Aetna’s Stars Are Shining as CMS Announces Medicare Quality Ratings

Aetna Earns High Medicare Star Quality Ratings; 91 Percent of Medicare Advantage Members in 4-Star or Better MAPD Plans

HARTFORD, Conn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Aetna (NYSE: AET), one of the nation’s leading health care benefits companies, once again achieved high Medicare Star Quality Ratings for its Medicare Advantage Prescription Drug (MAPD) plans for 2017. Aetna has the highest percentage of Medicare members enrolled in plans rated 4.0 overall stars among publicly traded companies*.

“Aetna is extremely proud of our strong Medicare star ratings which, in an increasingly competitive industry, reflect our commitment to increasing the number of healthy days for our members,” said Nancy Cocozza, president of Aetna’s Medicare business. “We are focused on encouraging our members to work more closely with their doctors to enhance care coordination and patient satisfaction, and on improving our members’ overall health care experience.”

In the most recent star ratings from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), Aetna MAPD plans achieved an overall enrollment weighted average rating of 4.0 stars for 2017 star ratings. Aetna has increased the number of members enrolled in plans with a star rating of 4.0 or higher to 91 percent, representing a four-percentage point increase from last year.

Key highlights:

• Aetna will offer Individual Medicare plans in 863 counties across the nation in 2017, and 97 percent of these counties will have a plan offering rated 4.0 stars or greater. Aetna serves Medicare beneficiaries nationwide with Medicare Advantage plans, Medicare prescription drug plans and Medicare Supplement plans.
  • Aetna is expanding to certain counties in six new states for 2017: Michigan, South Carolina, Tennessee, Mississippi, Washington and Wisconsin.
  • Aetna is entering 134 new counties nationwide for 2017.
  • All 134 new counties will have an Aetna MAPD plan offering rated 4.0 stars or greater.

The company’s strong 2017 star ratings for its MAPD plans reflect its commitment to improving member health and experience. Key highlights:

• Aetna plans averaged over 4.5 stars in the following individual performance measures: Controlling Blood Pressure in People with Hypertension, Controlling Blood Sugar in People with Diabetes, BMI Assessments, Member Complaints, Part D Appeals Processing & Decisions, Prescription Drug Price Accuracy and Prospective Member Call Center.

• Aetna plans averaged over 4 stars in the following individual performance measures: Medication Adherence for Hypertension, Hospital Readmissions, Members Choosing to Leave the Plan, Rheumatoid Arthritis Management and Breast Cancer Screening.

Aetna Medicare Advantage and prescription drug plans are available to Medicare beneficiaries for selection during the Medicare Annual Open Enrollment period, which starts on October 15 and runs through December 7. Enrollment becomes effective on January 1, 2017.

CMS’ Medicare Star Rating System ranks the performance and quality of Medicare Advantage and Medicare prescription drug plans to help beneficiaries and their families compare plans. Star ratings are calculated each year using a scale of one to five stars (with five being the best), and may change from year to year, depending on how the plan performs.

Medicare Advantage plans are rated on how well they perform on five different categories: staying healthy, managing chronic (long-term) conditions, member experience with the health plan, member complaints, and health plan customer service. Medicare Advantage and Medicare prescription drug plans are also rated on how well they perform on four additional categories: drug plan customer service, member complaints, member experience with drug plan and drug safety.

The star ratings are posted at www.medicare.gov. For more information about Aetna’s 2017 Medicare offerings, visit www.aetnamedicare.com or call toll-free at 1-888-247-1028 (TTY: 711). For more information about Coventry’s 2017 Medicare offerings, visit http://coventry-medicare.coventryhealthcare.com/ or call toll-free at 1-877-988-3589, (TTY: 711).

Hours are from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., local time, seven days a week.

NOTE: Data in this release is based on 2017 star ratings data published by CMS on October 12, 2016, and Medicare Advantage and Medicare prescription drug plan enrollment as of October 2016. CMS evaluates Medicare Advantage and Medicare prescription drug plans based on a five-star rating system. Star ratings are calculated each year and may change from one year to the next.

Aetna Medicare is a PDP, HMO, PPO plan with a Medicare contract. Our SNPs also have contracts with State Medicaid programs. Enrollment in our plans depends on contract renewal. See Evidence of Coverage for a complete description of plan benefits, exclusions, limitations and conditions of coverage. Plan features and availability may vary by service area. ©2016 Aetna Inc. NR_0009_8522

*Includes publicly traded companies with over 250,000 Medicare Advantage enrollees.

About Aetna
Aetna is one of the nation's leading diversified health care benefits companies, serving an estimated 46.3 million people with information and resources to help them make better informed decisions about their health care. Aetna offers a broad range of traditional, voluntary and consumer-directed health insurance products and related services, including medical, pharmacy, dental, behavioral health, group life and disability plans, and medical management capabilities, Medicaid health care management services, workers' compensation administrative services and health information technology products and services. Aetna's customers include employer groups, individuals, college students, part-time and hourly workers, health plans, health care providers, governmental units, government-sponsored plans, labor groups and expatriates. For more information, see www.aetna.com and learn about how Aetna is helping to build a healthier world. @AetnaNews

View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161012006259/en/

Aetna

Media Contact:

Susan G. Millerick, 860-273-0536

[email protected]

or

Investor Contact:

Joe Krocheski, 860-273-0896

[email protected]

Source: Aetna