executive, was tapped to lead the Lumeris business. “Success in this new era of value-based care requires health plans to become much better at influencing both the thinking and the behavior of their contracted physicians,” the company said in a prepared statement, adding that 80% of all health care spending is directed by physicians. Visit www.lumeris.com.
• Insurance broker Lockton said May 12 that it has teamed with Zix Corp. — an e-mail encryption service provider — to help health insurers and other health care organizations reduce data breaches and cyber liability. One program, Zix-Auditor, is “an e-mail assessment service” that allows organizations to identify e-mail vulnerabilities, implement more effective procedures and monitor ongoing communications to determine compliance effectiveness. Visit Zix at www.zixcorp.com and Lockton at www.lockton.com.
• UnitedHealth Group is offering early prescription refills and suspending some prior-authorization requirements for patients affected by the recent flooding in Tennessee. The company says health plan customers who may need to refill prescription drugs that were misplaced as a result of the storms will be able to do so if they have refills remaining on file at a retail or mail-order pharmacy. This policy will remain in effect until at least May 17. UnitedHealth also is opening a free counseling help line and has donated $50,000 to the American Red Cross Disaster Relief Fund. Visit www.unitedhealth.com.

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