(Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act)

To Our Members:

Capital Health Plan knows that the way we conduct our business offers us the opportunity to earn your respect and trust. Our members are our reason for being. To that end, we believe our members have the right to privacy and that their non-public personal, financial and health information should be kept confidential.

Our practices to protect your privacy are not new. However, laws now require we notify you annually about our privacy policy concerning:

• What kind of personal information we collect about you and how we obtain it
• How we use your personal information
• What kind of personal information about you we release to other companies
• How we protect your personal information

This Privacy Notice is provided to help you better understand how we protect your non-public personal, financial and health information. If you have questions about our privacy policy, please feel free to contact us. If you are one of our members you can call Member Services at 383-3311. If you are an employer representative you can call the Marketing Office at 523-7333.

What Kind Of Personal Information Do We Collect And How Do We Obtain It?

Generally, the information includes your name, address, phone number, social security number, date of birth, age, sex, height and weight, occupation, health habits, and general medical information. It could also include accident and injury dates. Most of this information is provided by you.

We obtain personal information about you from the following sources:

• Information you provided us, or an affiliate, on an application form for health plan coverage;
• Information your physician or other health care practitioner provided us;
• Information your employer provides us;
• Information received from other sources.

How Do We Use Your Personal Information? We use your personal information to perform transactions and functions necessary to implement and administer the health plan benefits purchased from us. On occasion, your personal information is used for reporting or other functions required or permitted by law.

What Kind Of Personal Information About You Do We Release? We may share any of the information we collect about you (as described above) with our affiliates, namely our health business partners. We may disclose any of the information we collect about you to other parties, including vendors and governmental agencies retained to audit medical records and billings. However, the type and the amount of information we share with others is limited to what is necessary to implement and administer the health plan you have with us, or as otherwise permitted or required by law. We may disclose any of the information we collect about you (as described above) to companies that perform other services on our behalf, including administrative services.

How Do We Protect Your Information? We maintain physical, electronic, and procedural safeguards to protect your personal information. We access and use your personal information to the extent necessary to administer the health plan services you are entitled to. We establish confidentiality agreements with contracted parties that receive nonpublic personal financial and health information about you. We restrict access to your non-public personal, financial and health information to those employees who need to know that information to administer the product or service you purchased from us.

Original approval 10/23/2001, revised 6/05, reviewed 9/6/2007. Revised/Approved by Compliance Committee 8/25/09

Whatever you celebrate, the holidays are a time for feasts. Many of us dig out favorite recipes for cookies, pies, soups, and holiday meats. Delicious as they are, these recipes do not always have the healthiest ingredients. Luckily, there are things you can do to improve your holiday diet while still enjoying your favorite dishes.

Cut down on saturated and transfats

The first step toward making holiday recipes healthier is to cut down on saturated and transfats. Saturated fats are solid at room temperature and are found in butter, lard, and most animal products. Transfats are found in partially hydrogenated oils.

Eating too much of these fats leads to high cholesterol and can increase your risk of heart disease and stroke. Plus, high-fat foods are also high in calories, so reducing the fat content of a dish usually also makes it lower in calories.

Here are some recipe changes that can help cut down on fat:

Replace Bad Fats with Good Fats

You can replace saturated and transfats in your recipes with monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats. Mono- and polyunsaturated fats are plant based fats such as canola, safflower, and olive oil. Monosaturated fats protect against heart disease. If a recipe calls for butter or lard, try substituting it with a “good fat” oil.

More tips for making holiday recipes a little healthier:

• When making soups and stews, prepare them ahead of time and then chill them. The fat will float to the top and harden. Remove the hardened layer of fat before reheating.
• When making muffins or quick breads, use 3 ripe, well-mashed bananas, instead of ½ cup of butter or oil. Another option is to substitute a cup of unsweetened applesauce for a cup of butter, margarine, oil, or shortening.
• When making pie crust, use only ½ cup of margarine for every 2 cups of flour. Use soft margarines (liquid or tub types), because they tend to have less transfats than hard or stick margarine.

CHP Health Coaching Can Help

For more information about improving your overall diet, call a CHP Health Coach. Health Coaches are specially trained healthcare professionals, such as nurses, dietitians, and respiratory therapists. They are available by phone, anytime, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, at no charge to you.

To talk to a Health Coach, call 850-383-3400. You can also get information online at www.capitalhealth.com and scroll to login to Health Coaching.

Capital Health Plan Ranked Number One Medicare Plan in the Nation

-- Honored with top national awards by National Committee for Quality Assurance and Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services --

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Capital Health Plan (CHP) a local, non-profit health plan announces that its Medicare Advantage Plan is ranked number one in the nation according to “NCQA’s Health Insurance Plan Rankings 2010-2011 – Medicare” published by the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA). The Medicare Advantage Plan has ranked in the top tier in past years*, but is now the first ever Florida health care plan to be ranked number one.

"We are honored to receive the number one ranking from NCQA. It is a reflection of the commitment of our local physicians and clinical staff to consistently deliver quality medical care,” said Dr. Nancy Van Vessem, Capital Health Plan chief medical officer. “Collaboration between Capital Health Plan, physicians and members has led to continued success measured by consistently excellent results on quality and member satisfaction scores.”

Capital Health Plan serves Tallahassee and the surrounding counties, but the plan brings the entire state of Florida attention with its achievements. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) awarded CHP with five out of five stars for its Medicare Advantage health plan. Star ratings show how well each plan performs in a particular category, ranging from 1 star, meaning "poor" quality, to 5 stars, meaning "excellent" quality. The system was designed to help patients and their families more easily make decisions regarding Medicare services.

“As the only health care plan in Florida to receive such a commendable rating, we are committed to being a leader and continually improving Medicare services and patient care,” said John Hogan, CEO of Capital Health Plan. “The rankings we received from both the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and the National Committee for Quality Assurance are a testament to the dedication of our staff and medical community to excellent care for our members.”

NCQA uses HEDIS®, CAHPS® and NCQA Accreditation standards scores to calculate plan rankings. These scores reflect the results of consumer surveys and the plan’s success in prevention and treatment compared to other plans. Medicare health plans voluntarily report their scores to NCQA using data from HEDIS® and CAHPS® in categories related to access to care, overall satisfaction, prevention and treatment.

CHP’s commitment to member satisfaction shows in the outstanding results of member surveys. CHP Connect, a secure, online personal health record, helps members take control of their health. CHP Health Coaching gives members access to online web modules and 24/7 advice from health care professionals to guide them through important medical decisions. Capital Health Plan’s local member services department consistently delivers efficient, expert service.

* U.S. News/NCQA “America’s Best Health Insurance Plans” 2005-2009 (annual). “America’s Best Health Insurance Plans” is a trademark of U.S. News & World Report.

Capital Health Plan (CHP) has once again received national acknowledgement. It is ranked 4th in the nation for commercial health plans according to “NCQA’s Health Insurance Plan Rankings 2010-2011 – Private” published by the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA). This ranking makes CHP the top-ranked plan in Florida. CHP’s commercial plan was ranked 5th in the nation in the 2009-10 “America’s Best Health Insurance Plans” by NCQA and U.S. News & World Report.

NCQA is a private, non-profit organization dedicated to improving health care quality. NCQA accredits and certifies a wide range of health care organizations.

“We are honored Capital Health Plan continues to receive recognition from NCQA which is only possible with the support of our members and our community.” said John Hogan, CEO of Capital Health Plan. “This distinction reflects the outstanding work of our doctors, nurses and administrators. “

The NCQA Health Insurance Plan Rankings 2010-11 - Private are based on clinical performance, member satisfaction and accreditation information.

“We are proud of this exceptional ranking, and we especially applaud our committed physicians and clinical staff for their commitment to the well being of our members and the community,” said Dr. Nancy Van Vessem, Chief Medical Officer of Capital Health Plan. “Over several years, we have worked together to offer CHP members evidence-based care for diabetes, heart disease and other conditions. Our shared goal is to strive to reduce catastrophic complications such as stroke and heart attack for our patients. We will continue seeking ways to improve the quality of the health care services we deliver.”

As part of its commitment to excellence, Capital Health Plan continues to focus on three primary strategic initiatives:

• Improving the health of the population
• Enhancing the patient experience of care (including quality, access, and reliability)
• Controlling trends in the per capita cost of care

John Hogan reflects, “We have a lot to accomplish in all three areas, as does our nation, but the capital region definitely stands out in these efforts.”

Beginning in 2011, Capital Health Plan will serve Calhoun and Liberty counties. Members renewing effective January 1, 2011 will be eligible if they live or work in Leon, Calhoun, Gadsden, Jefferson, Liberty, or Wakulla counties. Medicare members will be eligible to enroll in a Capital Health Plan Medicare Advantage plan if they live within the expanded service area.

We look forward to providing even more members with quality, affordable care.

Quality Compass® is NCQA’s comprehensive national database of health plans’ HEDIS® and CAHPS® results. NCQA uses this data along with NCQA Accreditation standards to calculate plan rankings. These scores reflect the results of consumer surveys and success in prevention and treatment compared to other plans.

Capital Health Plan received the following ratings of distinction for its commercial plan:

• CHP has the highest score in the nation for Colon Cancer Screening (3 of the last 4 years)
• CHP ranks in the 90th percentile nationally for diabetes care, cervical cancer screening, follow-up after hospitalization for behavioral health problems, cholesterol screening for people with vascular disease, breast cancer screening, appropriate medication use in asthma and multiple other measures.
• Members also scored Capital Health Plan in the 90th percentile nationally for overall plan rating and satisfaction with customer service.

Capital Health Plan’s commitment to member satisfaction shows in the outstanding member ratings for customer service and overall satisfaction with the plan. Tools like CHPConnect and CHP Health Coaching help members take control of their health. And, Capital Health Plan’s local member services department strives to deliver efficient, expert service.

John Hogan, CEO of Capital Health Plan, notes, “This feedback only furthers CHP’s dedication to delivering high quality, affordable health care and service to our community.”

The source for data contained in this publication is Quality Compass® 2010 and is used with the permission of the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA).Quality Compass 2010 includes certain CAHPS data. Any data display, analysis, interpretation, or conclusion based on these data is solely that of the authors, and NCQA specifically disclaims responsibility for any such display, analysis, interpretation, or conclusion. Quality Compass is a registered trademark of NCQA. CAHPS® is a registered trademark of the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ). HEDIS® is a registered trademark of the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA).

Capital Health Plan tries to keep coverage affordable and focused on hospital, physician, drug and other health care services. Through the first seven months of 2010, administrative costs represent less than 4% of our total revenues, one of the lowest levels in the nation. CHP overhead has been below 5% of revenues for the past 20 years. This means that more of your dollar goes directly toward providing the health care services you need.

Capital Health Plan presents Savvy Senior programs each month for older adults who want to learn more about how to live healthy, happy and active lifestyles.

We repeat the programs each month in Leon, Gadsden, Wakulla, and Jefferson counties. The events are free and open to anyone. Call 850-523-7333 to RSVP or to find out about dates and times for programs in Gadsden, Wakulla, or Jefferson County.

If you are unable to attend in person, check out the podcast of these events on our website, capitalhealth.com/Members/Live-Healthy/Savvy-Senior-Podcast.

Below are upcoming Savvy Senior programs held at Capital Health Plan’s Governor’s Square Health Center, 1491 Governor’s Square Blvd., Tallahassee.

Friday, October 1, 2010

• Noon to 1 p.m.
• Preventing Falls
• Mary Goble, R.N.

Friday, November 5, 2010

• Noon to 1 p.m.
• Medicare Advantage Update
• Melissa Dancer-Brown

Friday, December 3, 2010

• Noon to 1 p.m.
• Five Wishes
• Mary Goble, R.N.

Listen to what seniors are saying about The Savvy Senior:

“Outstanding program for general public!”
“Excellent - I always come away with some new information.”
“Very helpful and informative”
“I give you five stars for this program. You said it like it is.”
“As always, I am pleased to report that your programs are superb.” “The Savvy Senior program is an excellent educational tool.”
“The information was very helpful and understandable.”

Are you ready for flu season? Yearly epidemics of seasonal influenza occur typically during the late fall through early spring. The best way to prevent the flu is by getting vaccinated each year. Vaccination is recommended for anyone over six months who wishes to reduce the likelihood of becoming ill with influenza or of transmitting the virus to others should they become infected.

The flu is unpredictable, but the 2009 H1N1 viruses as well as the regular seasonal viruses will likely cause illness in the U.S. this flu season. The 2010-11 flu vaccine will protect against three different flu viruses: an H3N2 virus, an influenza B virus and the H1N1 virus that caused so much illness last season. The 2010-11 flu vaccine is now available, and Capital Health Plan members have multiple ways to receive it. Members may receive vaccination at their primary care physician’s office.

The vaccine is also available at the Leon County or Wakulla County Health Departments. Beginning October 1, CHP members may also get the vaccine at one of the following pharmacies: CVS, K-Mart, Publix and Winn-Dixie.

Imagine being diagnosed with a medical condition for which there is more than one treatment choice. How do you weigh the pros and cons of each treatment? How do you choose among the different options if one treatment is not obviously better than the others?

If this sounds complicated, don’t worry. At Capital Health Plan, we believe patients make the best medical decisions when they are most knowledgeable about the options that are available. We believe Shared Decision-Making can help you make the best decisions for your health.

Shared Decision-Making means that you and your Primary Care Provider (PCP) work together to choose a treatment that is right for you. Often times, specialists recommend surgery or other treatment options. While the specialist has your best interest at heart, your PCP knows you and your medical history best. Your PCP will be better able to assess your risks for a particular treatment option.

Capital Health Plan provides tools to assist you with Shared Decision-Making:

Informational DVDs/videos available on CHPConnect. These video programs contain unbiased information on more than 20 different topics including: having a hysterectomy to treat abnormal uterine bleeding, treatment options for back pain, and treatment options for prostate cancer. The videos are evidenced based and free of commercial bias. They are developed by the Foundation for Informed Decision-Making and are reviewed on a periodic basis ensuring that the content reflects current best practice. The best news is that you can access the video programs 24/7 from your computer by logging onto CHPConnect at capitalhealth.com.

Telephone access to Health Coaches 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Health Coaches are specially trained health care professionals, such as nurses, dietitians, and respiratory therapists. They can help you understand your health condition, provide reliable information about treatment options, support you in preparing for a discussion with your doctor, and help you think through your decision. CHP Health Coaches can be reached at (850) 383-3400. There is no out of pocket expense to members to access this service.

Interactive online tools through CHP Health Coaching. Log on by visiting capitalhealth.com and clicking on the Member Login (CHP Health Coaching) link. Members have access to:

• Healthwise: an online encyclopedia of medical information (under the Health Information tab)
• Health Crossroads Web Modules: decision tools, treatment options and prevention tips (under the Health Information tab)
• Personal health calculators and symptom diaries (under the Health Tools tab)
• Personal Health Assessment (PHA): a survey to provide you with a personal health action plan to help you improve your health (under the Health Tools tab)
• Health modules: modules on stress reduction, back pain, weight loss, smoking cessation, healthy exercise, and others (under the Health Tools tab)

Patients are generally more satisfied with their health care when they participate in making the decisions. We hope that these tools are beneficial to you the next time you are faced with making a treatment decision. If you have questions or difficulties accessing CHPConnect please contact Member Services at 383-3311.