Health Net Medicare store gives seniors a personal touch.

Health Net is closely watching the performance of its first Medicare store, located in the Fiesta Mall in Mesa, Ariz., and could open other stores selling insurance policies throughout the country as early as this fall.

Scott Ptacek, vice president of marketing and business development for Health Net's Medicare programs, said a storefront makes it easier to work with senior citizens to handle their health insurance needs.

"This is a really good fit for what we're trying to do with Medicare," Ptacek said. "Seniors prefer to deal with people face-to-face. The type of Medicare policy a person buys is a very personal decision."

The mall location, he says, sees quite a bit of foot traffic, and it's staffed by Medicare Advantages salespeople from 7:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Saturday and from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Sundays. Ptacek said the store, which is staffed by a rotating group of existing salespeople, is perfectly placed to take advantage of senior "mall walkers" and shoppers.

The store, which has been open for close to four weeks, operated in its first week without any advertising. Since then, a combination of direct mailings and existing print advertising campaigns have drawn an impressive number of customers to the store, Ptacek said, although he did not have specific numbers.

"This is really a beta site, a test market for our retail store concept. So far it seems to be going very well, and we are exploring additional (stores) in our other markets," Ptacek said.

Ptacek said the stores are not expensive for the company to run, and that to his knowledge, Health Net is the first insurance provider in the country to open an insurance store. If the company does open other stores, they would start appearing this coming fall.

Part D enrollment

According to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid services, more than 7.2 million people have individually enrolled in Part D in order to receive prescription drug benefits, and number that increases by more than 100,000 every week. Many of them have been assisted by counselors or volunteers that have worked across the country to match people with the right plans.

The plans have been criticized by some as needlessly complex, and during the beginning of the benefit program some beneficiaries showed up at pharmacies only to find that their drugs weren't covered under their Part D plan.

In a report released earlier this month, CMS said that "Medicare Part D plans must build on the improved customer service, strengthened data systems, and other operational enhancements they have made thus far," in order to make it easier for seniors to understand their benefits.

Samantha Rothenberger, a spokeswoman for the nonprofit group Medicare Today, agreed that face-to-face meetings are preferable for seniors, whether they're signing up directly with the CMS or going through private insurance companies.

"There are more positive experiences when you meet with seniors face to face," said Rothenberger.