MemorialCare Health System and Aetna recently announced a new partnership, Aetna Whole HealthSM – MemorialCare, offering up to 15 percent in health care savings to employers in the Long Beach, South Bay and Orange County areas.

 

Aetna is a national health care provider serving about 46.7 million people with health insurance products, workers’ compensation and Medicaid management services and more. MemorialCare Health System provides health care throughout Los Angeles and Orange Counties, operates three hospitals within Long Beach, and has an affiliated health plan and medical foundation.

 

The new Aetna Whole HealthSM – MemorialCare product is available to self- insured businesses beginning today, September 1, with an effective date of November 1. Plans available through this new partnership will provide members with access to about 2,000 doctors, “seven award-winning hospitals and over 40 urgent care centers,” according to a joint press re- lease from Aetna and MemorialCare.

 

The health plan includes a new payment model meant to incentivize providers who achieve certain standards of care, such as “better management of patients with chronic conditions,” and reductions in emergency room visits and “avoidable hospital readmission rates,” among other achievements.

 

“By working with MemorialCare, we will be able to provide a total health solution that will ensure Aetna members receive high-quality, convenient care that will help them live healthier and more productive lives,” Rich Lee, Aetna’s president for Southern California, said in a joint press release.

 

“We are proud to team with Aetna to un- veil a new health plan option for businesses and their employees that offers easy access to a large comprehensive network,” Dr. Barry Arbuckle, MemorialCare Health System president and CEO, stated.

 

Current Aetna members with fully insured plans who have visited a Memorial- Care physician in the past year will be automatically rolled into the new collaborative plan on October 1.