The Missouri Department of Insurance has approved Health Partners of the Midwest’s sale of its commercial HMO business to Group Health Plan, another health maintenance organization based in St. Louis. The transaction will not affect current Health Partners members or their benefits under existing contracts, which GHP will assume under a reinsurance agreement.
At the end of 1999, Health Partners officially reported 65,303 members in commercial group coverage, which usually is provided through employers. Virtually all of that enrollment came from greater St. Louis. Health Partners – an HMO owned by BJC Health System hospitals and Washington University of St. Louis – will continue to operate as a Medicaid-only HMO.
Last year ended with almost 39,000 Missourians enrolled in the Health Partners Medicaid plan, making it the second largest in the state. Health Partners’ commercial enrollment will add another 8.2 percent of the commercial business to GHP’s market share. The two HMOs had ranked second and fourth in St. Louis market commercial enrollment at the end of 1999; United HealthCare of the Midwest was the largest with more than 320,000 members, or 45 percent of the market.
Health Partners has posted large losses on its commercial business; total losses in 1999 alone were $14.5 million, or the largest of any Missouri-based HMO.
Topics Commercial Lines Missouri
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