4 Challenges to the Print and Fulfillment of AEP Mailings

For Medicare plans, preparing and distributing Annual Enrollment Period (AEP) materials – such as the Annual Notice of Change (ANOC) and Evidence of Coverage (EOC) – can be a time-consuming and challenging process.

These challenges extend far beyond ensuring that information is accurate and compliant and that materials are distributed on time. In fact, printing and mailing these documents can be a challenge in and of itself.

As one of the most complex mailings of the year, the four main challenges to a successful ANOC mailing are:

1.  Managing tight turnaround times: With plan bid approvals not being finalized until the middle of August, health plans have less than 30 days to complete all prepress, proofing, printing, binding, assembly, freight and mailing functions for their ANOC mailings. The longer it takes to finalize ANOC, EOC and Formulary documents, the less time plans have to print and mail completed packages to members.

2.  Production Capacities: With larger plans having 100,000+ members, an exemplar ANOC mailing would require printing of 30+ million pages, binding of 300,000+ books, and then accurately assembling the matching sets of books with the correct outside envelopes and postage information and delivering them to the USPS distribution centers – all within a 2 to 3 week timeframe, and all with a requirement for 100% accuracy.

3.  Ensuring HIPAA compliance: Because member mailings contain protected health information (PHI), the entire print and fulfillment process must adhere to strict HIPAA standards governing administrative, physical and technical (data) security. This means that every vendor that comes in contact with these materials must be HIPAA-certified – printers and lettershops included. Any breach in this security can result in monetary fines to the health plan, sanctions from CMS, or worse.

4.  Assembling accurate mailings: Once the printing is complete, all of the ANOC member documents must be compiled and inserted into the appropriate envelope for that member, based on plan name, type and geography, as well as language. Because these materials are specific to each member (and may contain PHI), there is zero margin for error when assembling these mailings.

With that in mind, many health plans have begun contracting outside vendors to manage the ANOC, Post Enrollment Kit and ID Card print and fulfillment process. Our latest offering, CodyPrint^®, can streamline this entire process – taking the stress out of ensuring that health plan documents are accurate and delivered on time.

When paired with the CodySoft^® Collateral Management Module^®, CodyPrint provides health plans with a single-source, A-to-Z solution for the design, distribution and compliance tracking of important member communication materials. Contact us today to learn more.