My Plan by Medica Makes Historic Mark on Marketplace

My Plan by Medica Makes Historic Mark on Marketplace | Bild: © dpa

?My Plan by Medica is the fastest-growing health plan Medica has introduced in the Minnesota marketplace,? said Simeon Schindelman, Medica senior vice president for commercial markets. ?My Plan by Medica quickly and without a doubt is becoming an established product; we are pleased by the reaction from both employers and employees.?

As of January 1, 22 employers had purchased My Plan by Medica, covering 10,267 members. An additional 18 employers covering 1,134 members purchased My Plan by Medica coverage through Doherty Employer Services, which selected My Plan by Medica as the health plan offering it makes available to its customers.

?We knew that a solution that gives employers a way to manage the costs of group health benefits and offer their employees the ability to make choices that are appropriate to their individual needs would result in satisfaction for everyone,? Schindelman said.

My Plan by Medica is a defined contribution offering. Employers determine how much they want to spend on employee health benefits and then allocate pre-tax dollars into a health account on behalf of each employee. An online enrollment tool, proprietary to Medica and powered by Bloom Health, asks each employee a series of questions about their financial situation, health status and risk tolerance and provides a custom list of three group plans that best match each individual?s needs. Additional support is available via phone from My Plan by Medica advisors.

Meeting employer needs

The experience of Johnson Motors is typical for a My Plan by Medica customer. The family-owned automobile dealership with three locations in western Wisconsin has 127 plan participants. The company had provided its employees with a healthcare reimbursement account for the past 5-6 years. It recently switched to My Plan by Medica because of the flexibility and control over costs if offered.

?As an automobile dealership, we have spent way too much time in trying to figure out which plans to offer to a diversity of participants,? said Brad Lutz, human resources manager at Johnson Motors. ?The biggest draw to My Plan by Medica was the flexibility in offering several different options.?

At the same time, Johnson Motors was trying to help its employees become better informed healthcare consumers. ?I have been trying to get us to make the leap to health savings account (HSA) plans, but so far it hadn?t worked,? he said. ?My Plan by Medica allowed us to have the best of both worlds.?

As it turned out, about 70 percent of Johnson Motors? participants chose an HSA-eligible plan.

?Moving forward, our people will become more intelligent about healthcare costs,? Lutz said. ?My Plan by Medica finally does that. As a company, we feel like we have our medical insurance under control and we got our intended consequence ? a plan design for everyone.?

Enrollment process rates high in satisfaction

Because choosing from a wide range of health coverage packages may be new to My Plan by Medica participants, Medica offers a proprietary online selection tool as well as telephonic support from My Plan by Medica advisors to help with that selection process. A survey of 600 participants found the enrollment experience satisfying. Some highlights:

Although respondents took the survey anonymously, some of them provided comments about their experience.

?So far this has been so easy to understand and sign up for,? said one respondent. ?The website is a big help and allows me to have control and know what Internet am doing with the plans that Insurance choose for myself.?

New My Plan by Medica features

My Plan by Medica now is available in six different packages. The standard package ? originally introduced during the rollout of My Plan by Medica -- features 20 plan options. Medica also has introduced five additional packages that allow an employer to choose plan options that align with their benefits strategy and business goals. The packages include eight to 10 plan offerings and feature an emphasis on standard open access network plans, health savings accounts or a balance of both. No matter which package an employer selects, they choose their contribution level and employees choose their own plan.

My Plan by Medica has also been introduced to the Wisconsin market. Available for a January 2012 effective coverage date, employers in border counties in the Badger State now have the same flexibility and control Minnesota employers have when it comes to managing health benefits and budgets. My Plan by Medica for Wisconsin is available in the same packages available to Medica customers in Minnesota.

Medica plans several additional upgrades to My Plan by Medica throughout 2012. Those upgrades will be announced as they become available.

About Medica

Medica (www.medica.com and newsroom.medica.com) is a health services company headquartered in Minneapolis and active in the Upper Midwest. With about 1.5 million members, the non-profit company provides health care coverage in the employer, individual, Medicaid, Medicare and Medicare Part D markets in Minnesota and a growing number of counties in North Dakota, South Dakota and Wisconsin. Medica also offers national network coverage to employers who also have employees outside the Medica regional network.

Medica has the highest accreditation status, Excellent, from the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA®) for its Minnesota Medicaid HMO plans and commercial health plans in Minnesota and North Dakota. Medica?s vision is to become the community?s health plan of choice, trusted for its integrity, respected for its service, and admired for its commitment to innovation and efficiency.

Connect with Medica on Twitter @Medica4Me and Facebook at www.facebook.com/Medica4Me.