Humana buys OSF HealthPlans

<p align="justify">OSF HealthPlans, a managed care company with 78,000 members and a subsidiary of OSF Saint Francis Inc., has been sold for $90.5 million.

<p align="justify">The buyer is Louisville, Ky.-based Humana Inc., one of the nation's largest health insurance companies with approximately 11.5 million medical members.

<p align="justify">"Humana and OSF HealthPlans have very similar philosophies and this is a great opportunity for both organizations," said Kevin Schoeplein, president of OSF HealthPlans.

<p align="justify">Humana's size and expertise in the industry should mean good things for present OSF HealthPlan members, said Jim Farrell, OSF's senior vice president of marketing and communications.

<p align="justify">"From a member standpoint, (the transition) should be relatively seamless. The same OSF facilities and service will be available.

<p align="justify">"They have more innovative products to offer due to their size," said Farrell, referring to a variety of Humana programs that will become available to OSF HealthPlan members.

<p align="justify">The sale follows business success by the OSF program, he said. "We've had a very strong bottom line for the past three or four years. That's what made us attractive to Humana and other national carriers."

<p align="justify">One of the factors in the sale was competitive pricing, he said.

<p align="justify">"We can't compete with the rates of health insurance carriers with millions of members," said Farrell.

<p align="justify">"The sale allows us to focus on our core mission -- providing care and service in a very safe manner."

<p align="justify">The transaction won't be finalized until regulatory approval is received from the Illinois Division of Insurance and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.

<p align="justify">Humana's Michael Kasper, president of the company's Illinois market, said when the deal goes through, OSF members can look for "business as usual."

<p align="justify">"Members will continue to use all the same medical facilities they did under the OSF plan," he said. "Not only will (OSF) members gain access to a broader array of health and specialty products, the transaction significantly expands Humana's provider network in central and northern Illinois.

<p align="justify">"Members will have the benefits that a $25 billion company has to offer in the way of technology and other value-added services."

<p align="justify">As to what the costs will be for that technology, Kasper said members will have more plans to choose from.

<p align="justify">"The current set of products will be expanded greatly. Instead of one or two plans, we look to bring six to eight options to the table for a member to choose from that best fits their needs and budget," he said.

<p align="justify">One of the products that Humana provides is a program offering quarterly medical reports to members, said Kasper.

<p align="justify">"SmartResults delivers information about all the medical claims and drugs used (by members) over the period. It provides a portable medical record as well as possible ways to save money," he said.

<p align="justify">Kasper expects the transition to be completed by late spring or early summer.

<p align="justify">Steve Tarter can be reached at (309) 686-3260 or starter@pjstar.com.