eHealth E-commerce Platform to Power Online Sales for Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts
MOUNTAIN VIEW, CA, Oct 30, 2007 (MARKET WIRE via COMTEX News Network) -- eHealth, Inc. (NASDAQ: EHTH), the parent company of eHealthInsurance, today announced that it is licensing its health insurance e-commerce platform to Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts.
The licensing agreement provides individuals and families in Massachusetts with access to eHealth's proprietary health insurance shopping technology, allowing them to review quotes, compare plans side by side and apply for coverage through the Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts website. The platform also makes it easy for consumers to find the plan best suited to their health care needs, confirm their preferred doctors are covered and complete the application process with electronic signature and payment options.
"We are pleased to play a role in the exciting and dynamic health insurance marketplace of Massachusetts," said eHealth Chief Executive Officer, Gary Lauer. "When the Massachusetts Health Care Reform bill was signed into law, it created a new individual health insurance market and challenged insurers to develop that market to address the needs of the uninsured. Our powerful e-commerce platform will help Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts meet that challenge head on by delivering the best health insurance shopping experience available in the market today."
"Utilizing eHealth's shopping technology to bring our products to consumers, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts is making it easier for individuals and families to find the health plan best suited to their needs," said Steve Booma, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts Executive Vice President of Sales, Marketing, Service and IT. Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts is using the new platform to power all direct online sales. All of Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts' individual and family health insurance plans are now made available online utilizing eHealth's technology.
About eHealth, Inc.:
eHealth, Inc. (NASDAQ: EHTH) is the parent company of eHealthInsurance, the nation's leading online source of health insurance for individuals, families and small businesses. Through the company's website, www.ehealthinsurance.com, consumers can get quotes from leading health insurance carriers, compare plans side by side, and apply for and purchase health insurance. eHealthInsurance offers more than 7,000 health insurance products underwritten by more than 160 of the nation's leading health insurance companies. eHealthInsurance is licensed to sell health insurance in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. eHealthInsurance and eHealth are registered trademarks of eHealthInsurance Services, Inc.
About Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts:
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts (www.bluecrossma.com) was founded 70 years ago by a group of community-minded business leaders. Today, headquartered in Boston, BCBSMA provides coverage to 3 million members. BCBSMA believes in rewarding doctors and hospitals for delivering safe and effective care, and in empowering patients to take more responsibility, become educated health care consumers and become stronger partners with their doctors. Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association.
About the Massachusetts Health Care Reform Bill:
The Massachusetts Health Care Reform bill aims to provide health insurance coverage to residents of Massachusetts through a combination of Medicaid expansions, subsidized private insurance programs and insurance market reforms. The bill includes a mandate requiring that Massachusetts residents who are otherwise uninsured purchase an individual or family health insurance plan where affordable options are available. For more information on the Massachusetts Health Care Reform bill, click here.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements as defined within the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These include statements regarding the Massachusetts Health Care Reform bill creating a new individual health insurance market, the eHealth e-commerce platform helping Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts meet the needs of the uninsured by delivering the best health insurance shopping experience available in the market today, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts making it easier for individuals and families to find the health plan best suited to their needs by utilizing eHealth's shopping technology and the availability of Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts' individual and family health insurance plans online utilizing eHealth's technology. These forward-looking statements are inherently subject to various risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from the statements made, including risks associated with the impact of legislation; Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts' success in marketing its online sales; system failures, malfunctions, bugs or capacity constraints; the performance, reliability and availability of the platform and underlying network infrastructure; e-commerce security risks; Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts' resource allocation; the success of the relationship between eHealth and Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts; compliance with insurance and other laws and regulations and changes in laws and regulations. Other factors that could cause operating, financial and other results to differ are described in eHealth's most recent Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission and available on the investor relations page of eHealth's website at www.ehealthinsurance.com and on the Securities and Exchange Commission's website at www.sec.gov. Neither eHealth nor Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statement to conform the statement to actual results or changes in expectations. eHealth is not the author of the summary of the Massachusetts Health Care Reform Bill Summary linked or attached to this press release and takes no responsibility for its contents.
eHealth Contacts:
Sande Drew
(650) 210-3107
Karen Auby
(650) 210-3186
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts Contact:
Chris Murphy
(617) 246-4851
SOURCE: eHealth, Inc.