CaliforniaChoice Adds Western Health Advantage to its Health Plan Network.Business Editors & Health/Medical Writers ORANGE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 16, 2002 CaliforniaChoice, the nation's fastest-growing small group health purchasing alliance, has added Western Health Advantage to its network of health plan carriers in Northern California Northern California, sometimes referred to as NorCal, is the northern portion of the U.S. state of California. The region contains the San Francisco Bay Area, the state capital, Sacramento; as well as the substantial natural beauty of the redwood forests, the northern , effective with January 1, 2003, coverage for both new and renewing groups. Western Health Advantage is an NCQA NCQA National Committee on Quality Assurance, see there accredited accredited recognition by an appropriate authority that the performance of a particular institution has satisfied a prestated set of criteria. accredited herds cattle herds which have achieved a low level of reactors to, e.g. , not-for-profit health plan serving Sacramento and Yolo Counties plus portions of Solano, Placer & El Dorado El Dorado, legendary country of South America El Dorado (ĕl`dərä`dō, –rā`–) [Span.,=the gilded man], legendary country of the Golden Man sought by adventurers in South America. counties. With the addition of Western Health Advantage, CaliforniaChoice now offers small groups in the greater Sacramento area four HMOs from which to choose, all administered under a single umbrella: Blue Shield of California Blue Shield of California is a not-for-profit health insurance provider headquartered in San Francisco, California. An independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association, Blue Shield of California is an incorporated, wholly owned subsidiary of California Physicians' , Cigna Healthcare, HealthNet and Western Health Advantage. In addition, employees may also opt for PPO PPO abbr. preferred provider organization PPO Managed care Preferred provider organization, see there Infectious disease Pleuropneumonia-like organism, see there coverage through the Blue Shield of California PPO network. "Adding Western Health Advantage to our network of choice provides employers and their employees another outstanding, competitive product to choose from within CaliforniaChoice," said John Word, managing partner of CaliforniaChoice. "Our goal is to bring choice to the small employer health market and given Western Health Advantage's strong name recognition in the Sacramento area this is a natural addition that local health plan brokers and small businesses have been requesting." CaliforniaChoice has a history of meeting local needs by augmenting its statewide provider network with regional health plans, including Universal Care in Southern California Southern California, also colloquially known as SoCal, is the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Centered on the cities of Los Angeles and San Diego, Southern California is home to nearly 24 million people and is the nation's second most populated region, and Sharp Healthcare Sharp HealthCare is a not-for-profit integrated regional health care delivery system located in San Diego. Sharp includes four acute care hospitals, three specialty hospitals, three affiliated medical groups and a health plan. in San Diego San Diego (săn dēā`gō), city (1990 pop. 1,110,549), seat of San Diego co., S Calif., on San Diego Bay; inc. 1850. San Diego includes the unincorporated communities of La Jolla and Spring Valley. Coronado is across the bay. . These regional plans have fared well within the CaliforniaChoice family, and Western Health Advantage executives expect that the same will be true in this new affiliation. "CaliforniaChoice is a proven and effective program that helps smaller companies control their budgets during a period of rapidly increasing premiums," said Bill Figenshu, chief sales and marketing officer of Western Health Advantage. "Being part of the CaliforniaChoice purchasing alliance provides these employers still another way to access Western Health Advantage coverage while assuring their employees freedom of choice. We see that as a win for everyone." Western Health Advantage, created by local healthcare providers, features some of the region's premier medical professionals including more than 600 primary care physicians and 1,000 specialty care providers. Western Health Advantage also maintains a complete network of specialty physicians who have admitting privileges at some of the top medical facilities in the region. Based in Orange, California, CaliforniaChoice is the nation's fastest-growing small group health purchasing alliance with over 10,000 employer clients and approximately 150,000 members receiving health benefits through this program. Sold exclusively through health plan brokers, CaliforniaChoice includes a range of HMO network HMO network Managed care An HMO that contracts with local hospitals to provide in-patient medical services, and with 2 or more independent groups of physicians to provide health services; the group is paid a set amount per HMO enrollee per month; in some, staff choices and four PPO benefit designs on a single-source administrative platform. In a time when the industry is seeing double-digit rate increases in healthcare premiums, employers have embraced CaliforniaChoice because it provides budget control and cost predictability while removing from them the burden of choosing a single health plan for their entire workforce. Employees love it because they are empowered to choose the health plan and benefit level that best meets their family's needs and budget. Further information may be obtained at www.calchoice.com. |
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