The Healthy Lifestyles Cooperative of Brown County is pleased to announce it has selected Humana Inc. to be the health benefits provider for the first and second insurance pools of Co-op members, effective Jan. 1, 2009, pending regulatory approval.

Pools 1 and 2 include 170 employers, totaling 3,200 members. Humana is replacing Destiny Health, who is exiting the insurance market in the U.S. The Co-op, Destiny Health and Humana reached an earlier agreement to transition Pools 1 and 2 to the Humana ChoiceCare Network from the HEALTHEOS provider network effective Aug. 1, 2008.

Humana was also selected as the Co-op’s insurer/health benefits provider for its third insurance pool effective Jan. 1, 2009.

“Humana was the logical choice to take over the insurance coverage for our first two pools. Humana has for several months been working with both the Cooperative and Destiny Health to ensure the success of a smooth transition for our members,” said Randy Connour, executive director, Healthy Lifestyles Cooperative. “Humana is well aligned with the Co-op in a number of integral ways. These include offering significant expertise in consumer-directed healthcare and wellness plans and substantial discounts because of the company’s vast marketplace presence through its ChoiceCare network, as well as embracing the overall vision of the Co-op to empower individuals to adopt healthier lifestyles for everyone’s benefit.”

“There’s been a lot of interest in the community about who would replace Destiny after they decided to exit the insurance marketplace. Humana is by far the best of all the alternatives,” added Tim Day, Healthy Lifestyles Cooperative carrier committee chair. “We look forward to teaming with an organization equally committed to the philosophy of reining in costs by keeping the consumer healthy.”

Mark Wernicke, vice president of Humana Small Business, added that Humana’s consumer-focused tools and programs that encourage behavior change have led to cost savings for many of the insurers’ existing groups, “and we are glad to bring that experience to the Co-op,” he said.

The Co-op’s partner for providing its wellness/fitness incentives for the third insurance pool should be finalized within the next two months.

Deadline extended for pool 3 – Due to increased interest, the Co-op has extended the deadline for interested small businesses to apply to the third insurance group until Sept. 15. Interested organizations will receive their new group rates shortly thereafter. To inquire about potential inclusion in Pool 3 (starting up Jan. 1, 2009) please contact Randy Connour at rconnour@healthylifestylescoop.org or (920) 593-3426.

The Cooperative is a non-profit organization with a mission to provide Northeast Wisconsin employers with a health insurance plan that achieves stable premium rates through cooperative purchasing, personal accountability and healthier lifestyles.  Learn more at www.healthylifestylescoop.org.

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