Cast & Crew Entertainment Services Says New Open Health Insurance Offering Generated Strong First-Month Reception From Entertainment Industry

BURBANK, Calif., Dec. 18, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Cast & Crew Entertainment Services, which provides payroll and production accounting services to the entertainment industry, today announced that Cast & Crew Open Health (the "Plan") (www.cc-openhealth.com), a unique Affordable Care Act-compliant health care insurance offering, was well received by the industry in its first month of availability.  The Plan, introduced on November 4, brings to the industry several solutions – simplified sign-up, budgeting and administrative responsibility – not available from any other plan.

Open Health, which is eligible for most state tax-incentive programs, provides coverage for all nonunion employees working in the entertainment industry. It is portable for the employer irrespective of payroll-service provider. It also is portable for employees who become covered under the Plan.

To date, the Plan has been introduced to hundreds of companies faced with complying with the ACA's employer responsibility requirement that large employers provide health insurance for their employees, or pay a penalty. The penalties are scheduled to go into effect on January 1, 2015. 

"We are delighted by the industry's enthusiastic response," stated Shardell Cavaliere, Senior Vice President, Client Relations at Cast & Crew Entertainment Services and a member of the Board of Trustees of the Plan.  "The Plan continues to attract interest as January 1, 2015, approaches.  This level of interest is evident in the number of companies that already have signed up. It is gratifying to be able to help employers determine their requirements under the ACA and answer their many questions."

Ms. Cavaliere said large and small companies alike, and representing all sectors of the entertainment business, are expressing keen interest in Open Health.  "We are hearing similar reasons from these companies," she stated.  "They believe the Plan is well priced, maintenance-free, solves an immediate problem and is a simple solution."

Eric Belcher, President and Chief Executive Officer, noted that Open Health's warm reception augurs well for the company's Cast & Crew Complete benefits-management suite.  "Open Health and Cast & Crew ACA SureTrack, a comprehensive online ACA management system, are just the first two of what we hope will be a robust Cast & Crew Complete suite of benefits-management services in the future.  We look forward to introducing additional Complete offerings in the months ahead and to continuing to meet the industry's very unique needs."  

To bring Open Health to the industry, Cast & Crew established the Plan as a multiple-employer health plan. The Plan is designed to provide medical coverage that satisfies ACA requirements to all non-union employees who are required to be offered coverage under the ACA.  Accordingly, employers can ensure ACA compliance by participating in the Plan. This is the only plan of its kind offering the non-union production employees a guild-like program.

This structure, developed with leading insurance brokers, attorneys and other insurance and entertainment human resources experts, enables Cast & Crew Open Health to provide employers with large-group pricing and benefits that are superior to market-based coverage that can be obtained elsewhere. The Plan's fee structure is based on a percentage of gross wages, a structure familiar to the industry.

Open Health coverage is provided through Anthem Blue Cross and includes HMO/PPO options as well as optional dental, vision and life.  Enrolled individuals will have access to the largest national network in the country, with more than 900,000 providers.  Anthem members, moreover, have access to more than 90 percent of hospitals and 90 percent of physicians nationwide – more than any other insurer.  Cast & Crew Open Health and Anthem Blue Cross provide employer and employee support through various communication methods, including email, a 24x7 phone center and online assistance.

About Cast & Crew

Cast & Crew Entertainment Services, LLC (www.castandcrew.com) has provided payroll and production accounting services to the entertainment industry for nearly four decades. It is owned by an investor group led by ZM Capital, ZelnickMedia's private equity fund.  Cast & Crew is the leading provider of technology-enabled payroll and related business services to film and TV productions.  Cast & Crew's services include payroll processing, residuals, workers' compensation, labor relations, production incentives, as well as financing production tax credits.  Cast & Crew's PSL production accounting software is the industry-leading accounting application to serve the needs of the film, television and digital media industries.  The company, which was founded in 1976, owns and operates each of its offices – eight in the U.S., two in Canada and one in the U.K.  Cast & Crew's corporate headquarters are in Burbank, California.

Media Contact
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Office:  818.525.3301
Cell:     310.940.6942

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SOURCE Cast & Crew Entertainment Services, LLC