Case Study: One Medical Group

Because Stars (& Direct Mail Advertising) Matter in Healthcare

Here’s how one company used direct mail advertising to up-level their service.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) uses a five‐star quality rating system to measure Medicare beneficiaries’ experience with their health plans (five stars representing the top-end of customer satisfaction). This rating system applies to all Medicare Advantage (MA) lines of business and helps Medicare beneficiaries, their families, and their caregivers compare the quality of Medicare health and drug plans.

The program is a key component in financing healthcare benefits for MA and MA‐PD plan enrollees. And the ratings are posted on the CMS consumer website to give beneficiaries help in choosing a plan.

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These coveted stars are earned by the plans that fare well against a scorecard of stars measures—for example, preventative care screenings like cancer, and even flu shots.

When Highmark wanted to proactively educate their members to influence their star ratings, we concentrated on key measures where we could make a difference. Some of the communications featured prevention reminders and encouragement of physical activity. Others featured conversation starters for doctor visits—such as checklists to bring along with potential questions to ask.

Interestingly, it seemed that with one benefit in particular, the Annual Wellness Visit, a majority of members didn’t utilize it or understand how to take advantage of it. We seized the opportunity to educate members on this free benefit.