Designing health plans to help county employees save money is the topic of a special episode of Podcast 83, featuring a representative of Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan (BCBS), a MAC Premier Partner.

I suspect that many in the audience are thinking about their benefit decisions for 2025 and … I like to really suggest our (Blue Care Network) HMO plans,” said Yaniv Ribon, a senior director with BCBS. “And I want to highlight one plan specifically, and that's our point of service plan.

“It really combines the flexibility of a PPO with the cost savings of an HMO. And how that looks is that members still enjoy the convenience of not needing referrals and having access to benefits, whether they see an in-network provider or out-of-network provider, or maybe even living out of state or working out of state,” Ribon added.

Blue Cross also is focused on helping counties and their employees contain rising prescription drug costs, Ribon told Podcast host Stephan Currie.

“We launched Price Edge in June of 2023, little more than a year now, and we've already saved Blue Care Network members more than $14 million at the pharmacy counter. For those with chronic conditions, we launched a program we call Sempra. Sempra members receive discounts at the pharmacy counter for adhering to their regimen. … And lastly, again, thinking about generic medications. In 2020, we joined forces with many new plans across many states and partnered with an organization called Civica RX,” Ribon explained.

“We've got a broad network of doctors and hospitals in all 83 Michigan counties. So, no matter which county you're in, we have a plan for you,” Ribon said. “We have a network of providers for you. But alongside that, we really see ourselves as a next generation HMO. And by that, what I mean is that all of our plans are jam packed with programs really designed to focus on whole person health.”

To view the episode, taped on Sept. 10, click here.