The battle continues.
The clash over OMNIA, the controversial and popular new line of health insurance plans from Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey took a pesky turn last week, The Auditor has learned.
Democratic Assemblyman John Wisniewski's district office in Sayreville was hit with about 75 phone calls March 8- 9, according to Tim O'Donovan, Wisniewski's chief of staff. The callers told Wisniewski's staff they had been contacted and encouraged to press a button if they "didn't want to spend more money on health care," O'Donovan said.
The calls came in from the same New Brunswick telephone number, he said.
"They seemed confused as to why they were connected to our office," he said.
On March 7, Wisniewski took part in a Statehouse press conference that slammed Horizon for offering consumers cheaper premiums and copays if they use hospitals group into tier 1. A number of hospitals in tier 2 - many of them smaller, located in cities and Catholic-run - have sued, saying Horizon did not give them a chance to join tier 1 and fear the loss of business will devastate them.
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Horizon officials have said OMNIA responded to the demand for cheaper insurance options, and point to the 234,000 subscribers who joined in late 2015. Horizon sued some hospitals for false advertising.
"The fact that more than 19,000 Middlesex County residents have chosen an OMNIA health insurance policy, including 4,200 who were previously uninsured, is a clear sign that consumers want and need high-quality, affordable health coverage," Horizon spokesman Tom Wilson said. "We are proud to help those consumers connect with their elected representatives so that their voices, and not just those of the PR firms and lobbyists hired by a few hospitals, can be heard in the debate."
O'Donovan said he and Wisniewski's staff informed callers "of the consequences" of the tiered system - "how it will force people away from certain hospitals which could result in them closing."
The battle continues.