New Highmark plan comes with member discounts

New Highmark health insurance plans offer member discounts for seeing doctors using a team approach in providing care.

Highmark PPO Blue Total Health and Community Blue Total Health were introduced Wednesday by the insurer, which come with discounts at practices that use the patient-centered medical home model. Total Health is available in Pennsylvania and Delaware, but the Community Blue version is only available in western Pennsylvania.

Plan members receive discounts for testing needed to manage various chronic medical conditions, including asthma, diabetes and high blood pressure. For these tests, Highmark will waive required co-insurance or deductible payments from members seeking care at qualifying practices.

Patient-centered medical home practices use doctors, nurses and others to oversee patient care, an enhancement of the traditional doctor-patient relationship.

Highmark has been aggressively recruiting medical practices to join pay-for-quality initiatives, which include the team approach that’s at the core of the model, and also Highmark's Accountable Care Alliance. Both programs have financial rewards for doctors who meet various quality of care metrics.