New York State Health Plans to Deploy Enroll NY for Medicaid Leads

Affinity Health Plan, AmeriChoice by United HealthCare, Fidelis Care New York, Health Plus PHSP, Hudson Health Plan, and Neighborhood Health Providers are now using Enroll NY, and some are finding that 70 percent of the leads they receive are pre-screened and eligible for public health insurance, the group announced.

In addition, a dozen community based organizations, such as the Children's Aid Society, the Brooklyn Perinatal Network, and Alianza Dominicana, are directing their constituents to Enroll NY as the best path to streamlining their access to public health coverage.

"Enroll NY offers health plans a cost-effective, streamlined approach to finding leads," says Georganne Chapin, President & CEO of the Hudson Center for Health Equity & Quality (Hcheq), the developer of Enroll NY. "It only takes two new members for a health plan to cover the $5,000 first-year cost of working with Enroll NY."

Enroll NY was developed by Hcheq, a not-for-profit organization that develops information technology to streamline health care enrollment and clinical care. Launched in December of 2008, Enroll NY has made it easier for uninsured New Yorkers to determine their eligibility for one of the three state-subsidized insurance programs. Applicants answer four simple questions to determine eligibility. If Enroll NY screens them as preliminarily eligible, they can begin the application process online and their information is then transmitted to the participating health plan or facilitated enroller of their choice to complete.

"There are other online eligibility calculators, but this is the only online tool that sends the information to a Facilitated Enrollment organization to complete the application process," explains Chapin. "Enroll NY will hopefully give thousands of New Yorkers easier access to health care."

Community-based organizations can participate in Enroll NY or they can simply use the site to educate clients about available programs. They can also add Enroll NY as a link from their Web sites, so others in need of coverage can find their way to this valuable online service.

Enroll NY is powered by FEEA (Facilitated Enrollment Electronic Application), a paperless system developed by Hcheq to automate the Medicaid, Family Health Plus, and Child Health Plus enrollment, verification, and recertification process and replace the current manual system. An application started on Enroll NY can be transmitted electronically by FEEA through every stage of the approval process, thereby reducing errors, duplication, and administrative barriers.

The Hudson Center for Health Equity & Quality (Hcheq) is an independent not-for-profit organization that promotes the delivery of humane health care through policy study, advocacy, and the development of information technology.