Optima Health the only Virginia-based plan among top 50 in second annual survey

Virginia Beach – October 31, 2006 – Optima Health is ranked 50th among the nation’s health plans in the second annual survey by U.S. News & World Report and NCQA, the National Committee for Quality Assurance. 

The rankings follow a review of 680 health plans, placing Virginia Beach-based Optima Health among the top 10% of health plans in the nation based on clinical quality, member satisfaction and NCQA accreditation scores. 

“We’re a regional plan covering 330,000 lives in Virginia,” says Mike Dudley, president of Optima Health.  “To rank so well against bigger companies with national recognition says something about our quality and service.”

The survey includes commercial, Medicare and Medicaid plans.

Optima’s Family Care product (Medicaid HMO) ranked 25th among Medicaid plans.

Optima Health consistently earns ‘excellent’ scores in NCQA reviews and maintains an A+ rating from the Weiss ratings agency based on reliability for members and business performance.

Optima Health has won awards from the Disease Management Association of America (DMAA) for its LifeCoach Diabetes management program and Partners in Pregnancy, a program to help women with high-risk pregnancies achieve full-term healthy babies. 

Optima Health has also won a national award from the Environmental Protection Agency for Asthma management in people’s homes.

“We’re proud of Optima’s proactive approach to health care,” says George Heuser, M.D., senior medical director for Optima Health.  “Helping our members stay healthy and manage chronic diseases improves their lives and holds down costs for everyone.”

Optima Health is part of Sentara Healthcare, the premier not-for-profit health care provider in southeastern Virginia and northeastern North Carolina.