Business
Visa, Blues team up on debit card
NEWS IN BRIEF — Posted Dec. 12, 2005
The BlueCross BlueShield Assn. and Visa USA have teamed up for a co-branded debit card plan members may use to pay for health care-related expenses.
The association said it's the first time Visa has partnered with an insurance group to offer a health savings account-related debit card.
The card would be linked to flexible spending accounts and health savings accounts. So far, four state Blues plans -- Idaho, Louisiana, New Jersey and South Carolina -- have said that they will offer the card to their members.
Plans are offering debit cards with the idea they would be more convenient to patients in tracking their medical expenses, as well as eliminating the need to submit reimbursement forms. Physicians should see faster payments as the debit card process eliminates the traditional personal check processing step, BlueCross BlueShield spokesman Chris Hamrick said.
Visa is not the first major credit-card company to get into the health debit-card business. Last year, UnitedHealth Group issued a MasterCard debit card through its own bank, Exante.
Note: This item originally appeared at http://www.ama-assn.org/amednews/2005/12/12/bibf1212.htm.
