For Your Health Health Care Tips: Use Preventive Services – The University is concerned about your and your family’s health and welfare. To illustrate that commitment, the University’s health/dental/vision plans include coverage for preventive services. We encourage you to take advantage of these important benefits now to hopefully avoid major illnesses and costs in the future. Check your current health plan document on this website for the covered preventive services. Use In-Network Providers – Make sure that your doctor, dentist, pharmacy or the medical facility you visit is an in-network provider. In-network providers have rate agreements with the insurance vendors for services rendered. If you use an in-network provider, your health/dental/vision plan will pay a greater share of the total costs. If you use an out-of-network provider and you’re enrolled in an Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield PPO plan or the United HealthCare Choice Plus POS plan, your health/dental vision plan will pay a lesser share of the total costs, and you’ll be responsible for charges above the in-network rate agreements. If you use an out-of-network provider and you’re enrolled in the United HealthCare Choice HMO plan, you’ll be responsible for the total charges unless it is an emergency and you’ve contacted your primary care physician within 48 hours of receiving emergency care from an out-of-network provider. To locate in-network providers, do a provider search on the applicable insurance vendor website: Blue Cross Blue Shield www.anthem.com (select Blue Access Choice as plan) United HealthCare www.myuhc.com (select Choice HMO or Choice Plus POS as plan) Essex Dental Benefits www.essexdental.com Vision Service Plan www.vsp.com Urgent Care Centers vs. Hospital Emergency Rooms – You can save both time and money by visiting an urgent care center rather than going to a hospital emergency room for non-emergency medical conditions like the flu, sore throat, ear or sinus infections, minor cuts, sprains, strains, and minor broken bones. Hospital emergency rooms should be utilized only in cases of severe or life-threatening illnesses or injuries such as major broken bones, excessive bleeding or extreme pain that arises suddenly. The medical staff at urgent care centers can treat injuries or illnesses that require immediate care but are not serious enough to be considered life-threatening. Visits to hospital emergency rooms for non-emergency situations can result in very lengthy waits for service and in greater out-of-pocket expense, compared to urgent care center visits. Under the United HealthCare plans, the co-pay for a visit to a participating urgent care center is just $35, compared to the $100 emergency room visit co-pay. While the co-insurance rate under the Blue Cross Blue Shield plans is the same for urgent care center and hospital emergency room visits (20% in-network/40% out-of-network, after the applicable plan deductible has been satisfied), the charge on which that co-insurance rate is based will be much lower at an urgent care center than a hospital emergency room. Walk-In Health Care Clinics – These clinics, located within a number of retail drug stores, are staffed with nurse practitioners and physician assistants who can diagnose and provide immediate limited treatment for minor illnesses such as colds, seasonal allergies, bronchitis, ear or sinus infections, and skin rashes. No appointments are necessary at these convenient walk-in clinics, which are frequently open 7 days a week, including evenings and weekends. Under the United HealthCare plans, the co-pay for a visit to a participating walk-in health care clinic is $20. Under the Blue Cross Blue Shield plans, such visits are subject to the applicable plan deductible and co-insurance rates (20% in-network/40% out-of-network). Resources/Tools You Can Use: Your Health Snapshot is a personal and private health risk assessment tool developed for use by members of the Washington University community. This easy-to-use interactive tool can help you assess and improve your health. By answering questions about your medical history, eating habits, exercise and other behaviors, you can learn about the potential risk of cancer, stroke, heart disease, diabetes and osteoporosis, and receive personalized tips on ways to lower these health risks. Log on to: http://www.yourhealthsnapshot.wustl.edu (general Wash U ID: wustl; general Wash U password: health) BJC My Health Folders, developed by BJC HealthCare, provides a convenient means for organizing and storing medical and health-related information for you and your family members. Through this tool, you can maintain a secure on-line record of your family’s health care providers, insurance plans, and medical history (including allergies, medications, immunizations, surgeries, etc.), which can be accessed 24 hours a day world-wide via the Internet in the event of a medical emergency. Log on to: http://www.myHealthFolders.com (enrollment code: W29658) WUSTL’s Healthy Living (http://healthyliving.wustl.edu) and Wellness Connection (http://wellnessconnection.wustl.edu) websites provide an information resource for members of the Washington University community in pursuit of a healthier lifestyle. These websites contain links to various wellness resources and Washington University programs on smoking cessation, nutrition, weight management, and fitness. WUSTL’s Employee Assistance Program (EAP), managed by PeopleResources, provides confidential, professional assistance to benefits-eligible employees and their family members to help resolve problems that are affecting their personal life or job performance. Employees can contact PeopleResources 24 hours a day, seven days a week at 1-800-765-9124 or online at www.worklifetools.com to arrange a confidential appointment with an EAP specialist. EAP specialists have professional training and expertise in a wide range of issues such as marriage and family problems, alcohol and drug abuse, emotional and psychological concerns, financial difficulties, stress and much more. From your Health Insurance Carrier: United HealthCare (UHC) Participants If you are enrolled in one of the United HealthCare plans, register on www.myuhc.com to find a doctor or hospital, to price a medication, and to access information on your own health and prescription drug benefits and claims, as well as a wealth of general health information. Under the Health & Wellness menu option you can: Review general health information for all stages of life, on nutrition, fitness, and safety/prevention Set up and manage a personal health record for you and your family members Utilize health risk assessment tools such as a BMI calculator, heart attack calculator, and symptom checker Access personalized information on recommended check-ups Obtain assistance for certain conditions, such as the Healthy Pregnancy Program View a list of health discounts available to UHC participants Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield (BCBS) Participants If you are enrolled in one of the Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield plans, register under the Member section of www.anthem.com to find a doctor or hospital, to view your benefits, and to: Find answers through Subimo’s Healthcare Advisor to questions you may have about a medical procedure Estimate your medical costs through Subimo’s Treatment Cost Advisor before you receive care Obtain a personal health assessment at MyHealth@Anthem and utilize other health assessment tools and calculators Access information through SpecialOffers@Anthem regarding discounts on health clubs and a variety of health-related products Enroll in cardiac, diabetes, kidney, pulmonary or maternity care programs Rev. 4/20/09