Open Enrollment Updates | Human Resources | Georgia College: Georgia's Public Liberal Arts University

Open Enrollment Updates - Point of Service (POS) Network

January 27, 2012
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Georgia (BCBSGA) informed our office that the negotiations with Oconee Regional Medical Center are looking good. BCBSGA will continue to update our office on the status of the negotiations. BCBSGA is looking for ways to assist our employees and retirees during this transition. We will release these recommendations as soon as we receive them.

If your providers are not on the list, please send the names and addresses of your providers to benefits@gcsu.edu. We will forward the information to the BCBSGA Network Team. Please remember that the decision to join the network remains with your provider. As stated in our previous communications, please submit your POS Network questions/concerns to benefits@gcsu.edu so they are addressed by the appropriate individuals.

January 17, 2012
The Board of Regents and Blue Cross Blue Shield (BCBSGA) network team met Friday afternoon to discuss the status of the POS network. Below is the update from the Board of Regents:

1) Oconee Regional Medical Center is in active negotiations with BCBSGA. A counter proposal was received by BCBSGA on Thursday, January 12 and it is being evaluated.
2) Milledgeville OBGYN Associates are in fact in the POS network and are accepting patients.
3) Internal Medicine Associates (Macon Area) have been contacted and are currently not appearing willing to join the POS network. It goes beyond just the lab work issue.

We will provide more information as it is received.

As soon as our office receives additional information, our office will forward the findings to GC Communications and our web page (http://www.gcsu.edu/humanresources/oe_updates.htm). A list outlining the network status of the providers submitted by our employees/retirees can be found on the previously mentioned web page using the Baldwin County Provider Inquiry link.

As stated in our previous communications, please submit your POS Network questions/concerns to benefits@gcsu.edu so they are addressed by the appropriate individuals.

January 10, 2012
POS Network Update - Blue Cross Blue Shield of Georgia
The Blue Cross Blue Shield of Georgia (BCBSGA) network team is meeting this afternoon on an update for Oconee Regional Medical Center's network status. Our office will forward BCBSGA's findings to GC Communications and our web page (http://www.gcsu.edu/humanresources/oe_updates.htm) as soon as we receive them.

Below is a list outlining the network status of the providers that our employees/retirees submitted to BCBSGA.

Baldwin County Provider Inquiry
HR POS Network Frequently Asked Questions

January 5, 2012
POS Network - Human Resources Response
The Office of Human Resources & Employee Relations understands that the Point of Service (POS) network change, mandated by the Board of Regents, remains a critical issue. As stated in previous communications, we will forward information from Blue Cross Blue Shield of Georgia (BC/BS) and/or the Board of Regents relating to physicians joining the network to the campus community using GC Communications and our web page http://www.gcsu.edu/humanresources/oe_updates.htm. To ensure your questions/concerns are addressed by the appropriate individuals, please submit your question/concerns to benefits@gcsu.edu and not the Sales List.

BC/BS assured us that they will send communication to our office once they have an update on the status of non-participating providers. BC/BS has repeatedly stated that they have reached out to providers regarding their participation in the POS network; however, the decision to join the POS network remains with the provider.

To date, we have not received a status update from BC/BS regarding Oconee Regional Medical Center or the other non-participating physicians submitted to BC/BS by our employees/retirees. According to BC/BS, they are working on this network issue daily. Our office is currently waiting on a response from BC/BS to determine if there are alternatives/options for our employees/retirees whose physicians are out-of-network. Again as we receive this information, we will use GC Communications and our web page to post this information. If you want to verify whether your physicians are in-network, please contact BC/BS at 800-424-8950. Our new network name is Blue Open Access Point of Service (POS).

POS Network - Board of Regents Response
Our office received the following response from the Board of Regents today regarding the POS Network change.

"We are aware of the situation and are working with Blue Cross Blue Shield (BC/BS) as we speak."

BC/BS confirmed that both Dr. Suzanne Palmer and Dr. Charles Brown are currently in-network providers. We are waiting on additional information from BC/BS for the status of Oconee Regional Medical Center, Oconee Family Medicine Center, and the other providers/facilities that were submitted to our office. BC/BS also confirmed that even though Oconee Regional Medical Center is currently not in the POS network, medical emergencies will be treated as an in-network service.

As our office receive updates, we will forward the information using GC Communications and post them to http://www.gcsu.edu/humanresources/oe_updates.htm. Please submit your questions/concerns to benefits@gcsu.edu.

December 9, 2011
The Office of Human Resources & Employee Relations received the following information regarding providers in the Point of Service (POS) network which becomes effective January 1, 2012.

Dr. Teresa Luhrs – in all HMO networks: HMO/POS/Open Access since 2006
Dr. Charles Shiver- Open Access effective 12/01/2011
Dr. Larry Kohse – not interested in participation
OrthoGa, 3708 Northside Drive – the current active physicians in this practice participate in all HMO networks (HMO/POS/Open Access). If there is a specific physician that you have seen that is not in network please let me know. All current active are in the network and their surgery center is also in the network – Macon Outpatient Surgery Center.
Dr. Brent Flickinger – this physician shows that he is already participating in Open Access
Dr. David Ritchie – this provider shows that he is already participating in Open Access
Dr. Ram Puri – this provider shows that he is already participating in Open Access
Dr. Dave Ou – this provider has terminated all networks, currently not participating at his request
Dr. Lesley Cown – currently not interested in participation
Dr. Ernest Carlton – in all HMO networks (HMO/POS/Open Access)

Blue Cross Blue Shield of Georgia is waiting on a response from their network team on the status of Oconee Regional Medical Center and the other physicians that were submitted by our employees/retirees. Please click here for a complete list of physicians that were submitted to Blue Cross Blue Shield.

November 17, 2011
Milledgeville Area Physicians - Open Access POS Network (pdf)

Milledgeville Area Facilities - Open Access POS Network (pdf)

The above lists were provided by Blue Cross Blue Shield of Georgia and reflect providers and facilities within a 50 mile radius of Milledgeville that are currently in the Open Access POS network. The lists do not reflect physicians/facilities who are about to sign but have not completed the credentialing process. Blue Cross Blue Shield of Georgia is actively working to sign Oconee Regional Medical Center and the physicians requested by our employees and retirees and those additional physicians/facilities, in our area, that are currently not in the Open Access POS.

Our office will use this page along with the GC Communications email to announce physicians/facilities as they join the Open Access POS network. If you have any questions, please email benefits@gcsu.edu.