Member Services

Don’t Be Left Behind: Get Involved in Your Company’s Future By Joining OAHP

As a member of the Ohio Association of Health Plans, your company will keep on top of issues that directly impact your bottom line! This will allow you to take appropriate steps to prevent getting blindsided by unnecessary regulations and know up-to-the minute changes taking place in the health care industry.

Below is a list of just some of the value your company will receive:

Legislative and Regulatory Activity: One of the greatest values OAHP provides for its members is up-to-date information on proposed new laws and regulations. We have three dedicated lobbyists that work extensively with lawmakers and regulators to prevent or moderate onerous new laws and regulations from being imposed on member plans. The diligence of our staff over the past several years has helped prevent the passage of bills to impose unlimited health plan liability, any willing provider requirements, and a host of new benefit mandates. The OAHP Legislative and Regulatory Committee direct all OAHP actions on the legislative and regulatory front. They meet on a monthly basis to discuss pending bills or regulatory issues of concern to member companies.

The OAHP staff also works closely with the Ohio Departments of Insurance and Job and Family Services, coordinating and providing comments on behalf of member health plans on a wide variety of draft policies. To help foster an ongoing relationship with the regulatory agencies and address areas of interest to member companies, the OAHP Legislative and Regulatory Committee meets with key state officials on a routine basis.

Government Programs: The OAHP Medicaid Committee is designed especially for those OAHP members who participate in Ohio’s Medicaid Managed Care Program. Members meet on a monthly basis to discuss issues facing the Medicaid serving plans and OAHP serves as a liaison between the plans and ODJFS officials. The committee allows members the ability to pool resources to hire experts to help develop technical documents to support health plan positions that individual plans alone could not afford to produce. The committee meets on a monthly basis with ODJFS to discuss issues of concern. OAHP also engages the help of an expert actuary to review and work with the state to ensure reimbursement rates for the program are actuarially sound.

The Medicare Committee is designed for those companies that participate in the Medicare Program. The committee meets quarterly and provides member health plan staff the ability to share information and allow OAHP to coordinate efforts to influence needed improvements to the program.

Medical Directors: The OAHP Medical Directors Council is made up of Medical Directors from health plans that come together to discuss best medical practices and provide feedback on proposed issues from a medical prospective. The Council is currently working on the development of best practices in diabetes care.

Latest Health Care News: OAHP keeps members up to date on the daily health care news articles found in newspapers around the state and the country and provides a briefing on the top legislative/regulatory issue of the day when the Ohio General Assembly is in session. Member companies receive daily e-mail messages highlighting the top issues with links to the daily newspaper articles. This quick service allows members to quickly scan the day’s headlines and determine the stories for further reading. The legislative update keeps government affairs and the health executives up-to-date on the bills that are being heard, witnesses that testify, and prepares them to act quickly when an issue crops up.

Pinnacle Awards Program: OAHP members get the opportunity to publicize their best programs and initiatives at the annual OAHP Pinnacle Award Program for Best Practices. Members participate by submitting their application for its best practice. Winners and awards are announced during the annual convention. This is a chance for Health Plans to show off what they are doing to provide exemplary care and service for their members. Past winners include Anthem, CareSource, Nationwide, Paramount Health Care and SummaCare.

Educational Programs: OAHP sponsors educational seminars that provide valuable up-to-date information about national and regional trends, policy implementation, and best practices. Education programs offer continuing education credit for a variety of health plan professionals, including physicians, nurses, lawyers, accountants and insurance agents. Health plans are encouraged to bring along their top employer clients.

Annual Convention & Trade Show: OAHP’s Annual Convention and Trade Show offers members the opportunity to hear recognized authorities address the health care issues of the day. The convention features an ample trade show area where members can find the latest products and best service innovations in the health care field. Our legislative reception is held in conjunction with our convention and our members interact with over 100 lawmakers who attend.

Research and Communication Services: OAHP members receive a number of communiques throughout the year on current issues via legislative updates, electronic updates and bulletins, issue briefing papers, and a membership directory. We also have a network to obtain feedback on a wide variety of issues that member plans have in common. OAHP staff is available to help answer any questions from member plans and provides research on a variety of issues.

Additionally, OAHP is a key resource for media calls on a variety of topics dealing with health insurance, and helps promote the value brought to Ohio by the health plan industry.

OAHP publishes an annual Facts and Figures document that highlight facts about the industry and the contribution the industry makes to Ohio.

Interaction with other Company Staff and Executives: OAHP provides numerous opportunities for interaction among the chief officers of member companies through the quarterly delegates’ meetings. This provides an opportunity to discuss mutual issues of concern and create a unified stance on a number of legislative, regulatory, and communication issues. Mark your calandar with the OAHP meeting dates by previewing our website for current dates. OAHP also provides opportunities for health plan staff that serve on a variety of OAHP committees to form professional relationships with other plan employees and share ideas that help peers advance in their jobs.

OAHP Website: OAHP provides maximized exposure on the OAHP website to members. This allows your company’s website that is linked on ours to be easily accessible for those who have inquires or want to learn more about your company. Our website also provides extensive information on legislative and regulatory issues for you to preview. We encourage you to view our website at www.oahp.org.

For additional information about OAHP, contact our office at (614) 228-4662 or electronically at info@oahp.org