BY THE BEGINNING OF NEXT YEAR,BLUE SHIELD PLANS TO STOP WRITING INDIVIDUAL HEALTH PLAN POLICIES FOR MONTEREY COUNTY. AT ISSUE IS A LACK OF PROVIDERS IN THE COUNTY THAT ARE WILLING TO BE A PART OF IT’S NEW NETWORK, A PLAN CALLED EXCLUSIVE PROVIDER ORGANIZATION OR “EPO”. AN OFFICIAL WITH BLUE SHIELD SAYS THEY PLAN TO KEEP MONTEREY COUNTY IN IT’S COVERED CALIFORNIA’S REGION 9 NETWORK, WHERE OTHER EPO PRODUCTS WILL BE OFFERED. REGION 9 ALSO INCLUDES SANTA CRUZ AND SAN BENITO COUNTIES.
