Clear Health Alliance, HIV/AIDS Medicaid Specialty plan expands to six additional Florida Counties – Hillsborough, Osceola, Orange, Pasco, Pinellas and Polk

Clear Health Alliance, HIV/AIDS Medicaid Specialty plan expands to six additional Florida Counties – Hillsborough, Osceola, Orange, Pasco, Pinellas and Polk

By Brittany Nguyen

     ORLANDO, TAMPA, MIAMI, FL. – Clear Health Alliance, an HIV/AIDS Medicaid Specialty Plan offered by Simply Healthcare Plans, has received approval from the Agency for Health Care Administration (ACHA) to expand its high quality medical plan from Miami-Dade and Broward counties to six additional Florida counties in the Orlando and Tampa Bay areas – Hillsborough, Osceola, Orange, Pasco, Pinellas and Polk.

“Clear Health Alliance’s approval to expand health care access statewide is critically important to meet the increasing demand for services from Medicare recipients living with HIV/AIDS, especially in urban and underserved communities,” said Marianne Finizio, Executive Vice President of Clear Health Alliance. “Our expertise and knowledge of Medicaid and HIV drug treatment, established local network of highly qualified HIV/AIDS providers, and  Tampa regional office presence,  along with our ability to coordinate ‘best in class’ medical care, social, and behavioral  health care treatment for HIV/AIDS patients is what sets our specialty health plan apart.”

According to the Florida Department of Health, 135,000 people with HIV/AIDS are living in Florida. 75 percent of HIV/AIDS cases are reported in Broward, Duval, Hillsborough, Miami-Dade, Orange, Palm Beach, Pinellas, Polk and St. Lucie counties. Miami-Dade and Broward counties rank first and second respectively in the nation for new AIDS cases per capita. Pending AHCA appro-val, Clear Health Alliance is preparing to expand its services in another four additional Florida counties as early as July 1, 2013.

“The Clear Health Alliance team of HIV/AIDS medical experts and case management professionals understand the challenges that people face and the education needed to inform individuals and their families about how to successfully live with the disease and limit its spread,” said Dr. Brian Palmer, Medical Director at Clear Health Alliance. “We strongly encourage people to get tested, obtain their results, immediately begin treatment, and stay in treatment, which for some can be as simple as one pill a day due to the tremendous scientific advances that have taken place in treatment over the last five years.”

In 2012, Clear Health Alliance established a strategic alliance with HIV/AIDS advocate and NBA legend, Earvin ‘Magic’ Johnson and Magic Johnson Enterprises (MJE). Magic Johnson is both a company spokesperson and investor in Simply Healthcare Plans and its program Clear Health Alliance. MJE provides strategic advice for developing innovative healthcare programs in underserved urban communities throughout Florida to patients living with HIV/AIDS.

Approximately $29 billion is spent annually in the U.S. on HIV/AIDS, with half of all treatments funded by federal and state governments through Medicaid and Medicare. Clear Health Alliance’s expansion to these six additional counties in Orlando and Tampa enables the company to continue educating the community about the spread of the disease and increase awareness about maintaining the health of Medicaid patients living with HIV/AIDS.