Aetna To Offer Individual Products To Chamber Of Commerce Members And Their Families

Agreement provides access to health coverage for thousands of Connecticut businesses and their employees

HARTFORD, Conn.— In an effort to support sole proprietors and small businesses throughout the state of Connecticut, Aetna (NYSE: ΑET) has announced an agreement with the Chamber Insurance Trust (CIT) under the name Chamber One. This agreement will enable approximately 40,000 local businesses and 79 working Chambers of Commerce throughout Connecticut to offer their employees and members Aetna Advantage Plans for Individuals and Families.

“As a Connecticut employer, we understand the importance of providing comprehensive, affordable health solutions to the workforce,” said Mark Bertolini, president of Aetna. “We consider it a privilege to offer health insurance options to sole proprietors and small businesses in our home state.”

Individuals will be able to select from a wide variety of plan options*, including PPO-style plans; high-deductible health plans compatible with health savings accounts; preventive and hospital plans that combine coverage for preventive care with catastrophic coverage for services like inpatient hospital care and outpatient surgery; and an optional dental PPO plan. Each Aetna Advantage Plan is also available on a child-only basis, so that parents can obtain health coverage for their children, even if no other family members enroll in the plan.

“We are proud to announce this agreement and offer Aetna individual insurance options to our members,” said Stephen Glick, president of the Chamber Insurance Trust. “In addition to being one of the premier health benefits companies in the nation, Aetna also demonstrates an extraordinary commitment to the state of Connecticut through a wide variety of grants, active employee volunteerism and programs supporting local businesses.”

Increasing Access to Health Care
According to John Leone, Jr., president of the Chamber Leadership Council, these plans will be particularly attractive to sole proprietors, who make up the majority of the Chamber membership, and will help them manage one of the biggest challenges facing their businesses today — the rising cost of health insurance coverage.

“We believe the Chamber One agreement will allow Chamber members and Connecticut residents expanded access to affordable health care,” Leone said.

Aetna is also committed to offering health benefits solutions to those who are uninsured, and one of the primary goals of this agreement is to provide health care to a portion of the uninsured and underinsured populations in Connecticut.

“We are excited about the opportunity with the Chamber Insurance Trust to reach sole proprietors in Connecticut, since people who are self-employed are often uninsured or underinsured, and we have created products to meet their specific needs,” said Frank McCauley, head of Aetna’s Consumer Business Segment.

Additional Services and Tools
Aside from the different plan choices, Aetna will also offer a number of value-added options such as a Member Assistance Program (MAP) and Concierge Services, which can both help individuals better manage work and life issues. These types of services are typically only offered to Aetna’s larger customers.

In addition, CIT members will be able to obtain Vital Savings by Aetna® discount cards for Dental, Pharmacy, and Long Term Care services at a 20 percent discount off the annual premium for one card, and a 45 percent discount for the purchase of two cards.

Through these plans, new members will also have access to a number of different resources, such as Aetna Navigator®, Aetna’s password-protected member website, as well as the CareEngine-powered Personal Health Record (PHR). This innovative tool was made available to all Aetna Individual Advantage Plan members in January 2008.