In the paragraph below, a statement contains two pairs of terms enclosed in parentheses.
Determine which term in each pair correctly completes the statement. Then select the answer choice containing the two terms that you have chosen.
Inflation plays a role in the health plan environment by influencing the prices of healthcare services, supplies, and coverage. During an inflationary period, consumers typically have (more / less) purchasing power because the prices of goods and services increase (more / less) quickly than income.
The following statements appear in the Twilight Health Plan's strategic plan:
Increase the percentage of preventive health interventions for total eligible membership during each of the next three calendar years for the following services: mammography, Pap smears, immunizations, and first trimester visits for prenatal mothers
Improve customer satisfaction on an annual basis for each of the next three calendar years, as measured by satisfaction surveys for members, providers, and employer groups
Increase by 30% the number of claims processed by the automated claim payment system and reduce by 10% the cost of paying claims during the next three years
These statements are examples of Twilight's
Health plans should monitor changes in the environment and emerging trends, because changes in society will affect the managed care industry. One true statement regarding recent changes in the environment in which health plans operate is that
A federal law that significantly affects health plans is the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA). In order to comply with HIPAA provisions, issuers offering group health coverage generally must.
After conducting a business portfolio analysis, the Acorn Health Plan decided to pursue a harvest strategy with one of its strategic business units (SBUs)-Guest Behavioral Healthcare. By following a harvest strategy with Guest, Acorn most likely is seeking to
The following statements describe various state benefit mandates. Select the answer choice that describes a state law pertaining to off-label uses for drugs.
The National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) adopted the Health Maintenance Organization Model Act (HMO Model Act) to regulate the development and operations of HMOs. One true statement regarding the HMO Model Act is that the act
From the following answer choices, choose the term that best corresponds to this description. The SureQual Group is a group of practicing physicians and other healthcare professionals paid by the federal government to review services ordered or furnished by other practitioners in the same medical fields for the purpose of determining whether medical services provided were reasonable and necessary, and to monitor the quality of care given to Medicare patients.
One federal law amended the Social Security Act to allow states to set their own qualification standards for HMOs that contracted with state Medicaid programs and revised the requirement that participating HMOs have an enrollment mix of no more than 50% combined Medicare and Medicaid members.
This act, which was the true stimulus for increasing participation by health plans in Medicaid, is called the
The Wentworth Corporation uses a self-funded plan to provide its employees with healthcare benefits. One consequence of Wentworth's approach to providing healthcare benefits is that self-funding
The following statements are about the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program (FEHBP), which is administered by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM). Three of the statements are true and one statement is false. Select the answer choice that contains the FALSE statement.
Nightingale Health Systems, a health plan, operates in a state that requires health plans to allow enrollees to visit obstetricians and gynecologists without a referral from a primary care provider. This information indicates that Nightingale must comply with a type of mandate known as a:
Health plans are allowed to appeal rules or regulations that affect them. Generally, the grounds for such appeals are limited either to procedural grounds or jurisdictional grounds. The Kabyle Health Plan appealed the following new regulations:
Appeal 1 - Kabyle objected to this regulation on the ground that this regulation is inconsistent with the law.
Appeal 2 - Kabyle objected to this regulation because it believed that the subject matter was outside the realm of issues that are legal for inclusion in the regulatory agency's regulations.
Appeal 3 - Kabyle objected to the process by which this regulation was adopted.
Of these appeals, the ones that Kabyle appealed on jurisdictional grounds were
SoundCare Health Services, a health plan, recently conducted a situation analysis. One step in this analysis required SoundCare to examine its current activities, its strengths and weaknesses, and its ability to respond to potential threats and opportunities in the environment. This activity provided SoundCare with a realistic appraisal of its capabilities. One weakness that SoundCare identified during this process was that it lacked an effective program for preventing and detecting violations of law. SoundCare decided to remedy this weakness by using the 1991 Federal Sentencing Guidelines for Organizations as a model for its compliance program.
By definition, the activity that SoundCare conducted when it examined its strengths, weaknesses, and capabilities is known as
In developing its corporate strategies, the Haven Health Plan decided to implement a growth strategy that is focused on increasing the percentage of preventive health office visits from its current plan members. To accomplish this objective, Haven will send a direct mail kit to existing plan members to remind them of the variety of preventive health services that Haven currently offers, including physical exams, cholesterol tests, and mammograms. This information illustrates Haven's use of
One typical difference between a for-profit health plan's board of directors and a not-for-profit health plan's board of directors is that the directors in a for-profit health plan
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has delegated its responsibility for development and oversight of regulations under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) to an office within the Centers for Medicaid & Medicare Services (CMS). The CMS office that is responsible for enforcing the federal requirements of HIPAA is the
The Good & Well Pharmacy, a Medicaid provider of outpatient drugs, is subject to the prospective drug utilization review (DUR) mandates of the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1990 (OBRA '90). One component of prospective DUR is screening. In this context, when Good & Well is involved in the process of screening, the pharmacy is
The Tidewater Life and Health Insurance Company is owned by its policy owners, who are entitled to certain rights as owners of the company, and it issues both participating and nonparticipating insurance policies. Tidewater is considering converting to the type of company that is owned by individuals who purchase shares of the company's stock. Tidewater is incorporated under the laws of Illinois, but it conducts business in the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Manitoba.
Tidewater established the Diversified Corporation, which then acquired various subsidiary firms that produce unrelated products and services. Tidewater remains an independent corporation and continues to own Diversified and the subsidiaries. In order to create and maintain a common vision and goals among the subsidiaries, the management of Diversified makes decisions about strategic planning and budgeting for each of the businesses.
By combining under Diversified a group of businesses that produce unrelated products and by consolidating the management of the businesses, Tidewater has achieved the type(s) of integration known as