HARTFORD, CT – Aetna is the first U.S. health plan to establish a policy of requiring all of its vendors to provide employees with health insurance by 2011.
Aetna is working with its vendors to assess current healthcare coverage and solicit feedback, but so far its larger vendors are supportive, said spokesperson Susan Millerick.
The initiative is one of Chairman and CEO Ronald Williams’ answers to addressing healthcare affordability and access and reducing the number of uninsured in America.
Millerick said vendor feedback would help Aetna shape “a business-size appropriate strategy” to educate employers about benefit options.
The plan is in its early stages, and Millerick said ideas being considered include online education resources that would link to online brokerage services and various pooling mechanisms.
“Our strong desire is that other companies will join us in this proactive initiative to reduce the number of uninsured,” she said.
No other major payers plan to follow, but all have their own initiatives for addressing this problem.
Daniel Emmer, spokesperson for Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey, said requiring vendors to provide health insurance for their employees “may create the appearance of a conflict of interest or quid-pro-quo.”
Horizon BCBSNJ supports America’s Health Insurance Plans’ policy proposals, which, among other things, include eligibility expansion for public programs, the purchase of health insurance with pre-tax dollars and financial assistance for working families.
Horizon BCBSNJ is promoting individual and small group market reform, which includes increasing rating bands and lobbying against legislative mandates on health insurers, Emmer said.
Last year, WellPoint announced a plan blending public and private initiatives that includes “universal coverage for children, improving and expanding public programs for the most needy and providing a bridge to self-sufficiency for the working uninsured,” said spokesperson Cheryl Leamon.
The WellPoint Foundation has committed $30 million to support community and state-based initiatives for access-of-care expansion.
UnitedHealthcare’s solution is to provide new, affordable health coverage options, said Daryl Richard, vice president of communications. “Forty percent of the consumers who purchased an HSA-qualified plan from our individual business reported they previously had no insurance coverage at all,” he said.
The payer has committed $17 million to community health centers.
“The South Bronx Health Center for Children and Families has been able to serve nearly 10,000 patients annually and mobile medical units are reaching many more,” he said. “By addressing the alarming issue of the uninsured on many levels, we hope to effectively expand access to those previously without coverage.”