The Affordable Care Act-supported healthcare cooperative in Arizona is preparing to sell 30 different health plans through the insurance exchange this fall, after it was rebranded earlier this summer.
So far, it seems seven insurers will end up will end up selling health plans on the federally-run insurance exchange, at least in some parts of the state: Aetna, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Arizona, Cigna, Health Net, Humana, University of Arizona Health Plans and Meritus, a federally-supported consumer oriented and operated plan (or CO-OP) formerly called Compass Health Cooperative.
Meritus says it will offer 30 benefit plans at gold, silver and bronze tiers in HMO and PPO plans, initially in southwestern and southern Phoenix, greater Tucson and the rural border counties of Santa Cruz and Cochise.
The rates and other details of the exchange health plans haven’t been released by the federal government or state government, although one of the state’s largest business insurer, United Healthcare, has said it’s likely not going to be selling plans on the exchange..
With a $93 million loan, the nonprofit Meritus is organizing its health plans through Meritus Mutual Health Partners as a PPO and Meritus Health Partners as an HMO.
"We’re a new model for Arizona that will lead the way to better health for our community,” Meritus Health Partners CEO Kathleen Oestreich said in a media release. Oestreich formerly spent 10 years at the University Physicians Health Plans as COO and CEO, and in roles working with physician groups at the Medical College of Wisconsin and University of Arizona.
Greater Scottsdale, an area the co-op might consider expanding into.
The co-op’s staff is based in Tempe, and the board of directors is headed by Michael Kelly, a consultant and policy advisor to Phoenix Mayor Greg Stanton. The founder emeritus, of the original Compass brand, is Selvoy Fillerup, MD, an otolaryngologist from Gilbert, southeast of Phoenix.
Meritus is one of 24 cooperatives using a total of $2 billion in loans under the Affordable Care Act program, and like other is pitching the values of membership and reinvestment to consumers,
“If a CO-OP makes a profit, it is required to return those profits to members through lower rates and innovations in service models,” the organization says on its website.
“CO-OPs have served millions of families with electricity, telephone service, food and farm services, and financial services. CO-OPs outside the world of healthcare include the Associated Press, REI, Land O'Lakes and Ace Hardware. Established health CO-OPs in Washington, Wisconsin and Minnesota, already have a proven track record of delivering value and quality.”
In other recent CO-OP news, Colorado HealthOP is working with the Warner Pacific broker network, and Vermont’s CO-OP has reorganized after it was denied a state license, amid concerns over a conflict of interest. The co-op has another license application pending, which would let it join two other insurers selling in the insurance exchange, and the board of directors include Chuck Butler, a former executive at Blue Cross Blue Shield companies in Vermont and Montana, and Jerome Diamond, the Vermont Attorney General from 1975 to 1981.
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