Highmark Blue Shield, partnering with Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center and PinnacleHealth, is offering a lower-cost insurance plan option for central Pennsylvania residents, including Berks County.
The plan, known as Alliance Flex Blue, offers two-levels of in-network benefits.
Small groups of 100 or fewer employees and individuals in the region will be eligible for enrollement later this year. The effective start date will be Jan. 1, 2016.
The plan will allow members to select out-of-pocket costs based on the tier of hospital system where they choose to receive their care. Customers going to hospitals in the Enhanced Value Level of Benefits, including Penn State Health St. Joseph, will have the lowest level of cost-sharing, which includes the deductible, co-pay and the co-insurance, the percentage of the cost of care for which the member is responsible.
“Penn State Hershey is committed to providing patients with access to high quality, specialty care at the lowest possible cost,” Dr. A Craig Hillemeier, CEO of the Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center, said in a statement.
The Standard Value Level of Benefits involves what Highmark described as “low-to-moderate level of member cost sharing.” Participating facilities include Reading Health System and The Surgical Institute of Reading.
Date: September 16, 2015