The IAA One Minute Blog

On Friday, January 17, 2012, the Obama administration announced a new decision on contraception which would allow most employed women in the U.S. to have their birth control covered without having to pay a co-pay. Many people in the healthcare industry have been wondering how this will affect them. While this issue has taken the media by storm, Insurance Administrator of America is here to break down the information and give you some informative updates.

Saying "No" to Contraceptive Services

Employers may be wondering what the penalty is if they say no to offering contraceptive services to their employees. According to the Congressional Research Service (CRS) if an employer does not wish to pay, there is a fine of $100 dollars per employee per day.

Religious Accommodations Provided for Multiple Religions

On Friday, February 10, 2012, President Obama stated there would be an accommodation for church-affiliated organizations who object to paying for contraceptive services. While originally thought to be an accommodation for Catholic organizations, the accommodation does not only apply to them. Baptist, Evangelical, Jewish, and other denominations have issued complaints about being forced to offer contraceptive services which are against their religious teachings. Therefore the accomodation applies to any religion which says it is against their teachings.

IPAB Delayed

Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius has announced that the Independent Payment Advisory Board (IPAB) will not start making recommendations to Medicare until 2018 instead of 2013. The IPAB's responsibility is to ensure that Medicare stays within target growth rate limits as well as make recommendations to Congress on how to control healthcare costs. As of right now there are still debates and legislative attempts to repeal the IPAB altogether.

What IAA Has To Say

IAA wants you to remember, every kind of service that is not mandatory raises the political ire of special-interest groups, providers, users, and supporters of that service. While the media is having a field day with this new decision and is bombarding the public with information, IAA is here to simplify all the information for you. It is important to know how all of these actions will affect you. Think of IAA as your healthcare interpreter, always there making sure you understand your part in the conversation.

You're standing at your local drug store's pharmacy counter wondering (once again) why all your prescriptions cost so much. Insurance Administrator of America is here to tell you, they don't have to. There are quite a few ways to save at the pharmacy; you just have to know where to look.

What's Coming out of Your Pocket?

Before you even go to the pharmacy it is important to know what your out of pocket expenses are going to be. If you have a co-pay then you will be paying the same dollar amount for your prescription every time. If you have co-insurance then you would be paying a percentage of the prescription cost. It is important to remember what you have so you can save the highest amount possible. Every pharmacy charges a different amount, so be sure to shop around for the best price that fits your out of pocket costs.

Save on Your Prescriptions

What most people don't know is that stores such as CVS and Target usually have generic versions of drugs for much less than you pay for brand names. The pharmacies at these stores have a variety of savings options:

• CVS-Health Savings Pass, a card that allows for a multitude of discounts
• Target-$4 for generic brands

Check with your doctor to see if you are able to move to a generic brand and start saving money today! Keep in mind; you can help lower insurance premiums by using generic alternatives. To maximize your potential savings, become a registered user on your pharmacy's website. This will allow you to utilize all the pharmacy savings, such as rebate offers.

Saving With IAA

IAA offers clients access to several Pharmacy Benefit Managers (PBM) that provides employees with hundreds of thousands of pharmacy discounts nationwide. IAA's clients typically have access to:

• Substantial discounts off the average wholesale price
• Clinical enhancements at the retail and mail order level to help manage the cost for the chronically ill
• On average clients with IAA save 55% off of the original charges with 95-98% of all claims submitted as discount eligible expenses

Medco is IAA's largest PBM whose prescription retail network has broad access to local, chain pharmacies, and deep discounts.

Last Minute Advice

Before you pick up your prescription remember to try these key saving tips:

• Mail order prescriptions will typically save money
• Check manufacturer's websites for rebates
• Consider forwarding this blog post to your employees or post it on your company's website or blog to help out your employees. If they can start saving money on their healthcare plan, then you do too!

 IAA is always trying to save you that extra dollar. Think of IAA as coupon clippers for healthcare.

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What you decide to wear may not seem like a big deal when you get dressed in the morning, but it could have some long term consequences. While corsets and Chinese foot binding may not be in style anymore, today's society does have some painful and potentially dangerous styles of its own.

Women's Fearsome Footwear

Little girls love playing dress up in Mom's high heels. While high heels are fun in childhood, they can cause problems for adults. Some of the problems include:

• Morton's neuroma-an injury to the nerve between the toes
• Pump bumps-bony protrusions on the back of the heels
• Freiberg's infraction-when some foot bones die due to lack of circulation
• Flats may become uncomfortable to wear due to tendon shortening

Accessories can be Dangerous to Your Health

Accessories can make or break an outfit, but Insurance Administrator of America wants to make sure that your accessories aren't breaking your back. Handbags that are worn over the shoulder can throw your back out of line, especially if they have long straps. The American Chiropractic Association suggests that women carry no more than 10% of their body weight in a bag. 

Be on the Alert for Tight Ties

Men need to be on the lookout for possible clothing problems as well. Those shirts and ties you wear to work? They might be the cause of those unexplained medical issues. According to a 1993 study done by Cornell University, 67% of men buy shirts smaller than their necks. Tight shirt collars and neckties can cause: headaches,ear tingling, blurred vision, reduced circulation to the brain, and increased intraocular pressure. Increased intraocular pressure is a risk factor for glaucoma.Tight ties can also create muscle tension in the back and shoulders. Men, maybe it's time to think about loosening up that tie.

Don't let Clothes Affect Your Health

Clothing makes a statement about who you are. IAA just wants to make sure the way you portray yourself to the world doesn't affect your health in any way. Think of IAA as your personal "Project Runway".

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Since the passage of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) you might have noticed there have been some changes in the healthcare industry. There are still more changes around the bend and Insurance Administrator of America is here to inform you of them. So sit back, relax, and enjoy the PPACA highlights below.

Automatic Enrollment

The PPACA requires employers who have more than 200 full-time employees to automatically enroll new full-time employees in one of the employer's health benefits plans. The agencies (i.e. the Department of Labor and the Department of the Treasury) have concluded that automatic enrollment guidance will not be ready to take effect by 2014.

While automatic enrollment may be fun for something like Publisher's Clearing House, this type of automatic enrollment is going to be very costly to businesses. Question: Will the requirement to enroll employees create an incentive for certain employers to outsource jobs to another country? What are your thoughts?

90 Day Limitation on Waiting Periods

In plan years beginning on or after January 1, 2014, a group health plan cannot apply any waiting period that exceeds 90 days. Notice 2012-17 (which provides guidance on the matter) says that at least for the first three months following an employee's date of hire, an employer that sponsors a group health plan will not be subject to the employer responsibility payment. Failure to offer coverage would not be in affect for the first three months of employment.

IAA wants to reassure you this waiting period does not impact your Flexible Spending Account Plan (FSA).

Will these changes impact insurance company rates or employers hiring practices? Let us know!

New Hires and Employer Responsibility Penalties

Upcoming guidance on this matter is expected to show that employers have six months to determine whether or not a newly hired employee is a full-time employee for purposes of determining the employer responsibility payment. The Department of the Treasury and the Internal Revenue Services (IRS) intend to propose an approach that will depend on whether

a) the employee is reasonably expected as of the time of hire to work an average of 30 or more hours per week on an annual basis.

b) the employee's first three months of employment are reasonably viewed, as of the end of that period, as representative of the average hours the employee is expected to work on an annual basis.

Will the employer change the job description to attract part time employees? Leave a comment telling IAA your thoughts below!

IAA Wants to Hear What You Think

IAA feels it is important to keep you up to date on the PPACA. IAA will provide the information; you just need to find a comfy chair and watch the changing world of healthcare.

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It comes around every year, but it always manages to slip your mind...

Waiting in the doctor's office may not be fun, but those annual checkups are important. Preventative care is what keeps those small problems from becoming big ones.

PPACA Makes Preventative Care More Accessible

With the passage of the Affordable Care Act, preventative care is now more accessible. The PPACA requires health plans to cover recommended preventative services and eliminates cost sharing. Preventative services that have proven scientific benefits must now be covered and plans can no longer charge a patient a co-payment, co-insurance, or deductible for those services when they are delivered by a network provider. You can't go wrong with this kind of service!

Women's Preventative Care

The PPACA has also enhanced women's preventative care. Women's preventative care services, such as mammograms, screenings for cervical cancer, and other services, are covered with no cost sharing for new health plans. The law realizes and Health and Human Services understands the unique health needs of women throughout their lives.

IAA's HealthReach Program

Insurance Administrator of America offers a one of a kind program that can help make those routine visits easier. HealthReach is a unique plan that proactively identifies health risks through a comprehensive analysis of medical information (i.e. medical claims, prescriptions, biometric screenings, and health risk assessments).

Preventative care is the solution to healthcare cost reduction. IAA helps reduce clients' healthcare cost by mining through their claims data. By mining through the data, IAA identifies gaps in care, i.e. situations where our members are not following standards of care based on their diagnosed condition. Under the HealthReach Program, letters are sent on a quarterly basis to both the member and the member's primary care physician when a member has two or more gaps in care.

IAA wants clients to take good care of themselves. Sometimes that means having to go to annual checkups. Don't worry; IAA is sure that the doctor will give you a lollipop afterward.

Interested in reading more about the PPACA? Click here to read more!