NCQA

NCQA Accreditation

February, 2007 - HIP currently holds NCQA's highest four-star accreditation status of “Excellent” for its Commercial HMO and POS lines of business, and NCQA's three-star “Commendable” level of accreditation for its Medicare HMO and Medicaid HMO lines of business. These levels of accreditation confirm HIP's commitment to quality care.

In determining HIP's accreditation status, NCQA considered:

• How easy it is for HIP members to access the care and service they need.
• How thoroughly HIP assesses the qualifications of its participating providers.
• How well HIP helps members remain healthy and avoid illness.
• How well HIP cares for members when they are ill.
• How well HIP cares for members with chronic illness.

Based on rigorous on-site and off-site evaluations of over 60 standards and performance measures, HIP's NCQA Accreditation survey results are as follows:

Product Line: HIP Commercial HMO/POS Combined
Access and Service -
Qualified Providers -
Staying Healthy -
Getting Better -
Living with Illness -
Accreditation Outcome - Excellent

Product Line: Medicaid HMO
Access and Service -
Qualified Providers -
Staying Healthy -
Getting Better -
Living with Illness -
Accreditation Outcome - Commendable

Product Line: Medicare HMO
Access and Service -
Qualified Providers -
Staying Healthy -
Getting Better -
Living with Illness -
Accreditation Outcome - Commendable

NCQA only awards its rating of “Excellent” to those plans that meet or exceed NCQA's rigorous requirements for consumer protection and quality improvement and deliver excellent clinical care. Achieving an accreditation status of “Commendable” is a sign that a health plan is serious about quality. It is awarded to plans whose service and clinical quality meet or exceed NCQA's rigorous requirements for consumer protection and quality improvement.

NCQA Accreditation is a nationally recognized evaluation that purchasers, regulators and consumers can use to assess managed care plans. At the health plan's request, NCQA sends a team of trained health care experts, including physicians, to conduct a rigorous on-site survey of the health plan. During the evaluation, NCQA evaluates how well a health plan manages all parts of its delivery system - physicians, hospitals, other providers and administrative services - to continuously improve health care for its members.

For more information about the NCQA accreditation process, please visit www.ncqa.org.