PrimeWest Health Timeline

PrimeWest Health's History
PrimeWest Health is a health plan designed to serve those members of our community who are eligible for State and/or Federal assistance with health care costs. It was formed in 1998 through a joint powers agreement between 10 rural Minnesota counties: Big Stone, Douglas, Grant, McLeod, Meeker, Pipestone, Pope, Renville, Stevens, and Traverse. In 2008, Beltrami, Clearwater, and Hubbard counties joined the partnership. Currently, PrimeWest Health provides health care coverage for about 20,000 residents of these 13 counties.

County-based Purchasing
The joint powers agreement that formed PrimeWest Health was made possible by a State law passed in 1997. This law is known as the County-based Purchasing law or CBP. It lets counties buy health care services for residents who are eligible for State and/or Federal assistance directly rather than relying on non-local Health Maintenance Organizations (HMOs). This allows counties to make the best use of local resources to serve residents. The goal was to create a new kind of health plan specifically designed to meet the needs of local members and health care providers while also meeting all State and Federal regulatory requirements.

Programs
After several years of planning and collaboration among county commissioners, public health and social services officials, health care providers, and PrimeWest Health staff, PrimeWest Health officially began health care operations in 2003. We initially offered coverage through two programs, the Prepaid Medical Assistance Program (PMAP) and Prepaid General Assistance Medical Care (PGAMC). Since that time, we have added four more programs. In 2005, we began offering coverage through Minnesota Senior Care Plus (MSC+), MinnesotaCare, and PrimeWest Senior Health Complete (HMO). In 2008, we began serving the needs of people with disabilities through Prime Health Complete (HMO) and Prime Health Complete (SNBC). We also began providing Medicare Part D benefits for eligible members in 2006. Effective March 1, due to changes made by the State, PGAMC coverage is no longer provided by Managed Care Organizations (MCOs), including PrimeWest Health.

Community Reinvestment
Serving the people of greater Minnesota offers special challenges and PrimeWest Health is uniquely qualified to handle them. Since our inception, we have reinvested our surplus dollars back into the communities. We believe that investing in our communities will not only make them stronger, but healthier, too.

Recognition
During its brief history, PrimeWest Health has been recognized as an innovator on both a local and national scale. In 2004, PrimeWest Health was recognized for its innovation and leadership by the Association of Minnesota Counties (AMC) with the AMC County Achievement Award. In 2006, PrimeWest Health was selected by the National Association of Counties (NACo) as the 2006 recipient of two awards, its Achievement Award and the Best of Category Achievement Award in Health. The Achievement Award is a non-competitive program that recognizes counties for creative and innovative program development and implementation, efficient administrative management of county agencies, and responsible government to local citizens. The Best of Category Achievement Award in Health was one of only 14 awards conferred nationwide in a variety of categories.