Preferred Medical Plan Expands Medicaid Coverage to Monroe County

Expansion Part of Health Plan’s 40-year Commitment to South Florida’s Medicaid Population

CORAL GABLES, Fla. – July 3, 2013 -- Preferred Medical Plan, the oldest Medicaid managed care plan in Florida, announced today that it has expanded its Medicaid coverage to include eligible residents of Monroe County. The expansion comes after an 18-month process of building a comprehensive network of Monroe County care providers to comply with Medicaid access requirements.

One of just two Medicaid plans active in the rural county, Preferred Medical Plan (www.pmphmo.com) worked closely with the Keys Physician-Hospital Alliance (KPHA), Lower Keys Medical Center (LKMC) and Fisherman’s Hospital to build its network.

Preferred Medical Plan has been serving Florida’s Medicaid population since the early 1990s and is the oldest Medicaid managed care plan in the state. It has made a priority of serving those eligible for Medicaid and, through its individual commercial line of business, lower and middle income residents. It also is one of the largest HealthFlex product providers in the state.

Preferred Medical Plan currently serves Medicaid members in Miami-Dade, Broward and Monroe counties. Its Medicaid managed care product in Monroe County went live on April 1, 2013, and is currently enrolling members.

“We are proud to bring the many advantages of Medicaid managed care to Monroe County.  This expansion is part of our 40-year commitment to providing residents of South Florida with access to health care,” said Tamara Meyerson, President and CEO, Preferred Medical Plan.

In preparation for its expansion, Preferred Medical Plan developed some innovative approaches to serving Monroe County Medicaid recipients, including:

• Non-emergency transportation services to ensure access to providers within the Keys as well as in Miami-Dade County.
• Specialist access through provider partners in Monroe County and Miami-Dade County, with additional access initiatives to be announced in the near future.
• Intensive in-servicing of provider offices to help providers understand Medicaid managed care.
• Working with its local providers as well as behavioral health vendor to ensure access to behavioral health services.
• Easy access to lab and blood work though its laboratory subcontractor, Quest Diagnostics, and network providers.
  • A user-friendly Member Resource Guide designed specifically for Monroe County residents unfamiliar with managed care.

“We are very thankful to our provider partners who are helping us bring expanded health benefits to Monroe.  We are dedicated to doing everything we can to serve our members in Monroe County and meet their health care needs,” added Ms. Meyerson.

About Preferred Medical Plan, Inc.

Preferred Medical Plan (www.pmphmo.com) is celebrating 40 years in the managed care business.  It is the oldest independently owned and licensed managed care organization in Florida and today serves more than 40,000 members in Medicaid managed care, Medicare Advantage and commercial lines of business.  It is one of the largest issuers of individual HMO coverage in South Florida and the state as a whole, and anticipates robust growth in its commercial line of business with the introduction of the Health Insurance Marketplace (Exchange) later this year.