Health Insurance Blog

Medica Health Insurance offers its members a unique pregnancy program for their newly pregnant moms.  Their aim is to assist pregnant Medica members and their children achieve optimal health throughout their pregnancy.

Some examples of the Program’s goals include early and ongoing prenatal care, access to pregnancy information, case management by experienced nurses, early identification of high risk pregnancies, and comprehensive health for mom and baby.

Medica’s pregnancy nurses offer educational phone calls, informational mailings, community information for moms, and are available to answer any questions to put minds at ease.  The program may be part of the benefits package but they can enroll members up to 32 weeks gestation.  Their website also offers a Member’s Guide to a health pregnancy, as well as a recommended routine for a healthy pregnancy.

The children of Rock County are going to benefit from the generous donation from a local contractor JP Cullen & Sons.  They are donating $37500 over the next 3 years to the Dean Foundation so they can expand their Passenger Safety Programs which include Crash Helmet, BUCKLEBEAR and Every Ride a Safe Ride.

The President and CEO of JP Cullen & Sons, David Cullen, believes these passenger safety programs can easily identify with community families.  They are very excited to support the Dean Foundation through Dean Health Plan.

The Dean Foundation Passenger Safety Programs are well respected throughout the county.  It has been around for many years and is bringing much value to the safety of county children.  These programs will nowbe available to Rock county and along with that comes the benefit of increased education, knowledge and overall safety.

According to their website, Vista Health Plans has expanded their obstetrical and gynecologic (OB/GYN) network.  This was done as part of their Women’s Health Program located in Miami Dade, Broward and Palm Beach Counties.

Vista Health Plans has added 100 OB/GYN physicians and will provide members with access to one of the largest and quality OB/GYN networks in Southern Florida.  The members of Vista Health Plans may see participating specialists in general obstetrics and gynecology in addition to some sub-specialty fields.  These fields include gynecology oncology, uro-gynecology, maternal fetal medicine, and reproductive endocrinology.

You can get a more extensive list of specialties as well as participating physicians in your area by using the “Find A Physician” tool located on Vista Health Plan’s website.

According to Dean Care’s website there is a new Family Practitioner joining the Dean Health Plan group.  His name is Dr. Kenneth Betts and he brings over 25 years of experience to the Edgerton Clinic in Madison.

Directot Nancy Ford feels very fortunate to have such a qualified physician joining the team.  For the past 7 years Dr. Betts had his own private practice in Edgerton and is well-known in the area.  He’ll be offering comprehensive care to families with a focus on diabetes, minor skin surgery, and hyperbaric care.

Betts states that he is excited to join the Clinic because of the very friendly atmosphere and excellent doctors.  Through this clinic he is able to offer extended services to his patients that he cares about so much.

According to Humana’s website, Humana health insurance is providing the highly anticipated H1N1 flu vaccine for its members. 

They announced that they will be covering the administration costs for all fully insured members, including those who have plans which exclude immunizations.  All co-pays and deductibles will be waived when the vaccine is received regardless of the preventative services benefit which is offered in these members’ plans. 

Lisa Weaver, MD, Humana segment vice president of clinical strategies stated that the safety and well being of members and the country is of the utmost concern for Humana health insurance.  Their initial focus is to encourage the CDC-identified priority groups to receive the H1N1 vaccine as quickly as possible. 

Humana is working hard to get members the ability to receive the vaccination.  They are monitoring and responding to guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention who are closely tracking the spread of the virus.  For the most current H1N1 information visit the CDC’s website.  To become a Humana member and receive a Humana quote visit www.healthinsurancesort.com.

State Farm Health Insurance is giving America a highly needed challenge.  They are challenging Americans to collectively lose 50 million pounds across the nation, according to the article “Insurance agency challenges Americans to lose weight” on wqow.com. 

Bob Johnson, an agent at State Farm Insurance, says that the healthier you are the less frequently you visit the doctor which will help lower your health insurance rates over time.  There is also the benefit of living a longer, higher quality life the healthier you live.  A healthy lifestyle will help you lose weight, have more energy and just feel better overall.

Online registration is available and participants can track their progress throughout the challenge.  There is also information on how to lead a healthier lifestyle.  State Farm Health Insurance is offering a kit which includes a pedometer and an information booklet.  Hopefully America is up for the challenge because obesity continues to be on the rise. 

According to the article “Mexico Unveils New Travel Health Insurance Scheme to Win Back Tourists” by Karen Elowitt for petergreenberg.com, Mexico has made a bold move towards winning back tourists after the stigma of Swine Flu has left the country struggling.  Mexico will be setting up a unique health insurance plan which will be available for tourists in the case of illness free of charge.

The program is called the “Tourist Assistance Card” which can be accessed by contacting a toll-free phone number which connects them to a multi-lingual call center.  There may be applicable deductibles and patients will have to get treatment from authorized hospitals. 

The health insurance is being offered by a private company called MAPFRE and it will be available for any type of medical emergency from car accidents to the flu.  They will also offer additional assistance to those who have lost their passports or who need traveling advice.  It is still to be determined whether or not this generous offer will lure enough tourists back to Mexico to save their economy, but it’s a creative solution that could work.

A recent report prepared by PriceWaterHouseCoopers and released by AHIP breaks down how each dollar that is spent by Americans on health insurance is broken down.

According to the report:

• $0.33 is spent on physicians services
• $0.20 is spent on inpatient costs
• $0.15 is spent on outpatient costs
• $0.14 is spent on drugs
• $0.05 is spent on other medical services
• $0.06 is spent on government payments, compliance & other administrative expenses
• $0.04 is spent on consumer services, provider support & marketing
• $0.03 health insurance company profits

The Complete report can be found here http://www.americanhealthsolution.org/assets/Uploads/risinghealthcarecostsfactors2008.pdf

Several leading consituents in the health care industry have offered to do their part to keep health care costs in check by offering to create $2 trillion in savings over the next 10 years by keeping projected rate increases in check over time.

The health care groups participating in this agreement include:  Hospitals, health insurance companies, drug companies, and doctors (listed below).  They plan to achieve the proposed savings will stem from realizing efficiencies in the health care system that will trim health care costs by 1.5% per year.

An important facet of this move by health care leaders is that President Obama picks up key allies that were major roadblocks to Bill Clinton’s atempt to overhaul the ailing health care system.

Health Care Industry Participants:  American Medical Association, The Pharmaceuticals Research and Manufacturers of America, America’s Health Insurance Plans, Service Employees International Union, American Hospital Association, Advance Medical Technology Association.

America’s Health Insurance Plans (AHIP), the health insurance industry trade group, has expressed support for the idea of reforming the health care system. However, in the L.A. Times, Michael Hiltzik warns that insurers may not be as gung-ho about the possibility of universal health care as they present themselves to be.

AHIP recently released a brochure outlining its stands on health care. Some of their proposals include:

• being allowed to offer limited benefit plans among their individual health insurance policies without limits on the premiums insurers are allowed to charge
• a government-run health care option that takes only the “high-risk” patients (with several chronic conditions) private insurers don’t want, which would be very expensive since it prevents the government from spreading risk among a wide population
• a decrease in the fees paid to hospitals and doctors

These proposals are actually quite similar to what the insurance industry has asked for in the past. Michael speculates that insurers seem cooperative now because there is no specific plan for health care reform, but are prepared to fight against specific policies.