SeeChange Health – The New Value-Based Health Insurer Aligns Benefits with Preventive Care and Chronic Condition Management

San Francisco, CA–March 22, 2010 – SeeChange Health today launched the first new value-based health insurance company in California, offering personalized, value-based health plans that provide incentives to encourage individuals to play an active role in their health management and improve their quality of life. As the first value-based health insurance company to launch in the United States, SeeChange Health brings affordable, next-generation insurance designs to the employer group market. The plan will be available initially in Fresno, California, but the company plans to expand their offering to Los Angeles, San Diego, Bakersfield, Monterey, Sacramento and San Francisco in the coming months.

Value-based health care encourages individuals to access preventive care, which will identify looming health problems before they become serious – and expensive. Participants who complete a health questionnaire along with age and gender specific preventive examinations, including cancer screenings and basic lab tests, are rewarded with enhanced benefits such as reduced coinsurance and deductibles along with cash rewards.

Unlike typical health insurance companies, SeeChange Health designed its benefit plans to encourage individuals to see their doctor. SeeChange Health covers preventive examinations, including cancer screenings and associated lab tests, at 100 percent.

“We are thrilled to partner with a health plan that rewards its members for building and maintaining a relationship with their doctor,” said Dr. Daniel Bluestone, Chief Medical Officer of Santé Community Physicians. “SeeChange Health promotes healthy behaviors, which will ultimately reduce chronic illnesses and help people live fuller, healthier lives.”

In addition to providing enhanced benefits for completing preventive examinations and related screenings, SeeChange rewards its members with financial incentives for completing health actions necessary for proactively managing chronic conditions, such as diabetes, asthma and coronary artery disease.

“When SeeChange approached us with its groundbreaking solution, we eagerly embraced the only health plan to completely align its benefits with preventive care and chronic condition management,” said Cyndy Nayer, President of the Center for Health Value Innovation, the nation’s premier information exchange for value-based design.

“The reaction and feedback we are receiving from employers is overwhelmingly positive,” said Chuck Trogdon, CEO of Renberg, Trogdon, & Cavale Insurance Services. “Employers are clamoring for affordable health plans with benefits designed to support individual efforts for staying healthy. This approach drives down health plan costs and promotes a healthier workforce.”

Why the initial focus on California? One out of seven residents are uninsured and the number is growing. In the coming months, SeeChange will expand their health insurance offerings throughout California and into twenty-four states where they are licensed to sell value-based health insurance.

“While the nation debates the merits of a national health care plan, the elephant in the room is who is going to pay for it,” said Martin Watson, CEO of SeeChange Health. “With our new plan, we are effectively showing that you can lower health care costs and improve the quality of care while you’re doing it.”

About SeeChange Health

SeeChange Health provides fully-insured, value-based health insurance to employer groups. The company combines value-based benefit designs, data analytics and an interactive personal health record to consistently improve the health profile of individuals. Preventive health actions are assigned and tracked at an individual level. Individuals with disease states such as pre-diabetes, diabetes, asthma and heart disease receive specific health actions based on their medical condition. SeeChange Health is headquartered in San Francisco and is focused on reducing health care costs through proactive health management and early detection of health conditions.

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PRSeeChangeLaunchMarch22-2010