Central Health
COLUMBUS, Ohio – Central Health Plan is one of 40 Medicare plans nationally to be recognized for cost-sharing effectiveness and value in the design of their 2014 medical and Part D prescription drug benefits for Medicare beneficiaries. Central Health Plan’s Medicare plan is the only Medicare Advantage plan offered in Los Angeles and Orange counties to qualify for the 2014 Senior Choice Gold Award. The award recipients were selected from over 140 Medicare managed care plans based on cost-sharing comparisons conducted by HealthMetrix Research Inc., a national independent managed care research firm. In announcing the 2014 Senior Choice Gold Award recipients, HealthMetrix Research and MedicareNewsWatch.com president Alan Mittermaier pointed out the importance of the award for Medicare beneficiaries:
“This award addresses the concerns that beneficiaries may have with both Medicare plan performance and the out-of-pocket costs incurred after they enroll. Central Health Plan has demonstrated a commitment to delivering maximum value in the design of their plan benefits, copayments, deductibles, and premiums. Coupled with achieving exemplary measurable performance, informed beneficiaries can rely on this award as an indication of overall high value and quality.”
The award selections were based on the 2014 estimated cost-sharing comparisons conducted in over 100 cities during October 2013 by HealthMetrix Research Inc. The annual comparisons estimate the out-of-pocket costs for beneficiaries based on health status categories (healthy/episodic/chronic) and corresponding utilization of the most common plan benefits (physician office visits, emergency or urgent care, hospital care, prevention care, prescriptions).
The comparisons identify the Medicare plans with the lowest and highest estimated annual out of- pocket costs based on the approved 2014 member copayments, deductibles and premiums that appear in the Medicare Plan Finder database (www.medicare.gov). HealthMetrix Research Inc. has provided independent information to a national audience of managed care organizations and consumers since 1996. The CostShare Report is the most independent analysis of Medicare plan cost-sharing available. HealthMetrix Research Inc. neither recommends nor endorses specific Medicare managed care plans.