Community Health Options will soon expand its virtual health services and provide Members access to virtual primary care providers, giving them consistent care when they need it anytime, anywhere. The new service can help make it easier for Members struggling to find a nearby provider accepting new patients, whether they need preventive and routine care or help managing more complex issues.
Firefly Virtual Primary Care, available in January 2024 to Members 18 and older, provides a team comprising of a primary care doctor, nurse practitioner, health guide and behavioral health specialist, who address all aspects of care and can create a personalized plan to tackle specific concerns.
Firefly's primary care is virtual-first. Members can connect with their care team through the Firefly Health app via video appointments or chat, making healthcare swiftly and easily accessible from any location. When Members need a specialist or in-person care, Firefly offers expert support to find local, high-quality in-network specialists and in-person providers, or even providers who come to a Member’s home. Members need reliable cell phone coverage or internet service to use Firefly.
“We’re proud to partner with a robust network of providers in Maine and across New England, yet many of our Members are still challenged to find an available primary care provider,” said Dr. Lori Tishler, chief medical officer of Community Health Options. “We’re delighted to offer this high-quality, convenient option, supporting our Members, as always, with our Maine-based care teams who have on-the-ground knowledge of the local resources so critical to our Members’ overall well-being.”
Learn more here from our news release.
The year ahead comes with a few changes to Health Options’ health insurance plans – and it’s all good news. One change we are excited to announce is a new tiered provider network option available in select individual/family Health Maintenance Organization (HMO) plans. While tiered plans may be new to Health Options, they are not new to health insurance. In fact, they are a proven way to save money on medical expenses. Read on to learn what tiering means to insurance plans and what it means to you as a health insurance consumer.
Tiered provider networks are a way to better manage the costs of healthcare services. They also provide health insurance consumers a better way to consider the cost of care when choosing their care options. Plans featuring tiered provider networks generally combine quality and cost in developing a preferred tier. Providers with high-quality outcomes and lower contracted prices are typically placed in the most preferred tier rankings.
As a consumer, you may wonder how Health Options decides which providers are considered part of our preferred tier. It is important to note, that all providers meet our quality standards, which is why they are part of the Health Options network. For tiered providers, we review claims history to analyze the quality of provider outcomes combined with their contracted cost and efficiency. Providers and facilities that meet or exceed our standards for quality, cost, and efficiency are “preferred,” and others are “standard.”
To take advantage of tiered providers, you will need to select an individual/family plan with a tiered network option, which is available in both bronze and silver metal level plans for 2022. It’s important to note, that on a tiered plan, you always have the option to visit standard providers with a standard co-pay.
As we enter the Open Enrollment season for 2022, we are proud to offer the highest quality healthcare at the best possible value with all our plans, and our new tiered network offers additional savings. If you have questions about tiered network plans and want help finding the health insurance plan that best suits your needs, contact our Member Services team at (855) 624-6463.
