WellPoint’s Anthem unit has launched an online community to answer questions about health reform. Here is the website, which Anthem says is the first of its kind.
The idea behind HealthyChat.com is to provide a forum where people can ask questions about the new federal health-care overhaul bill and their health coverage more broadly. Anyone can log on and post a question, not just Anthem policyholders. Anthem says the site has gotten about 60,000 pageviews since it launched May 1.
The questions being asked are things such as, “I have a child under the age of 26. When can I add her to my policy?” Anthem moderators, whose areas of expertise range from public policy to nursing, post answers to the questions, a spokesman says. The company decided to launch the forum after being inundated with questions following the new law’s March passage, he says.
On one of the forums, Anthem was asked why one policyholder’s premiums went up 31%. The company has been under fire from the Obama administration and state regulators for rate increases, which critics say are the result of industry profits and the industry contends are caused by rising medical costs.
WellPoint used the forum to reiterate the industry’s message, saying: “By law, premiums must reflect the anticipated medical costs of health plans’ members — which means rising health care costs do make a difference when it comes to premiums.” The moderator then ticked off the drivers of health costs, including an aging population and medical inflation.
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