Private insurer Health Net is looking at a $350,000 fine after giving the wrong information to thousands of Medicare customers during open enrollment last year.
Health Net provided incorrect information to nearly 14,000 Medicare customers in Arizona, according to a report in the Arizona Republic. The federal government, which levied the fine, said it was the second time the insurer had provided the wrong information about benefits and prescription drug plans to its Medicare customers.
Health Net did not correct the faulty information until more than a month after enrollment started, according to the Republic. The company said it discovered the issue and mailed correct information to its customers on Nov. 24, about five weeks after the beginning of open enrollment.
“This was over a month after the open enrollment period had started, and therefore affected the time in which enrollees could use the information to make a fully informed decision about their Medicare healthcare and prescription drug options for the 2015 plan benefit year,” Gerald J. Mulchahy, who oversees Medicare’s enforcement of those plans, wrote in a notice about the fine.
“We are sorry for any confusion or frustration our errors caused,” Health Net said in a statement. “We discovered the errors shortly after the materials were mailed last year and notified CMS. And we immediately began the process of sending corrected information to affected beneficiaries.
The company has until Sept. 15 to challenge the fine, the Republic reported.
