Category: January 2011

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Connections January 2011:Agent Newsletter- Group Medicare Advantage

January 12, 2011

Why offer Humana Group Medicare Advantage?

With medical costs rising and the American population aging rapidly, your clients who offer Medicare eligible retiree benefits face a tough challenge.

How can they continue to offer good benefits to retirees while managing costs?

The answer is in your hands...

Humana Group Medicare Advantage (MA) plans:

  • Can give your clients simpler - and often less costly - retiree benefits.
  • Moving from traditional Medicare secondary plans to a Group MA plan may reduce per member per month costs.
  • With Medicare, secondary, and pharmacy coverage folded into a single plan, administration is easier – which translates to additional savings.
  • Through consolidation of plans, Humana can better identify members for clinical programs designed to improve medical outcomes and keep them healthier.

Medicare is a complex subject and your clients may think MA plans are "too good to be true."

But understanding these products is worth your time, because it puts you in the position to deliver the simple, cost-effective solution your clients need. You can be the problem-solver.

Humana is here to help. In many cases, Group Medicare requires a more consultative approach than other products. Through consultation and predictive modeling, our group of experienced actuaries and underwriters, dedicated solely to the Group Medicare market, can work to help you craft benefits programs with rates that meet your clients' financial and coverage goals.

Here are just a few of the reasons your clients and their retirees benefit from Humana coverage:

Experience

  • Humana offered our first Medicare plan in 1985 and we introduced our first Group Medicare plan in 1990, so we have a longstanding relationship with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).
  • We remained a major Medicare insurer after the Balanced Budget Act of 1997, when many other insurers backed away from Medicare Advantage plans.
  • Today, MA and Part D programs are among the most critical and rapidly growing parts of Humana's business, behind which lays a major corporate commitment to be and remain the best and most trusted provider of senior health insurance products.

More efficient and often less costly

  • Moving from Original Medicare and secondary coverage to full-replacement Group Medicare Advantage can often reduce per member per month costs, giving customers the potential for appreciable annual savings and reduced FASB and GASB liability.
  • With a single plan, administration is less complex – which translates to additional savings. Retirees deal with only one plan, doing away with duplicate Explanation of Benefits and the need to contact or understand two or three separate plans.
  • By administering an integrated plan, Humana gains a deeper understanding of members' medical and claims data – which helps identify members for clinical programs designed to improve care management and reduce trend.

Extra services and benefits

  • We offer a suite of clinical programs that address members' health and benefits needs. Humana's proprietary tools and methods identify those in need of special care or at risk for health problems.
  • Wellness services include Humana Active Outlook® – our exclusive life-enrichment program that focuses on body fitness, nutrition, exercise, motivation, care giving, and an overall healthful lifestyle – as well as programs focused on fitness and tobacco cessation.
  • The HumanaFirst® Nurse Advice Line provides toll-free, 24-hour assistance for members with general questions about their health.
  • User-friendly guidance like SmartSummary® – Humana's proprietary health finance and benefits statement – helps members use their benefits with confidence and success.

Service areas

Humana offers local PPOs in 136 Markets and Puerto Rico (over 1,680 counties), regional PPOs in 23 states, HMOs in 60 local markets and Puerto Rico (over 350 counties), and other plan options throughout the United States. We have one of the largest national footprints of any Group Medicare carrier.

Contact a Humana Group Medicare Consultant in your area to learn more!

Barbara Wagner
NY, PA, VA, WV, CT, DE, MA, ME, NH, NJ, RI, VT, & DC
bwagner@humana.com
518-542-6769
Christine Santucci
CO, UT, AZ & NM
csantucci@humana.com
720-290-6907
David Fee
WI, MN & IL
dfee1@humana.com
262-951-2568
David Quandt
OH
dquandt@humana.com
513-225-8715
Dee Hughes
TN, NC & AR
dhughes2@humana.com
615-364-3265
Don Muir
LA, MS, AK, ID, NV, CA, WA, OR, MT, WY, HI
dmuir@humana.com
832-489-2016
Gregg Spieth
FL, GA, SC & AL
gspieth@humana.com
813-569-8275
Rick McHale
KY
rmchale@humana.com
502-407-4278
Scott Corner
TX & OK
scorner@humana.com
281-804-2617
Todd Miller
MI & IN
tmiller17@humana.com
248-931-9211
Wendy Kochersperger
KS, MO, IA, NE, ND & SD
wkochersperger@humana.com
913-593-1092
For general inquiries please contact Humana!
GroupMedicareSales@humana.com
800-788-0506 ext. 6365