Brooklyn's Progress
August/September 2005

Since April 2004, Brooklyn HealthWorks made affordable health insurance available to eligible small businesses in northern Brooklyn.  On Aug. 1, Brooklyn HealthWorks became bigger, better and easier to get.  Brooklyn HealthWorks is now offering two new products available throughout the entire borough of Brooklyn, and now features a GHI Tri-State Provider Network of over 72,000 doctors and specialists. 

“We have been on a mission to provide low-cost health insurance to small businesses in Brookyn,” explained Kenneth Adams, President of the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce.  "Now we have a plan that really works.  Brooklyn business owners really need this insurance," he added, citing the Chamber's annual issues survey.  In the survey, Chamber Members were asked to rank the top obstacles to business growth in the borough.  Each year the top issues have all been related to increased costs of insurance, particularly health insurance.

Brooklyn HealthWorks Total and Max
Brooklyn HealthWorks is a low-cost health insurance plan designed to assist small businesses in Brooklyn who have previously not been able to afford health insurance by providing their employees and their families with comprehensive health coverage. 

Available on Aug. 1, Brooklyn HealthWorks Total will mirror the Healthy NY benefit schedule with monthly premiums for individual coverage of approximately $157.
 
Brooklyn HealthWorks Max will feature significantly lower co-pays for hospital stays and surgery.  The monthly premiums for individual coverage will be approximately $169. 

Brooklyn HealthWorks Partnerships
Both Brooklyn HealthWorks products will be co-marketed with HealthPass, an innovative partnership between the New York Business Group on Health, the City of New York and the health insurance industry.  Brooklyn HealthWorks and HealthPass will co-market several ground-breaking and affordable health insurance options available to small businesses in Brooklyn.

The Brooklyn HealthWorks initiative is lead by the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce and Group Health, Inc. (GHI), in conjunction with the State of New York Insurance Department, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the Health Resource & Services Administration (HRSA) of the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, and a consortium of health care service providers in northern Brooklyn, Program Planners, Inc., and other public and private organizations.

To find out more about Brooklyn HealthWorks, including enrollment requirements, benefits and provider directories, call Michelle Matthews, Director of Brooklyn HealthWorks, at 718-596-4550, or email her at mmatthews@brooklynchamber.com.  Information can also be accessed on the Brooklyn HealthWorks Web site at http://www.brooklynhealthworks.com/.