University Health Plan Participant Data Sent to Wrong Addresses

January 28, 2011 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - A computer error earlier this month caused personal health benefits information for about 750 University of Missouri System employees to be sent to the wrong addresses.

Explanation of benefits, prior authorization letters, service appeals and new ID cards were the potential contents of the misdirected mailings, Kelley Stuck, who oversees benefit programs for UM faculty and staff, told the Columbia Missourian. Mailings may have contained personal information, such as name, member number, and birth date, but they did not contain Social Security numbers or mental health and pharmacy records.  

Affected employees were part of the Choice Health Program. Participants in the Catastrophic Medical Program and the Retiree Indemnity Medical Program were not affected.  

Stuck said the problem was caused by a computer malfunction at Coventry Health Care, which provides the university’s health benefit plans.  

According to the Missourian, Roman Kulich, president and CEO of Coventry Health Care in St. Louis, was quoted in a statement as saying the organization took “immediate corrective actions to address this error.” Kulich said Coventry has put in place safeguards to prevent future errors of this kind.

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