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Here is the latest edition of Model Consulting's Week in Review Newsletter. We
hope you find the Newsletter informative and helpful.
Your feedback is
extremely important to us. Please contact Tracy Duffield at 215.947.7167 or
tduffield@modelconsultinginc.com to share your ideas, comments
and/or suggestions. We look forward to hearing from you! |
 COBRA Premium Subsidy Extended
Through May 2010
The American
Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) provided a temporary subsidy for
the cost of COBRA continuation health coverage. The COBRA premium subsidy has
already been extended twice, first in December 2009 and then in March 2010. On
April 15, 2010, President Obama signed The Continuing Extension Act of 2010,
extending the eligibility period for the subsidy again.
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Aetna: CMS Sanctions on Medicare Advantage and
Medicare Part D Plans
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has
notified Aetna of its intent to impose
intermediate sanctions suspending the enrollment of and marketing to new
members of all Aetna Medicare Advantage and Standalone Prescription Drug Plan
Contracts, effective April 21, 2010.
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AmeriHealth NJ: Important Information About Our
Health Benefits Programs
Periodically, we review and evaluate our benefits
plans and, as needed, update and clarify benefits. The purpose of these updates
is to provide our members with a better understanding of their benefits
information.
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Health
Net: Solaris Health System, New
Jersey
At Health Net, we are committed to keeping you
informed of any events that may impact your benefits. To this end, we are
writing to inform you that effective April 4, 2010, Solaris Health
System in New Jersey
will no longer be an active participant in the Health Net network.
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Horizon Blue Cross: Changes in Massachusetts Creditable Coverage
Requirements
Since
July 2007, the Commonwealth
of Massachusetts Health Care Reform
law has required all adult residents to have a minimum level of creditable
health insurance, if they can afford it. Sponsors
of health plans are required to provide a 1099-HC form annually to covered Massachusetts residents for whom they have provided minimum creditable
coverage for the prior calendar year.
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Independence Blue Cross: CMS Regulations
Requirement
We are writing to remind you that your customers with 2 to
99 eligible employees have only until April 30, 2010, to send us their group
size information. The information is required by the Centers for Medicare &
Medicaid Services (CMS), which establishes Medicare Secondary Payer (MSP)
requirements. This information is used to determine the primary payer for
claims: Independence Blue Cross (IBC) or Medicare.
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Independence Blue Cross: Information Regarding IBC Medigap
Products
Beginning June 1, 2010, the Medicare
Improvements for Patients and Providers Act (MIPPA) requires all Medigap plans
to offer a Medicare Part A hospice cost-sharing benefit of no more than a $5.00
copayment for each prescription drug and 5 percent (5%) of the
Medicare-approved amount for inpatient respite care.
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UnitedHealthcare: Alliance to Help Prevent and Control Diabetes
and Obesity
UnitedHealth
Group announced today that it is launching the Diabetes Prevention and Control
Alliance, a partnership with YMCA-USA and Walgreens, to help prevent and
control diabetes, pre-diabetes and obesity.
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UnitedHealthcare:
Fill Coverage Gap for Graduating College Students
UnitedHealthcare will work with your clients that wish to extend the
health coverage that graduating college students currently have under their
parents' plans. We are taking this step ahead of a new federal health reform
provision that will require dependent coverage up to age 26.
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UnitedHealthcare/Oxford: Continuum Health Partners Agreement
In mid March, we sent you a
communication about our new multi-year agreement with Continuum Health Partners
("Continuum"), which became effective for services dates on and after March 1,
2010. This notice is to provide you with
additional information.
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