PITTSBURGH, Oct. 3 /PRNewswire/ -- Three of Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield’s products offered through its subsidiary, Keystone Health Plan West, are among “America’s Best Health Plans,” according to U.S. News & World Report/National Committee for Quality Assurance’s (NCQA) America’s Best Health Plans 2005. SecurityBlue, Highmark’s Medicare Advantage HMO ranked 12th out of 131 on U.S. News & World Report’s list of the best Medicare plans. KeystoneBlue HMO and SelectBlue Point-of-Service ranked 33rd out of 257 on the list of the best commercial managed care plans. All three products are listed under Keystone Health Plan West on the report.
“This designation validates the high-quality products and customer service that we provide,” said Donald Fischer, M.D., Highmark’s chief medical officer. “Working with our network physicians, Highmark will continue to stress the preventive care that helps our members live healthier lives.”
The first joint NCQA and U.S. News & World Report listing appears in this week’s edition of U.S. News & World Report. It ranks the top 25 Medicare Advantage plans and top 50 commercial managed care plans. The rankings are based on several factors such as clinical performance, member satisfaction and NCQA accreditation. To view the article, visit U.S. News Web site at www.usnews.com.
Since 2000, Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield has held NCQA’s top accreditation status of Excellent for KeystoneBlue, SelectBlue and SecurityBlue managed care health products. Nearly 550,000 Highmark members are enrolled in KeystoneBlue and SelectBlue. An additional 186,000 are enrolled in SecurityBlue, the fourth largest Medicare HMO in the United States.
About Highmark
As one of the state’s leading health insurers, Pittsburgh-based Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield serves 3.1 million members in 29 Western Pennsylvania counties. The company’s mission is to provide access to affordable, quality health care enabling individuals to live longer, healthier lives.
Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield and Keystone Health Plan West are independent licensees of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association, an independent association of Blue Cross and Blue Shield Plans. For more information about Highmark, visit www.highmark.com.
Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield
CONTACT: Denise Grabner, +1-412-544-7488, or denise.grabner@highmark.com,or Phil Neubauer, +1-412-544-4221, or phil.neubauer@highmark.com, both ofHighmark Blue Cross Blue Shield
