Breaking the Code
Highest Ranking Health Care Plans Focus on Member Communications
Health care plans offer frustratingly uneven levels of performance across the country. Recognized brands and associations can deliver widely varying customer satisfaction across the different regions they serve. That lack of service consistency poses real challenges to national businesses and their employees.
The J.D. Power and Associates 2008 National Health Insurance Plan StudySMmeasures member satisfaction with 107 large commercial health plans in 17 regions throughout the United States. It examines seven key factors: coverage and benefits; choice of doctors, hospitals and pharmacies; information and communication; approval processes; claims processing; insurance statements; and customer service. We analyzed responses from more than 37,000 health plan members to understand how they felt about their experiences with their health insurance providers.
A key factor that emerged was the impact of regular and clear communication on the subscriber experience. Health plans that do the best job of communicating critical plan details to their subscribers consistently rank highest in customer-reported satisfaction. Health plans that contact their members on a regular basis and work with them to help them understand how to effectively make use of their benefits consistently get high satisfaction ratings. That's not too surprising when you consider that fully 55% of all the health plan members surveyed reported that they didn't fully understand how to use their plans. Uncertainty about key plan elements like prescription coverage, co-pays, how to locate physicians and how to appeal coverage denials makes for unhappy subscribers.
Study results by region are:
Arizona-Utah RegionBlueCross BlueShield of Arizona ranks highest in the Arizona-Utah region, receiving an overall satisfaction index score of 763 on a 1,000-point scale. Following in the regional rankings are SelectHealth and United Healthcare (Western States) with scores of 762 and 726, respectively.
CaliforniaKaiser Foundation Health Plan of California ranks highest in customer satisfaction with health insurance plans in California with a score of 755.
ColoradoIn Colorado, Kaiser Foundation Health Plan of Colorado ranks highest with a score of 748. CIGNA HealthCare of Colorado, Inc. follows in the regional rankings with a score of 729.
East South Central RegionBlueCross BlueShield of Alabama ranks highest in the East South Central region with a score of 759. CIGNA HealthCare of Tennessee, Inc. (749) and BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee (737) follow in the regional rankings.
FloridaBlueCross Blue Shield of Florida ranks highest in Florida for a second consecutive year with an overall score of 751. CIGNA HealthCare of Florida, Inc. also performs well in the region, earning a score of 745.
Heartland RegionRanking highest in the Heartland region is Wellmark BlueCross BlueShield of Iowa with a score of 742. United Healthcare of the Midwest, Inc. and BlueCross BlueShield of Nebraska follow closely in the regional rankings, in a tie, with a score of 740.
Illinois-Indiana RegionBlueCross BlueShield of Illinois ranks highest in the Illinois-Indiana region, earning a score of 729. Following in the regional rankings are Anthem BlueCross BlueShield of Indiana (727) and CIGNA HealthCare of Illinois, Inc. (719).
MichiganHealth Alliance Plan of Michigan ranks highest in customer satisfaction with health insurance plans in Michigan with a score of 772. Also performing well in Michigan is BlueCross BlueShield of Michigan,
earning a score of 754.
Minnesota-Wisconsin RegionHealthPartners ranks highest in the Minnesota-Wisconsin region with a score of 768. Following HealthPartners in the regional rankings is BlueCross BlueShield of Minnesota with a score of 746.
New England RegionAnthem BlueCross BlueShield of Connecticut ranks highest in the New England region with a score of 772. Following closely in the rankings is Harvard Pilgrim Health Care, Inc. with a score of 771. Ranking third in the region is BlueCross and BlueShield of Massachusetts (751).
New York-New Jersey RegionUnited Healthcare (New Jersey/New York) ranks highest in the New York-New Jersey region with a score of 749. In a tie, Empire BlueCross BlueShield and BlueCross BlueShield of Western New York and Blue Shield of Northeast New York follow in the regional rankings, with 742 points.
Northwest RegionGroup Health Cooperative ranks highest in the Northwest region, earning a score of 778. Following Group Health Cooperative in the regional rankings are, respectively, Premera Blue Cross (765) and Regence BlueShield (738).
OhioHumana of Ohio ranks highest in customer satisfaction with health insurance plans in Ohio with a score of 748. Following Humana of Ohio are Medical Mutual of Ohio and United Healthcare of Ohio, Inc., with scores of 737 and 736, respectively.
Pennsylvania-Delaware RegionHighmark Blue Cross and Blue Shield ranks highest in the Pennsylvania-Delaware region with a score of 784. Following in the regional rankings are Highmark Blue Shield (773) and Blue Cross of Northeastern Pennsylvania (771).
South Atlantic RegionIn the South Atlantic region, Kaiser Foundation Health Plan of Georgia ranks highest with a score of 746. AETNA Health Inc. (Georgia) and BlueCross BlueShield of North Carolina follow in the regional rankings with scores of 743 and 740, respectively.
TexasHumana of Texas ranks highest in customer satisfaction with health insurance plans in Texas with a score of 753. CIGNA Healthcare of Texas, Inc. (747) and BlueCross BlueShield of Texas (736) follow Humana of Texas in the regional rankings.
Virginia-Maryland RegionIn the Virginia-Maryland region, CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield ranks highest with a score of 740. Following CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield in the rankings are Kaiser Foundation Health Plan (739) and Anthem Health Plans of Virginia (734).
For more information, see:
Power Circle Ratings of National Health Insurance Plans
The J.D. Power and Associates 2008 National Health Insurance Plan StudySM
Health care plans offer frustratingly uneven levels of performance across the country. Recognized brands and associations can deliver widely varying customer satisfaction across the different regions they serve. That lack of service consistency poses real challenges to national businesses and their employees.
The J.D. Power and Associates 2008 National Health Insurance Plan StudySMmeasures member satisfaction with 107 large commercial health plans in 17 regions throughout the United States. It examines seven key factors: coverage and benefits; choice of doctors, hospitals and pharmacies; information and communication; approval processes; claims processing; insurance statements; and customer service. We analyzed responses from more than 37,000 health plan members to understand how they felt about their experiences with their health insurance providers.A key factor that emerged was the impact of regular and clear communication on the subscriber experience. Health plans that do the best job of communicating critical plan details to their subscribers consistently rank highest in customer-reported satisfaction. Health plans that contact their members on a regular basis and work with them to help them understand how to effectively make use of their benefits consistently get high satisfaction ratings. That's not too surprising when you consider that fully 55% of all the health plan members surveyed reported that they didn't fully understand how to use their plans. Uncertainty about key plan elements like prescription coverage, co-pays, how to locate physicians and how to appeal coverage denials makes for unhappy subscribers.
Study results by region are:
Arizona-Utah RegionBlueCross BlueShield of Arizona ranks highest in the Arizona-Utah region, receiving an overall satisfaction index score of 763 on a 1,000-point scale. Following in the regional rankings are SelectHealth and United Healthcare (Western States) with scores of 762 and 726, respectively.
CaliforniaKaiser Foundation Health Plan of California ranks highest in customer satisfaction with health insurance plans in California with a score of 755.
ColoradoIn Colorado, Kaiser Foundation Health Plan of Colorado ranks highest with a score of 748. CIGNA HealthCare of Colorado, Inc. follows in the regional rankings with a score of 729.
East South Central RegionBlueCross BlueShield of Alabama ranks highest in the East South Central region with a score of 759. CIGNA HealthCare of Tennessee, Inc. (749) and BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee (737) follow in the regional rankings.
FloridaBlueCross Blue Shield of Florida ranks highest in Florida for a second consecutive year with an overall score of 751. CIGNA HealthCare of Florida, Inc. also performs well in the region, earning a score of 745.
Heartland RegionRanking highest in the Heartland region is Wellmark BlueCross BlueShield of Iowa with a score of 742. United Healthcare of the Midwest, Inc. and BlueCross BlueShield of Nebraska follow closely in the regional rankings, in a tie, with a score of 740.
Illinois-Indiana RegionBlueCross BlueShield of Illinois ranks highest in the Illinois-Indiana region, earning a score of 729. Following in the regional rankings are Anthem BlueCross BlueShield of Indiana (727) and CIGNA HealthCare of Illinois, Inc. (719).
MichiganHealth Alliance Plan of Michigan ranks highest in customer satisfaction with health insurance plans in Michigan with a score of 772. Also performing well in Michigan is BlueCross BlueShield of Michigan,
earning a score of 754.Minnesota-Wisconsin RegionHealthPartners ranks highest in the Minnesota-Wisconsin region with a score of 768. Following HealthPartners in the regional rankings is BlueCross BlueShield of Minnesota with a score of 746.
New England RegionAnthem BlueCross BlueShield of Connecticut ranks highest in the New England region with a score of 772. Following closely in the rankings is Harvard Pilgrim Health Care, Inc. with a score of 771. Ranking third in the region is BlueCross and BlueShield of Massachusetts (751).
New York-New Jersey RegionUnited Healthcare (New Jersey/New York) ranks highest in the New York-New Jersey region with a score of 749. In a tie, Empire BlueCross BlueShield and BlueCross BlueShield of Western New York and Blue Shield of Northeast New York follow in the regional rankings, with 742 points.
Northwest RegionGroup Health Cooperative ranks highest in the Northwest region, earning a score of 778. Following Group Health Cooperative in the regional rankings are, respectively, Premera Blue Cross (765) and Regence BlueShield (738).
OhioHumana of Ohio ranks highest in customer satisfaction with health insurance plans in Ohio with a score of 748. Following Humana of Ohio are Medical Mutual of Ohio and United Healthcare of Ohio, Inc., with scores of 737 and 736, respectively.
Pennsylvania-Delaware RegionHighmark Blue Cross and Blue Shield ranks highest in the Pennsylvania-Delaware region with a score of 784. Following in the regional rankings are Highmark Blue Shield (773) and Blue Cross of Northeastern Pennsylvania (771).
South Atlantic RegionIn the South Atlantic region, Kaiser Foundation Health Plan of Georgia ranks highest with a score of 746. AETNA Health Inc. (Georgia) and BlueCross BlueShield of North Carolina follow in the regional rankings with scores of 743 and 740, respectively.
TexasHumana of Texas ranks highest in customer satisfaction with health insurance plans in Texas with a score of 753. CIGNA Healthcare of Texas, Inc. (747) and BlueCross BlueShield of Texas (736) follow Humana of Texas in the regional rankings.
Virginia-Maryland RegionIn the Virginia-Maryland region, CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield ranks highest with a score of 740. Following CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield in the rankings are Kaiser Foundation Health Plan (739) and Anthem Health Plans of Virginia (734).
For more information, see:
Power Circle Ratings of National Health Insurance Plans
The J.D. Power and Associates 2008 National Health Insurance Plan StudySM