DMHC licenses first

http://www.spartaneurope.com/quality.htm
The Family Care plan will offe r discounted access to a rangewof physician, pharmacy, outpatient (such as physical therapgy and mental health), laboratory, radiologt and imaging, dental, chiropractic, vision and hearing-carw services. The program will offer membershi p to a household fora $99 enrollment fee and a monthlty charge of $99.95, according to with discounts ranging from 5 to 40 percent for most However, the Houston-based health plan’s initial license is only validf for two years, reflecting cautiom on the part of the Sacramento-based agency, whicuh previously has cracked down on variouws discount health-care card companies in the state.
Family Care is licenses to operatethroughout Alameda, Marin, San San Mateo, Santa Napa, Santa Cruz, Solano, Orange and San Diegio counties, as well as the most populatesd areas of Sacramento, Los Angeles, San Bernardino, and 41 other counties, accordinyg to the department, and a numbeer of local providers are already listed on its www.familycarecalifornia.com web The DMHC said the economic environment played a role in its decision to approve Family Care’s application for a license.
Thanks to the continuinyg economic downturn, which has resulteds in many individuals and families losinghealthj coverage, “it is in the best interesg of consumers to regulate and license legitimater discount health plans,” Cindy Ehnes, the DMHC’s director, said in a June 9 She added that licensure will ensure that consumers will get promisedf discounts and “fully understand that these products are not healthb insurance.” In the last six years, the agency’ss Help Center has received more than 925 complaints from consumers who were victimsz of fraudulent discount health card the DMHC said.
Those consumerw were misled into thinking they were purchasing regular healtgh insurance or were unable to find doctorss who supposedly had contracter with thediscount company. The DMHC said it has issuedc several Cease and Desist orders in an ongoing investigationb into thisgrowing industry, which in turn led to settingg up a licensing structure to protect consumerse and provide state oversight. As a result, some companiesz decided to seek licenses proving they met regulatory The current licensing requirements include verification ofdiscounts offered, legitimate contracts with doctors and othefr health care providers, truthful advertising, and a process for consumera to resolve disputes with the plan, according to Plans also must prominently disclose that they are not offerinvg insurance, but rather a discount product through whic h members pay providers a discounted fee, usually at the time of Family Care’s web site displayse such a statement at the bottom of each web page.