April 6, 2006
DANVILLE, Pa.— Members of Geisinger Health Plan ranked it among the highest in the state for quality and member satisfaction, says a new report released by the Pennsylvania Health Care Cost Containment Council (PHC4), an independent state agency.
The annual report, “Measuring the Quality of Pennsylvania’s Commercial HMOs,” compares Pennsylvania’s health plans in how well they keep members healthy, prevent hospitalizations through primary care, manage ongoing illnesses, follow-up to an emergency situation and perform on surgical procedures. Overall, more than 40 different measures are compared.
“The PHC4 report gives Pennsylvania consumers a useful tool to measure the quality of care and service HMOs provide,” says Duane E. Davis, M.D, GHP’s vice president and chief medical officer. “This valuable information is designed to help consumers make more informed decisions, thereby improving the quality of care they receive and restraining the cost of health care in Pennsylvania. We are pleased with these scores and will continue working to improve our rates in both clinical and service-related measures.”
Geisinger Health Plan scored well in many of the measures. Some of the highest results in quality were related to its disease management programs, including nationally recognized programs for members with diabetes and coronary artery disease.
For members with diabetes, GHP scored higher than state and national averages in controlling Hemoglobin A1c levels, receiving A1c blood tests in the past year, monitoring kidney disease, screening for cholesterol and controlling bad cholesterol. For members who have had an acute cardiovascular event, GHP scored higher than state and national averages in receiving cholesterol screenings, controlling bad cholesterol and using beta-blockers.
GHP also scored higher than state and national averages in childhood immunizations, timely initiation of prenatal care, controlling high blood pressure and screening for breast and colorectal cancer.
The PHC4 report also revealed that 70 percent of GHP members gave GHP the highest satisfaction rating, in contrast to the state average of 66 percent and the national average of 64 percent.
In other service measures, GHP had a higher percentage of members than the state average in: a short waiting time for routine care or an illness or injury, getting needed care, receiving approvals without delay, contacting customer service and seeing a specialist. In addition, GHP maintains a low number of member complaints or problems and a high percentage of members whose complaints are settled to their satisfaction.
An independent state agency, PHC4 was created under Pennsylvania statute (Act 89) to collect, analyze and report data to the public about the cost and quality of health care in Pennsylvania. This is the seventh year PHC4 has reported on the quality of care that HMO networks offer.
Geisinger Health Plan, begun in 1985, is headquartered in Danville, PA and is one of the nation’s largest rural HMOs. GHP serves more than 200,000 members in 40 counties. Members of the Health Plan have access to complete health-care benefits, from preventive care and routine office visits to hospital care and surgery; and an extensive network of primary care physicians, including affiliations with hospitals, pharmacies, and home health and rehabilitation services. Coverage is available for businesses of all sizes, individuals and families, and Medicare beneficiaries. PPO, high deductible, self-funded and indemnity plans are sold through its affiliate, Geisinger Indemnity Insurance Company.
To obtain a free copy of the report, please call (717) 232-6787 or visit www.phc4.org.
For more information, please contact
Amy Bowen, Public Relations Coordinator (570) 271-8135