Wednesday, November 01, 2023
Camp Hill, Pa. (November 1, 2023) — Highmark announced its Affordable Care Act (ACA) health insurance products in Central Pennsylvania for 2024, offering individuals and families high-quality, low-cost and convenient health coverage options to help them be at their best.
“Highmark has an ACA plan for every lifestyle and health need,” says Bill Tuthill, vice president of Federal Markets for Highmark. “Over the last year, we have seen increases in enrollment in every age group, from young adults leaving their parents’ health coverage to older Americans transitioning from their employer-based insurance in their 50s and 60s. And, with Medicaid eligibility determinations resuming, the ACA marketplace will offer those who no longer qualify for Medicaid affordable, high-quality options to ensure there are no gaps in health coverage and care.”
Thousands of Highmark members and millions of consumers nationwide have benefitted from expanded ACA subsidies that lower what they pay for their coverage, and those subsidies have been extended through at least 2025. Nearly 90 percent of Highmark’s ACA members in Pennsylvania qualify for subsidies or tax credits to make their coverage more affordable. Nearly 15,000 of our Pennsylvania members are enrolled in a plan with a premium of less than $5 per month after subsidy.
“The ACA marketplace is thriving, with more than 18 million Americans enrolled in affordable, accessible plans that provide strong benefits,” says Ellen Galardy, president of Federal Business at Highmark “We are proud that more Central Pennsylvanians are choosing Highmark, with our ACA membership in the region climbing from 29,000 in 2021 to about 37,000 currently.”
2024 Individual and Family plans
“Our most popular plans aren’t changing for 2024,” says Tuthill. “But since we realize that our ACA customers aren’t always looking for the same thing in a health plan, we make a broad range of coverage options available and help our customers to enroll in the plan that’s right for them.”
Highmark’s most popular products in Central Pennsylvania and the Lehigh Valley are my Direct Blue EPO and my Direct Blue Lehigh Valley EPO which, through partnerships with major health systems — including Lancaster General Health, Lehigh Valley Health Network, Penn State Health and WellSpan Health — provide high-quality, affordable plans to our members.
Rounding out the portfolio in all 21 counties in Central Pennsylvania and the Lehigh Valley is my Blue Access PPO. Recognizing that an increasing number of ACA members want it all in their health plan, Highmark built my Blue Access PPO to provide in-network access to all hospitals in in Central PA and the Lehigh Valley. my Direct Blue EPO, my Direct Blue Lehigh Valley EPO, and my Blue Access PPO all offer access to over 97 percent of hospitals nationwide through the BlueCard® program, including facilities in Maryland, New York, and New Jersey.
“Highmark is committed to transforming health care by making it more personalized, proactive, accessible, and technology-enabled,” says Galardy. “In addition to offering access to world-class in-person care, we’re leveraging technology in a variety of ways to increase access and convenience for our members—extending care for items ranging from mental health, to physical therapy, to dermatology, to chronic physical health conditions like diabetes.”
While the open enrollment period runs through January 15, consumers must enroll by December 15 for coverage that starts on January 1. For more information on Highmark’s 2024 ACA health insurance products, visit Highmark.com or call 866-499-0151.
About Highmark Blue Shield
Highmark Inc., doing business as Highmark Blue Shield, serves approximately 1.1 million members through the company’s health care benefits business and hundreds of thousands of additional individuals through the BlueCard® program. Highmark Blue Shield has significant commercial market share and strong Medicare Advantage membership [through certain of its affiliated Blue companies] as well. Through its affiliated Blue companies, all of Highmark's Medicare Advantage plans in Pennsylvania achieved the highest possible quality rating from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) - 5 out of a possible 5 Stars. Highmark Blue Shield employs approximately 3,500 people in central Pennsylvania and the Lehigh Valley, serving as a key economic driver in the region. Highmark Blue Shield’s total economic impact throughout central Pennsylvania is more than $1.2 billion. Highmark Blue Shield is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association, an association of independent Blue Cross and Blue Shield companies. For more information, visit www.highmark.com.
For more information, contact
Leilyn Perri
Highmark Health
717-302-4243
Leilyn.perri@highmarkhealth.org