Connecture Launches Private Exchange Solution For Health Insurers

CHICAGO, Dec. 3, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- AMERICA'S HEALTH INSURANCE PLANS (AHIP) Fall Forum 2012 -- Connecture, the leading provider of Web-based information systems used to create health insurance marketplaces and exchanges, today announced the launch of InsureAdvantage for Private Exchanges, a Web-based platform that enables health plans to help employers lower the costs they incur administering health benefits and simultaneously provide their employees with more health insurance plans to choose from – all while making it possible to shop for and enroll in the best plan online with confidence.

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According to the U.S. Census report, "Income, Poverty, and Health Insurance Coverage in the United States: 2010," the Affordable Care Act will introduce 49.9 million Americans to health insurance for the first time.  Even among those who are already insured, purchasing health insurance online will be a new experience.  (Connecture found in a recent survey that 86 percent of respondents have never shopped for health insurance online.)  For these reasons and others, it's imperative that exchanges – both public and private – anticipate and address consumers' questions effectively.

Connecture has more than 15 years of experience helping health plans effectively sell their products online while simplifying the enrollment process.  More than 25 million Americans have purchased health insurance online on systems built by Connecture and used by more than half of the 20 largest health plans and nearly half of all BlueCross BlueShield plans. 

InsureAdvantage for Private Exchanges expands upon those capabilities and combines the company's proven technologies and capabilities into an offering that can be rapidly deployed by health plans, yet is configurable to each health plan's business needs and goals.  In addition to integrating seamlessly with existing systems and enabling consumers to quickly review and select available plans based on numerous criteria, InsureAdvantage for Private Exchanges also provides a one-stop shopping and enrollment portal that includes:

• Out-of-Pocket Cost Calculator:  The commercial market, out-of-pocket cost calculator is a feature unique to Connecture which calculates the total amount an employee would be responsible for paying out-of-pocket after the employer contribution. This feature is available for all plans offered through InsureAdvantage for Private Exchanges, so users can determine which plan is most cost-effective, given their individual health needs. 
• Physician Lookup:  Connecture offers users the ability to access a database of physicians so employees can quickly determine if their preferred provider is covered by a particular plan. The database allows users to search according to several variables, such as the physician's name, geographic location, specialty area, etc. This tool provides people with the peace of mind that they do not need to establish a new doctor-patient relationship, but rather can continue seeing their current physician(s).  
• Highly-Personalized Shopping Experience: InsureAdvantage offers a highly-personalized experience by asking users a series of questions about their health to determine which plans will likely best meet their individual needs. This feature helps employees more easily narrow down the offerings that best align with their objectives based on cost, provider coverage, plan attributes, expected utilization, risk tolerance and more. 
• Total Benefit Enrollment: Connecture offers organizations a platform that has the functionality to support a comprehensive employee benefits offering. Connecture's Web-based systems provide support for multiple product lines, including medical, dental, life, vision, disability, HRA, HSA and Section 125 pre-tax funding.

"Private, single-payer exchanges allow health plans to effectively lower the costs employers incur when providing health benefits and, at the same time, enable these same employers to provide employees with more health plans and benefit packages to choose from," said Dan Maynard, president of Connecture. "Health plans can then compete on more than price alone, and employees gain the freedom to select the best plan for them – not a one-size-fits-all offering.  Even so, all of this hinges on whether employees, as well as brokers, find these exchanges intuitive and user-friendly.  We designed InsureAdvantage for Private Exchanges with that singular focus in mind."

For more information or a demonstration of InsureAdvantage for Private Exchanges, contact 866-274-6759, email [email protected] or speak with a company representative in the sponsor display area at the AHIP Fall Forum.  

About Connecture
Connecture is the leading provider of Web-based information systems used to create health insurance marketplaces and exchanges.  Its industry-proven solutions enable consumers, employers and brokers to more easily shop for, purchase and renew health insurance while minimizing back-office administrative expenses for health plans.  Connecture's solutions are provided to health plans, state insurance exchanges, private exchanges and insurance brokers.  More than 25 million Americans shop for their health insurance through systems built by Connecture, and more than half of the nation's 20 largest plans rely on them to sell, administer and manage their plans and products effectively.  For more information, visit www.connecture.com.

Media Contact:
Ken Phillips
Davies Murphy Group, Inc.
Ph. +1.781.418.2437
[email protected] 

SOURCE Connecture