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Aetna Introduces National Medicare Retiree Health Plan For Employers

Posted on: Tuesday, 11 July 2006, 12:01 CDT

Aetna (NYSE:AET) today announced a new solution for employers who provide retiree health benefits on a national basis - the Aetna Medicare Open(SM) Plan.

This new plan provides national coverage for retirees and expands Aetna Medicare product offerings in service areas not already covered by Aetna Medicare Advantage HMO and PPO plans. The plan will be available to employers for January 2007, pending approval by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).

The Aetna Medicare Open Plan is a private fee-for-service Medicare Advantage plan. This means Medicare-eligible retirees who join a group plan may go to any licensed doctor or hospital that participates in Medicare and is willing to accept Aetna's guidelines and terms for payment.

"The addition of the Aetna Medicare Open Plan allows employers to offer a national, fully insured solution with consistent benefits to their retirees," said Frank McCauley, head of Aetna Retiree Markets. "Our customers have asked us for national coverage to simplify their benefits administration, and we are pleased to add this new option to our already robust array of Medicare plans."

The Aetna Medicare Open Plan can be paired with Aetna's national Medicare Part D prescription drug plans, and can cover additional benefits such as eyeglass reimbursement, hearing aid reimbursement and more.

Among the advantages that the Aetna Medicare Open Plan offers to employers is flexibility of the benefits plan. An employer can reflect many of the design features that exist in the Aetna Medicare Advantage HMO and PPO plans. Additionally Aetna will offer indemnity style design features, so employers can provide all of their retirees with the same member benefits and the same carrier nationwide.

Aetna Medicare Open Plan members will have the same dedicated Medicare customer service and medical management expertise already available in Aetna's other Medicare plans. This includes dedicated case management for older adults, a health risk assessment conducted by telephone upon enrollment, toll-free 24/7 access to registered nurses, and Aetna's MedQuery(R) program that reviews member information to look for opportunities to improve care.

Aetna currently offers Medicare Advantage HMO and PPO plans to employer groups and individuals in Arizona, California, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas, Virginia and Washington, D.C. It expects to expand these plans to additional states in 2007, pending CMS approval.

Aetna is one of the nation's leading diversified health care benefits companies, serving approximately 28.3 million people with information and resources to help them make better informed decisions about their health care. Aetna offers a broad range of traditional and consumer-directed health insurance products and related services, including medical, pharmacy, dental, behavioral health, group life, long-term care and disability plans, and medical management capabilities. Our customers include employer groups, individuals, college students, part-time and hourly workers, health plans and government-sponsored plans. www.aetna.com.

Source: Business Wire

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