Oct. 25, 2006
Wheatlands Administrative Services, Inc., Intends to Cultivate Long-Standing Traditions of Service to CMS, Medicare Beneficiaries
Just as its parent organization has done for 40 years, Wheatlands Administrative Services, Inc., intends to cultivate a long-standing tradition of dedicated service to the Medicare program.
Wheatlands, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas, recently assumed responsibility from its parent organization for all activities associated with its roles as the fiscal intermediary for Medicare Part A in Kansas and the carrier for Part B in Kansas, Nebraska and Northwest Missouri. Wheatlands also is responsible for bidding on future Medicare business and will soon respond to a request for proposal to serve as Medicare contractor for Jurisdiction 5 (Parts A and B in Kansas, Nebraska, Missouri and Iowa).
“The most important fact for beneficiaries and providers to know is that, while they will see some cosmetic changes such as the Wheatlands logo on correspondence, they will continue to be served by the same knowledgeable and dedicated employees,” said William H. Pitsenberger, president of Wheatlands.
“Wheatlands employees will continue to follow the same mission of striving to meet our customers’ expectations by working together in a cost-effective manner,” he said. “We will continue to do our very best to help beneficiaries and providers, and to process Medicare claims quickly and efficiently.”
Doug Scott, chief operating officer for Wheatlands, noted that the mailing addresses and telephone numbers that providers and beneficiaries are familiar with remain the same.
“We are updating our Web address to www.wheatlandsadmin.com and also will be changing our e-mail addresses to reflect the new name,” he explained. “However, both the old Web and e-mail addresses will continue to work until everyone is well-adjusted to the change.”
Wheatlands will continue a tradition that began in 1966 – and has continued uninterrupted – the year BCBSKS earned its Medicare contract. In 2005, the company processed more than 20.2 million Medicare claims in excess of $2.7 billion for more than 875,000 beneficiaries in the three-state area. Approximately 350 people are employed by Wheatlands.
The organizational structure for Wheatlands consists of its own board of directors as well as a management team to run the day-to-day operations of the organization.
The board of directors is comprised of Michael M. Mattox, a non-voting member and chairman, Topeka; Leon J. Boor, Abilene; Louis E. Mosiman, Topeka; Robert F. St. Peter, M.D., Shawnee Mission; Gary D. Shorman, Hays; and Elizabeth A. Weeks, Lawrence.
In addition to Pitsenberger and Scott, the day-to-day management team includes: Brenda Barnes, director, Medicare claims operations; Linda Brown, director, Medicare beneficiary and provider services; Kevin Cronister, chief information officer; Tom Edwards, compliance officer; Ann Shelton, chief financial officer; Brad Streets, director of business development; and Les Watson, director, Medicare payment safeguards.
Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association. BCBSKS is the state's largest health insurer, serving all Kansas counties except Johnson and Wyandotte.
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