REGENCE ON LEAVING HEALTHY OPTIONS

We received the following statement from Regence officials on leaving the Healthy Options marketplace.

“After thoroughly evaluating the opportunity provided under the new contract, Regence did not submit a bid to continue administering the state’s Healthy Options Medicaid plan after its current contract expires on June 30, 2012.

“We have been privileged to serve the Healthy Options membership in Washington for more than 18 years,” said Jonathan Hensley, president of Regence BlueShield in Washington. “Regence thoroughly evaluated the new contract requirements, and balanced those needs against our obligations to all of our members and determined our most responsible course of action was not to submit a bid at this time.”

Regence will continue to serve its current Healthy Options members through the expiration of the current state contract on June 30, 2012. After that time the approximately 40,000 Regence members will be served by new Managed Care Organizations (MCOs) that are awarded the contracts to serve the existing Regence service areas. Regence will work closely with the new MCOs and the State to ensure a smooth transition of membership.