Aetna offers small biz plans with no co-pay for preventive care

Aetna has introduced a group of new plans for small businesses which will charge no co-pays for standard preventive care services like vision care, well-child visits and physicals.  Aetna is pricing the new plans similarly to those that do call for preventive care co-pays.

Aetna's is rolling out "Wellness on Us" plans in Pennsylvania, Virginia, Florida, Delaware, Washington, D.C., Illinois and Maryland  to replace its existing small-employer policies, except for the ones it is required to offer under state law.

Ordinarily, Aetna small biz beneficiaries would pay something like $20 to $30 per person for primary care physicians, and $30 to $45 for specialists.

While charging no co-pay for preventive care is becoming common in the world of consumer-directed, high-deductible health plans, it's very unusual in the small-group insurance niche (typically groups with two to 50 workers).

On the surface, the idea squares nicely with mounting national emphasis on rewarding prevention, though the plans call for higher co-pays and/or deductibles in other areas which could offset the savings.

To learn more about these plan:
- read this Hartford Courant article

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