Blue Cross Blue Shield of Arizona and non-profit health system Banner Health have announced an equal partnership designed to provide a coordinated Medicare Advantage offering to be known as Blue Cross Blue Shield of Arizona Advantage.
The new BCBSAZ Advantage plan will include Medicare Advantage plans that currently are operated by Banner under the Banner MediSun Medicare Health Plan name.
“This is an opportunity to capitalize on the strengths of the Blue Cross Blue Shield brand to position our company to more efficiently and effectively serve expanding markets in the government sector,” said Richard L. Boals, president and CEO of Blue Cross Blue Shield of Arizona, in a press release. “By joining with Banner to offer Medicare products, we’re now able to offer a broader range of services that furthers our position to compete as an industry leader during a transformative time in the healthcare industry.”
Banner Health is one of the largest non-profit health systems in the country with 23 acute-care hospitals, the Banner Health Network, Banner Medical Group, long-term care centers, outpatient surgery centers, primary care clinics and an array of other services located in the states of Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Nebraska, Nevada and Wyoming.
The new joint venture will allow both the health plan and the health system to provide a coordinated approach to providing both health insurance and coordinated healthcare to Medicare members in Maricopa County and parts of Pinal County. It will incorporate current health plans run by Banner under the MediSunONE Classic, MediSunONE Plus and MediSunONE Premier names.
The venture helps provide BCBSAZ with a solid base of Medicare Advantage customers by incorporating the Banner health plans. Currently, BCBSAZ offers both Medicare Part D and Medicare supplement plans with a member base of more than 23,000. As a result of the joint venture, both companies anticipate an enrollment of approximately 25,000 seniors.
“This is an ideal opportunity for Banner to leverage our comprehensive network of quality providers who are supported and linked by an electronic medical records system and other enabling technologies that are unmatched in Arizona,” said Peter S. Fine, president and CEO of Banner Health, in a prepared statement.
The collaboration between the two parties is not their first and builds upon the success of a narrow-network product called Blue Alliance. The health plan offers lower premiums by using Banner’s facilities along with its network of more than 2,500 local providers, as opposed to the typical network of more than 18,000 providers offered under most BCBSAZ plans
via Arizona Blue, Banner Health in Medicare joint venture | Healthcare Finance News.