eHealth Technology Now Powering Online Medicare Supplement Sales for Premera Companies in Washington, Oregon and Alaska
MOUNTAIN VIEW, CA, May 18, 2010 (MARKETWIRE via COMTEX) --eHealth, Inc. (NASDAQ: EHTH) announced today that its eCommerce on Demand technology has been licensed by Premera companies in Washington, Oregon and Alaska to power online sales of Medicare Supplement products.
Seniors shopping online with Premera Blue Cross, Premera Blue Cross Blue Shield of Alaska, and LifeWise Health Plan of Oregon are now using eHealth's ecommerce platform to compare and apply for a range of Medicare Supplement products through www.premera.com in Washington and Alaska and www.lifewiseor.com in Oregon.
"We're pleased to expand our technology licensing relationship with Premera to include Medicare Supplement products," said eHealth Executive Vice President Bruce Telkamp. "The same technology we've used to transform the way individual and family health insurance products are purchased will now serve seniors in Alaska and the Pacific Northwest to help them select and enroll in a Medicare Supplement product that best meet their needs and budget."
"As the Baby Boomers begin to retire, an increasing number of seniors are comfortable with shopping online," said Jeff Roe, Vice President at Premera Blue Cross. "We've given seniors access to a powerful, easy way to quote, compare products and enroll in the products of their choice, by licensing eHealth's ecommerce platform for Medicare Supplement sales. We're very pleased to make this service available to our Medicare Supplement customers."
eHealth's eCommerce on Demand technology provides health insurance companies with cost-effective, hosted and fully customizable software solutions to power online sales channels. It streamlines the quoting and application processes and seamlessly interacts with insurance companies' back office systems. eCommerce on Demand technology powers some of the nation's largest and most successful insurance websites.
For more information about eHealth's eCommerce on Demand, visit: www.ehealth.com/eod.
About eHealth 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, http://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 thousands of health plans underwritten by more than 180 of the nation's leading health insurance companies. eHealthInsurance is licensed to sell health insurance in all 50 states and the District of Columbia, making it a functioning national health insurance exchange. Through its eCommerce On-Demand solution (eOD), www.ehealth.com/eOD, eHealth is also a leading provider of on-demand e-commerce software services. eHealth's eOD platform provides a suite of hosted solutions that enable health plan providers and resellers to market and distribute products online. eHealth's eCommerce On-Demand solution is currently available to health plan providers in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. eHealthInsurance and eHealth are registered trademarks of eHealthInsurance Services, Inc.
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 growth of the Medicare market; and the effectiveness and utility of eHealth's eOD platform. 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 demand in the Medicare market; delays in the launch of eHealth's eOD platform for Premera; the effectiveness, performance, reliability and availability of eHealth's ecommerce platform in selling Medicare products; ecommerce security risks; the success of eHealth's relationships with Premera; economic conditions; health care reform; compliance with insurance and other laws and regulations, including compliance with a number of laws and regulations relating specifically to Medicare products and changes in those laws and regulations. Other factors that could cause results to differ are described in eHealth's most recent periodic report 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. eHealth does not undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statement to conform the statement to actual results or changes in expectations.
About Premera Blue Cross: Our mission is to provide peace of mind to our members about their healthcare coverage. We provide health coverage and related services to more than 1.4 million people. Premera Blue Cross has operated in Washington since 1933, and Alaska since 1952. Premera Blue Cross is a not-for-profit, independent licensee of the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association.
Premera Blue Cross is a member of a family of companies based in Mountlake Terrace, Washington, that provide health, life, vision, dental, stop-loss, disability, and other related products and services. Please visit www.premera.com for more information.
About LifeWise Health Plan of Oregon LifeWise Health Plan of Oregon has been serving the health insurance needs of Oregon families and employers for more than 20 years. LifeWise is a member of a family of companies with operations in Portland and Bend, Oregon; Mountlake Terrace and Spokane, Washington; Anchorage, Alaska. LifeWise and its affiliates employ about 3,000 people and provide healthcare coverage and related services to 1.6 million members and their families
For eHealth, Inc. media inquiries, please contact:Nate Purpura
eHealth, Inc.
(650) 210-3115
nate.purpura@ehealth.com
Sande Drew
eHealth, Inc.
(916) 207-7674
sande.drew@ehealth.com
For Premera or LifeWise media inquiries, please contact:
Premera Blue Cross:
Eric Earling
(425) 918-3297
eric.earling@premera.com
LifeWise Health Plan of Oregon
Deana Strunk
(541) 318-2071
deanna.strunk@lifewiseor.com
SOURCE: eHealth, Inc.
mailto:nate.purpura@ehealth.commailto:sande.drew@ehealth.com
mailto:eric.earling@premera.com
mailto:deanna.strunk@lifewiseor.com