IBC eBulletin - IBC announces new Personal Choice® plans for individuals

We are pleased to announce that we have expanded our individual medically underwritten* product portfolio effective July 1 to include Personal Choice PPO plans. Along with the introduction of these new plans, we are enhancing all medically underwritten plans by giving applicants the ability to have preexisting condition exclusion waiting periods waived or reduced. We also want to remind you about the upcoming rate increase for our Individual HMO plans and provide some additional information.

Personal Choice PPO plans

Your customers will now be able to get coverage from the #1 rated PPO** plan in the region. We are introducing five Personal Choice PPO plans to our existing individual medically underwritten product portfolio. Approved applicants have coverage for office visits, preventive care, prescription drugs, hospital stays, emergency/urgent care, X-rays, and laboratory services. Your customers will love the quality and flexibility that comes with Personal Choice coverage – locally, nationally, and around the world at a more affordable price.

Whether your customers are looking for predictability, affordability, or savings, we have a plan that should meet their needs. Under our Personal Choice PPO product line, we are offering one copay plan, two deductible plans, and two HSA-qualified plans. Individuals will have 11 medically underwritten plans to choose from (5 PPO and 6 HMO options) at various price points. With monthly rates as low as $75, our plans give individuals flexibility in cost-sharing to meet their unique needs. View preliminary rates for these plans.

To learn more about the complete product offerings, refer to the Individual Product Portfolio.

Look for an upcoming notice with commission rates, along with information about a small group and individual bonus program for producers.

Changes to preexisting conditions exclusion

You will be pleased to know that beginning July 1, 2010, applicants will be able to waive or reduce the waiting period for a preexisting condition exclusion through a Blue-to-Blue transfer or through prior creditable coverage for the Personal Choice PPO and the Keystone Health Plan East HMO plans.

• Blue-to-Blue coverage. An individual must have had active health coverage with a Blue Cross^® or Blue Shield^® plan for up to 12 months without a break in coverage prior to the requested effective date.
• Creditable coverage. An individual must have had active coverage with another carrier for at least 18 months without a break in coverage of more than 63 days prior to their current application date.

Applicants who qualify for a reduction or waiver of the preexisting condition exclusion period should complete Section G of the application and provide any required documentation.

To learn more, visit the Preexisting Exclusion section of the Broker's Individual Toolkit.

Tools and Resources

Our goal is to make it easier for your customers to understand health insurance. Throughout our promotional materials, you’ll find that we have taken a more educational approach to explaining our plans. We have included charts to help individuals decide what type of cost-sharing works for them – copay, deductible, or HSA. We’ve included an explanation on the differences between HMO and PPO plans, along with a glossary full of common terms and definitions related to health insurance.

We also want to make your job easier by providing you with all of the tools and resources you need to sell our individual plans. Our Broker's Individual Toolkit has been updated to include everything you need to know about our new plans.

Broker application kits will be available through BAGS in early June. The online quoting and application process will begin June 14.

Keystone Individual HMO rate increase

We also want to remind you of the upcoming rate increase for Keystone Individual HMO plans, which takes effect July 1, 2010, as well as some recent changes since the last broker notice. Originally, you were informed that members’ new rates might also reflect an additional adjustment if they have moved into a new age band since the last rate increase. We have decided that we will not adjust members’ rates if they have moved into a new age band. Therefore, all members will receive only a 9.9 percent rate increase at this time. We have developed a website, www.ibx.com/changemyplan, to assist members who would like to make a benefits change as a result of the rate increase. View the links below to see the letters we are sending to members this week. A list of your affected members will be sent out in the next couple of days.

Primary letter to members

Letter to members with 6-month rate guarantee

Follow-up letter to members with 6-month rate guarantee

We hope that you will be pleased with the improvements we’ve made to our individual product portfolio and that they will help you to increase sales and retain satisfied customers.

If you have any questions, please contact your Independence Blue Cross account executive.

*Final rate quote and approval of coverage are dependent on medical underwriting. Approval is not guaranteed, and some applications may not be approved based on medical conditions.
**According to a leading independent consumer magazine.

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Independence Blue Cross | 1901 Market Street | Philadelphia, PA 19103