Aetna and Carilion Clinic launch Whole Health plans for Roanoke-area businesses

Aetna (NYSE: AET) and Carilion Clinic have launched a suite of new health benefit plans - called Aetna Whole Health™ - now available to Virginia employers with two to 100 eligible employees. Aetna Whole Health plans create a unique opportunity for Roanoke-area businesses to help their employees optimize their health and get healthier faster. The plans feature a new model of health care delivery designed to offer:

“Collaborative care models have been shown to improve quality and reduce costs. Aetna is using the experience we've gained to design patient-centered, accountable care models for large hospital systems and integrated delivery networks around the country.”

• a more coordinated, personalized experience for patients;
• lower co-pays for seeing designated providers; and
• better health care outcomes.

Aetna Whole Health plans unite Aetna's network of contracted providers and small-group plans with doctors, hospitals and outpatient specialty centers from Carilion Clinic and LewisGale Regional Health System. The plans are priced to reflect the cost and quality benefits of the Aetna-Carilion collaboration. Members can benefit from a low co-pay differential by using "designated network providers" who have been recognized or are in the process of being recognized by the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) for meeting stringent efficiency and quality measures. Providers will help to create healthier communities by sharing information as patients pass through different health care settings and using personalized care and patient engagement to improve quality.

These new products are based on Carilion's and Aetna's accountable care organization (ACO) relationship, announced in March. ACOs are alliances of physicians, hospitals and other providers that offer a more coordinated approach to care for their patients with the goal of improving quality and reducing costs. ACOs emphasize preventive care and better care coordination among various providers to improve quality and efficiency. Aetna Whole Health features payment models that encourage providers to share accountability for health care quality and affordability.

"Aetna is very happy to launch new commercial products in collaboration with Carilion as we transform patient care and build a more effective, sustainable health care delivery system to serve the Roanoke area," said Charles D. Kennedy, M.D., Aetna's chief executive officer of Accountable Care Solutions. "Collaborative care models have been shown to improve quality and reduce costs. Aetna is using the experience we've gained to design patient-centered, accountable care models for large hospital systems and integrated delivery networks around the country." For more information on Aetna's Accountable Care Solutions, visit the company's dedicated website at www.aetnaacs.com.

"This is an exciting time for Aetna," said Thomas Grote, Aetna's market president for Maryland, Virginia and Washington, D.C. "We're looking to greatly expand our presence in the Roanoke area. This new approach enables us to offer improved quality and more cost-effective products for small employers, who are struggling in these difficult times to provide affordable, comprehensive health benefits to their workers."

The initiative combines Aetna's innovative tools, designed to empower consumers by providing more control over health decisions, with Carilion's accountable medical group, featuring a fully integrated electronic medical record and a comprehensive network of primary care physicians, specialists, hospitals and outpatient facilities.

"This is part of our commitment to our patients and our community", said Carilion Clinic President and CEO Nancy Howell Agee. "Our focus on advancing quality in health care, and our relationship with Aetna, makes it possible to establish this new partnership with patients. It is a significant step in our mission to inspire better health and wellness."

Aetna provides health benefits to more than 550,000 members in Virginia. Those members have access to a contracted network of 92 hospitals and more than 14,000 primary care and specialist physicians.