ORANGE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Alignment Health Plan, a Southern Calif.-based Medicare Advantage plan, is expanding its coverage into eight greater Sacramento and Bay Area counties, where more than 862,000 Medicare recipients live1: Marin, Placer, Sacramento, San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Cruz, Sonoma and Yolo. This means that the more than 5.3 million Medicare-eligible individuals who live in Alignment’s full service area will have the option to select one of its plans – with exclusive access to a concierge-level member services team and health care “black card” – during Medicare’s annual election period, Oct. 15 through Dec. 7, 2019.
Available only to Alignment Health Plan members, the ACCESS On-Demand Concierge program provides round-the-clock access to a board-certified doctor by phone or video; a dedicated concierge team; and a special black card that can be used as a debit card to buy eligible items at more than 50,000 retailers across the country.
The company today revealed its 2020 portfolio of health plans, featuring benefits2 designed to provide better care, service and value than traditional Medicare, including:
- Nearly 500 commonly used generic drugs at $0 copay for most plans
- Coverage of prescription drugs not typically covered by Medicare including generic Viagra
- Transportation to doctor appointments using ride-share companies like Uber and Lyft
- Companionship for members of certain plans with diabetes and other chronic illnesses
- A monthly grocery allowance for qualifying members on certain plans
“Alignment’s ACCESS On-Demand Concierge is evolving as health care consumers’ expectations become more sophisticated. We purposely built Alignment to provide seniors the care and service they deserve, and we are delighted to be able to give them peace of mind that all their health care needs will be taken care of,” said John Kao, CEO of Alignment Healthcare, which owns and operates Alignment Health Plan.
Expanded ACCESS On-Demand Concierge Includes Groceries, “Grandkids On-Demand”
With new flexibility from federal regulators to provide supplemental benefits that address social determinants of health, Alignment has added both grocery and companion care benefits to certain plans in 2020 for members who have qualifying chronic diseases. The grocery benefit provides a monthly allowance of $10 to $20 per month depending on the plan, automatically loaded onto the member’s black card to buy eligible groceries at participating stores like CVS, Walmart and Walgreens. The companion care benefit connects college students with members who need assistance with non-medical services such as light house chores, technology lessons and general companionship. These “grandkids on-demand” are available to meet with qualified members for up to two hours per day, 12 hours per quarter and 48 hours per year. Medical records will be used to establish qualification and, once qualified, the member will qualify for the remainder of the plan year.
Expanded Coverage Options Now Available in Northern California
During this year’s annual election period, Alignment is offering new Medicare Advantage options that give Northern California members access to the Sutter Health network: Sutter Advantage (HMO) and My Choice (PPO). The six new HMO plans are available in eight counties3 and the four new PPO plans are available in seven counties.4 Depending on their plan, effective Jan. 1, 2020, members will be able to seek “in-network” care with the high-quality doctors, hospitals, medical foundations and other health care services affiliated with Sutter Health, a not-for-profit integrated health care system. The network also includes some providers associated with Sutter Independent Physicians and Mills-Peninsula Medical Group, two physician organizations aligned with Sutter.
In Marin County, Alignment is introducing its CalPlus (HMO) and Platinum (HMO) plans, with access starting Jan. 1, 2020 to in-network care from Brown & Toland Physicians, a network of more than 2,700 Bay Area doctors.
Alignment Healthcare is powered by AVA®, the company’s proprietary command center, an artificial intelligence-based platform that provides real-time analytics on every Alignment member, empowering clinicians with medical insights that lead to life-saving care, sometimes predicting care before it’s even needed. In addition to its expansion in Northern California, Alignment serves Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Diego, San Joaquin, Santa Clara and Stanislaus counties in California. For more information, visit alignmenthealthplan.com.
About Alignment Healthcare
Alignment Healthcare is redefining the business of health care by shifting the focus from payments to people. We’ve created a new model for health care delivery that cuts costs and improves lives by unraveling the inefficiencies of the current system to drive patients, providers and payers toward a common goal of wellness. Harnessing best practices from Medicare Advantage, our innovative data-management technology allows us to commit to caring for seniors and those who need it most: the chronically ill and frail. With offices and care centers across the country, Alignment Healthcare provides partners and patients with customized care and service where they need it and when they need it, including clinical coordination, risk management and technology facilitation. Alignment Healthcare offers health plan options to California residents through Alignment Health Plan, and partners with select health plans in North Carolina and Florida to help deliver better benefits at lower costs. For more information, please visit www.alignmenthealthcare.com.
1 Medicare enrollment as of July 2019, https://www.cms.gov/Research-Statistics-Data-and-Systems/Statistics-Trends-and-Reports/CMSProgramStatistics/Dashboard.html
2 Benefits vary by plan. Copays and certain restrictions may apply.
3 Placer, Sacramento, San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, Sonoma and Yolo
4 Placer, Sacramento, San Mateo, San Joaquin, Sonoma, Stanislaus and Yolo
