Open Enrollment Dates: October 5 - 16, 2020

For details about the health plan schedule of benefits, summary of benefits and coverage, and health plan comparisons:

• Comparison of benefits
  • UVA Health Plan Schedule of Benefits comparison sheet
  • UVA Health Plan Options at a Glance
• Basic Health
  • Basic Health schedule of benefits
  • Basic Health summary of benefits and coverage
• Value Health
  • Value Health schedule of benefits
  • Value Health summary of benefits and coverage
  • Value Health OOA schedule of benefits (If your work location zip code in Workday is more than 50 miles from Charlottesville, you will automatically be covered under this option if you enroll in Value Health)
  • Value Health OOA summary of benefits and coverage
• Choice Health
  • Choice Health schedule of benefits
  • Choice Health summary of benefits and coverage
• Summary of coverage and benefits glossary

The sections below summarize:

• Health Plan cost changes
• FSA/HSA re-election change
• Prescription Drug Program administrator change
• Benefits and Well-being Expo going virtual
• Medical Center part-time classification change
• Premium harmonization for part-time employees
• Long-Term Disability plan harmonization
• Hoos Well partner change to Virgin Pulse

Health Plan Cost Changes

For the 2021 plan year, there are no changes to premiums, coinsurance, copays, or deductibles for the Basic, Value, and Choice Health options for full-time employees. Visit the Health Plan 2021 webpage for current premiums.

FSA/HSA Re-Election Change

2020 elections for FSAs and HSAs will NOT automatically carry over to 2021. Even if you do not want to make any changes to your health, dental, or vision plan options, you still need to re-elect the FSA and HSA programs for 2021 during Open Enrollment. 

• To continue your FSA, you must re-elect the program for 2021 during Open Enrollment. If you do not, you will not have access to an FSA in 2021.
• To continue your HSA, you must re-elect the program for 2021 during Open Enrollment. If you do not re-elect and you had an HSA in 2020, your benefit will be elected, and those eligible will receive the employer contribution but with $0 employee contribution. However, you can add your employee contribution at any time in Workday. 

Prescription Drug Program Changes

• Aetna will replace OptumRx as the prescription benefit manager. This means you have one customer service phone number to contact for questions or support; one ID card to show when receiving health services and getting prescriptions filled; and one personal health record on Aetna's website to find all your medical and prescription drug expenses when evaluating your future health care needs.
• Visit the Prescription Drug Program 2021 webpage for additional information and changes

Benefits and Well-Being Expo Goes Virtual

To comply with University guidelines about safety during the coronavirus, the Benefits and Well-Being Expo will be offered completely online this year through the Airbo platform. It will be available for 2 weeks instead of 2 days, running during regular work hours from October 5 to 16.

This allows you and your spouse to attend at a convenient time and location, meet with vendors and HR team members privately, and enjoy an array of resources at your fingertips. You can still browse local resources, meet with financial planners and retirement vendors virtually, and connect with HR team members to get your specific questions answered. Virtual seminars during the Expo include the topics of the UVA Health plans, retirement, investing, Medicare. Visit the Benefits and Well-Being Expo webpage for access to the Airbo platform, a schedule of presentations, and for more information about the Expo.

Dates and Times:

• October 5 - 16, Monday – Friday
• 8:00 am – 5:00 pm

Long-Term Disability Plan Harmonization

Starting on January 1, 2021, the long-term disability for Academic Division staff (enrolled in ORP) and Medical Center team members will be harmonized to provide the same benefit:

• A monthly income benefit equal to 60% of monthly salary
• Maximum monthly benefit not to exceed $20,000
• No changes to current retirement contribution provisions

Medical Center Part-Time Eligibility Change

"Part-time" eligibility for benefits at UVA has been defined in terms of hours worked/week, and health and dental plan rates have been determined based on part-time or full-time status. However, the number of hours worked per week for part-time employees has been defined differently across Grounds. 

Beginning January 1, 2021, benefits eligibility for health and dental premiums for UVA Health team members will be defined as part-time if working at least 20 but less than 30 hours per week, and full-time if working 30 hours per week or more.

• Team members currently working 30-36 hours per week will be eligible in 2021 for lower full-time rates for health and dental benefits
• Team members currently working 20 but less than 30 hours per week will still be eligible for part-time rates for health and dental benefits 

Premium Harmonization for Part-Time Employees

Beginning January 1, 2021, premiums for part-time Academic and Medical Center employees in 2021 have been harmonized so they are the same. Visit the Health Plan 2021 webpage and the Dental Plan 2021 webpage for current premiums.

• Most part-time employees will see a reduction in the part-time health plan premiums
• Harmonizing part-time rates and eligibility removes some of the economic barriers in electing a part-time position, and levels the health and dental plan premiums for part-time employees throughout the University

Hoos Well Partner Change to Virgin Pulse

Beginning in February 2021, Hoos Well will shift to Virgin Pulse as its new partner, which recently acquired RedBrick Health. Virgin Pulse offers a more modern and interactive technology platform and provides more opportunities to enhance your well-being. 

In the new Virgin Pulse portal, employees and spouses covered by the UVA Health Plan can earn up to $500 in financial incentives when they complete activities within three domains of well-being: physical, emotional, and financial. Beginning in February, you will find new opportunities to earn rewards, donate your rewards to charitable causes, and participate in emotional well-being initiatives and activities for family and friends. 

Don’t forget to redeem your 2020 rewards in the RedBrick portal by November 30, 2020. 

The UVA Basic, Value, and Choice Health options offer the same benefits but with different pay structures.

HERE IS HOW THEY ARE THE SAME:

• They cover the same ranges of services, including prescription drugs
• Preventive care services (in-network only) are covered at 100%, with no deductible
• You must satisfy your annual deductible before coverage begins for most services; then you and your health plan share the cost of covered services (co-insurance), up to the out-of-pocket maximum
• Once you reach the out-of-pocket maximum, your health plan pays for covered services at 100% for the rest of the year for in network services
• You can elect coverage for you and your eligible dependents
• Aetna is the plan administrator for medical services and prescription drug benefits

HERE IS HOW THEY ARE DIFFERENT:

• Health Plan Services Comparison by Aetna - This UVA Health Plan comparison table compares various health services (professional services, preventive services, urgent care, etc.) for the Basic, Value, and Choice Health options and shows deductibles, co-insurance, and co-pay amounts for each option
• Maximum Out-of-Pocket Comparison - The "UVA Health Plan Options at a Glance" tables below show your potential maximum annual out-of-pocket costs (premiums, deductibles, out-of-pocket max) for in-network services, for Basic, Value and Choice Health options. Each table represents one employee group (individual, + spouse, + child, family). The tables include the UVA employer contribution to HSA for Basic Health participants. Each table is to scale, relative to its out-of-pocket maximum.
• How you pay for your health plan services - The services are the same for all three health plan options. It's how you pay for them that is different: 
  • Would you want to pay more in premiums up front (Value or Choice) and pay less out of pocket for using health care services throughout the year?
  • Or pay less in premiums (Basic) and pay more out of pocket as you use the services?

To compare out-of-pocket costs for various medical situations across the three health plan options, see the new Medical Scenarios webpage.

For more information about the UVA Health Plan and the three health plan options, go to the Health Plan 2021 webpage.

If you want to make changes, you must do so in Workday between October 5 - 16. See instruction below.

 

You told us you wanted to know the costs for common medical procedures and how they play out across the three health plan options, in order to help you better compare values.

We heard you! Go to the new Health Plan Medical Scenarios webpage to see six common medical scenarios. Each scenario offers estimates for what each service could potentially cost you. (The real costs depend on the services you receive if you see an in-network provider, and how Aetna is billed by the doctor or health care facility). While we cannot guarantee the accuracy of any cost estimate, these scenarios should give you a good understanding of how your premiums, deductibles, co-pays, co-insurance, and out-of-pocket threshold factor together to impact your total cost.

Requirements for eligibility for any of the UVA Health Plans include: 

• Employee: Must be an Academic or Medical Center salaried employee of UVA, full- or part-time, and regularly scheduled to work at least 20 hours/week

  • J1 visa holders are only eligible for the UVA J1 Visa Health Plan. Federal government regulations prohibit J1 visa holders from enrolling in the Basic, Value or Choice Health options.
• Spouses:

  • For the UVA Health Plan: Must be legally recognized as spouses in the Commonwealth of Virginia and have no access to Affordable Healthcare Coverage of minimum value (as defined by the Affordable Care Act) through their non-UVA employers

  • For UVA Dental and Davis Vision: Must be legally recognized as spouses in the Commonwealth of Virginia

• Children: Must be your biological, step, adopted, or foster child, or any child declared a dependent on your federal tax return for whom you are the legal guardian with permanent custody. Children are eligible to the end of the birth month in which they turn 26.

• Children With Disabilities: Must be incapable of self-support due to a mental or physical disability. May continue beyond age 26, as long as:

  • Required documentation is approved in advance by the Aetna Claims Administrator prior to the dependent’s 26th birthday
  • They are unmarried
  • They live with you 100% of the time
  • They are declared a dependent on your federal tax return
  • For further details and additional assistance, contact Aetna Member Services at 800.987.9072 and the UVA Health Plan Ombudsman

Requirements for eligibility for Basic Health include:

• You are not a wage employee
• You do not hold a J-1 visa
• You are not enrolled in Medicare or Medicaid, or are listed as a dependent on someone else’s tax return
• You, or your spouse, do not have a balance in a healthcare FSA, are part of a FSA grace period, or your plan year is not over
• You have not received healthcare benefits from the Veterans Administration (TRICARE) within the last 3 months
• You do not have a spouse or parent enrolled in a healthcare plan (including a Health Reimbursement Account) that provides you benefits before meeting the annual IRS minimum deductible
• You have not already contributed the annual federal limit to another HSA, Medical Savings Account (MSA), or HRA in the same calendar year.

Qualified Life Events: You can make changes to benefits elections during the plan year if you have a qualified life event. Qualified life events and new hire enrollments will need to be completed within 30 days of the event or hire date.

THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN BENEFICIARIES AND DEPENDENTS

A dependent is a person who is eligible to be covered by you under the health, dental and vision plans. A beneficiary can be a person or a legal entity that is designated by you to receive a benefit, such as life insurance.

A spouse included in your medical coverage and designated as a recipient of your life insurance is both a dependent and a beneficiary.

For another example, a parent is not an eligible dependent for medical coverage but could be designated as a beneficiary.

For additional details about required documentation for eligible dependents, visit the Eligibility 2021 webpage.

If you have coverage under other group or individual plans or receive payments for an illness or injury caused by another person, the benefits you receive from this Plan may be adjusted. This may reduce the benefits you receive from this Plan. The adjustment is known as coordination of benefits (COB).

Benefits available through other groups or individual plans, contracts or other arrangements, are coordinated with this Plan. This includes automobile insurance coverage, where a health benefit is to be provided, arranged, or paid for, on an insured or uninsured basis. Members involved in an automobile accident should contact Aetna regarding COB.

“Other plans” include any other plan of dental or medical coverage provided by:

• Group insurance or any other arrangement of group coverage for individuals, regardless of whether that plan is insured
• Motor vehicle personal injury protection benefit (PIP) or optional motor vehicle insurance, to the extent of applicable law. Whenever legally possible, this Plan will be secondary

To find out if benefits under this Plan will be reduced, Aetna must first use the rules listed below, in the order shown, to determine which plan is primary (pays its benefits first). The first rule that applies in the chart below will determine which plan pays first:

	IF:	THEN:
1.	One plan has a COB provision and the other plan does not	The plan without a COB provision determines its benefits and pays first
2.	One plan covers you as a dependent and the other covers you as an employee or retiree	The plan that covers you as an employee or retiree determines its benefits and pays first. Note: If you are Medicare-eligible, this rule may be reversed. Please see rule 3, below.
3.	You are eligible for Medicare and not actively working	These Medicare Secondary Payer rules apply: - The plan that covers you as a dependent of a working spouse determines its benefits and pays first - Medicare pays second - The plan that covers you as a retired employee pays third
4.	A child’s parents are married or living together (whether or not married)	The plan of the parent whose birthday occurs earlier in the calendar year determines its benefits and pays first. If both parents have the same birthday, the plan that has covered the parent the longest determines its benefits and pays first. But if the other plan does not have this “parent birthday” rule, the other plan’s COB rule applies.
5.	A child’s parents are separated or divorced with joint custody, and a court decree does not assign responsibility for the child’s health expenses to either parent, or states that both parents are responsible for the child’s health coverage	The “birthday rule” described in rule 4 applies
6.	A child’s parents are separated or divorced, and a court decree assigns responsibility for the child’s health expenses to one parent	The plan covering the child as the assigned parent’s dependent determines its benefits and pays first
7.	A child’s parents are separated, divorced or not living together (whether or not they have ever been married) and there is no court decree assigning responsibilities for the child’s health expenses to either parent	Benefits are determined and paid in this order: - The plan of the custodial parent pays, then - The plan of the spouse of the custodial parent pays, then - The plan of the non-custodial parent pays, then - The plan of the spouse of the non-custodial parent pays.
8.	You have coverage as an active employee (that is, not as a retiree or laid off employee) and coverage as a retired or laid off employee. Or you have coverage as the dependent of an active employee and coverage as the dependent of a retired or laid off employee	The plan that covers you as an active employee or as the dependent of an active employee determines its benefits and pays first. This rule is ignored if the other plan does not contain the same rule. Note: this rule does not apply if the rule 2 (above) has already determined the order of payment.
9.	You are covered under a federal or state right of continuation law (such as COBRA)	The plan other than the one that covers you under a right of continuation law will determine its benefits and pay first. This rule is ignored if the other plan does not contain the same rule. Note: this rule does not apply if rule 2 (above) has already determined the order of payment.
10.	The above rules do not establish an order of payment	The plan that has covered you for the longest time will determine its benefits and pay first.

When the other plan pays first, the benefits paid under this Plan are reduced as shown here:

• The amount this Plan would pay if it were the only coverage in place, minus
• Benefits paid by the other plan(s)

This prevents the sum of your benefits from being more than you would receive from just this Plan. If your other plan(s) pays benefits in the form of services rather than cash payments, the Plan uses the cash value of those services in the calculation.

Coordination with Medicare

You are eligible for Medicare if you are:

• Eligible for, and covered by, Medicare
• Eligible for, but not covered by Medicare because you:
  • Refused Medicare coverage
  • Dropped Medicare coverage
  • Did not make a proper request for Medicare coverage

When you are eligible for Medicare, Aetna must determine whether this Plan or Medicare is the primary plan.

When This Plan is Primary

This Plan is primary, and Medicare is secondary, if a covered person is eligible for Medicare and falls into one of the following categories unless eligible for Medicare due to End Stage Renal Disease (ESRD):

• An active employee, regardless of age
• A totally disabled employee who is:
  • Not terminated or retired
  • Not receiving Social Security retirement or Social Security disability benefits
• A Medicare-eligible dependent spouse of:
  • An active employee
  • A totally disabled employee who is not terminated or retired
• Any other person for whom this Plan’s benefits are payable to comply with federal law

When this Plan is the primary plan, Aetna will not take Medicare benefits into consideration when determining the benefits payable by the Plan.

End-Stage Renal Disease

This Plan is primary for the first 30 months after any covered person becomes eligible for Medicare due to End-Stage Renal Disease (ESRD). The Plan will pay benefits for a covered expense first, before Medicare benefits are available.

Medicare becomes the primary plan, and this Plan is secondary, beginning with the 31st month of Medicare eligibility due to ESRD. If you’re eligible for Medicare only because of permanent kidney failure, your Medicare coverage will end 12 months after the month in which you stop dialysis treatments or 36 months after the month in which you have a kidney transplant.

When Medicare is Primary

Medicare is the primary plan, and this Plan is secondary, if a covered person is eligible for Medicare and does not fall into one of the categories above or is in their 31st month or later of Medicare eligibility due to ESRD.

These rules are based on regulations issued by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), and may be amended or changed at any time. It is the intent of the Plan to abide by the Medicare Secondary Payer Rules. If the Plan in any way conflicts with regulations issued by CMS, the Plan will pay Benefits in accordance with CMS regulations.

Effective January 1, 2021, both medical coverage and prescription drug services will be administered by Aetna. This not only brings savings to you but also additional conveniences:

• One ID card for both prescription drug program and medical program (a new ID card will be mailed in December)
• UVA dedicated Aetna One Advocate team with a whole life integration approach and advocacy for you and your family
• One place to call with questions; one website, one mobile app
• One personal health record on Aetna's website to find all your medical and prescription drug expenses when evaluating your future health care needs
• CVS Extracare Health Cards will be issued to all subscribers

Basic Health summary of Rx benefits

Value Health summary of Rx benefits

Choice Health summary of Rx benefits

Changes - With this change comes new terminology, new formulary lists, different requirements for filling prescriptions, and more. Visit the Prescription Drug Program 2021 webpage for additional details.

• Terminology: The current terms (tiers) are listed below and compared with the new terms being used in the Aetna formulary: 
  • Tier 1 = Generics
  • Tier 2 = Preferred Brands
  • Tier 3 = Non-Preferred Brands
• Remember to update your prescription numbers when required for auto-refill

UVA Pharmacy - medication prices at the UVA Pharmacy are often less expensive than those at other pharmacies for UVA employees. You can use the number below to contact the UVA Pharmacy for most of your specialty pharmacy needs.

• UVA Pharmacy: Available to members of all the UVA Health Plan options (Choice, Value, and Basic Health)
• UVA Specialty Pharmacy: Call 434.297.5500
• More details on the Prescription Drug Program 2021 webpage 
• CVS Specialty Pharmacy: Call 800.237.2767

Limited Distribution Specialty Drugs may be filled through the CVS Specialty Pharmacy or UVA Specialty Pharmacy. All other specialty drugs must be filled through the UVA Specialty Pharmacy. 

Retail pharmacies will be able to distribute a maximum drug supply of 30 days, except for CVS Pharmacies and UVA Pharmacies, which can distribute 90-day fills of maintenance drugs.

Lists/Resources

• Aetna Formulary: A list of covered medications and information about pricing drug tiers. Note the formulary is for 2020 rates; 2021 rates will be published on the UVA HR Prescription Drug webpage in November or December 2020.
• Formulary Exclusions
• Preventive Medicine List: Applicable to Choice, Value, and Basic Health options; drugs on this list are not subject to the deductible
• Specialty Drug List: A list of Aetna's specialty drugs 
• Specialty Drug Comparison list: Compares the drugs on OptumRx Specialty July 2020 list with those on the Aetna Rx Specialty July 2020 list
• Chronic Medicine List: Applicable to Choice and Value Health options; drugs on this list are not subject to the deductible
• ACA Preventive Care Drug List: List of drugs available at no member cost share
• Maintenance Choice with Opt Out Flyer: Description of fill options for maintenance drugs
• Step Therapy List: Brand medications requiring use of generics first
• Prior Authorization List  (Non-Specialty Drugs) 
• Prior Authorization List (Specialty Drugs) 
• Aetna National Pharmacy Network List: Network pharmacies within 30 miles of Charlottesville
• CVS ExtraCare Health Program Member Flyer
• Vaccines Covered by the Aetna Pharmacy Benefit: Vaccines Covered by the Pharmacy Benefit administered by Aetna

Visit the Prescription Drug Program 2021 webpage for additional details.

If you want to make changes to your benefits elections, log in to Workday and follow the instructions in your inbox for Open Enrollment. Additional enrollment instructions are below.

The University offers two UVA Dental Plan options: Basic and Enhanced Dental. Both of these dental plan options are administered by United Concordia. There is no cost change for either dental plan option for the 2021 plan year for full-time employees.

Review the premiums and deductibles for each option below and select the option that best meets your projected needs for 2021. See the Dental Plan Options Comparison Chart for more detailed information about covered services and costs.

	BASIC DENTAL	ENHANCED DENTAL
Premiums	Same as 2020 plan year; see Dental Plan 2021 webpage for rates by employee type	Same as 2020 plan year; see Dental Plan 2021 webpage for rates by employee type
Deductible	$50.00, applies to Type B and Type C Services (primary and major restorative services); dental services are listed on the Dental Plan Options Comparison Chart	$50.00, applies to Type B and Type C Services (primary and major restorative services); dental services are listed on the Dental Options Comparison Chart
Annual Maximum Benefit	$1,000.00 per person	$2,000.00 per person
Complex Restorative Services	50% of eligible expenses	60% of eligible expenses
Routine and Preventive Care	100% for in-network	100% for in-network

Beginning January 1, 2021, there will be one premium set for all part-time employees at UVA.

Visit the Dental Plan 2021 webpage for current premiums.

Changes can be made during Open Enrollment, or after a qualified life event like a change in marital status, an addition to the family, or a leave of absence. 

If you want to make changes to your benefits elections, log in to Workday and follow the instructions in your inbox for Open Enrollment. Additional instructions are below.

UVA offers ways to save on eyecare: 

Davis Vision is an option that offers additional benefits and provider options. 

	DAVIS VISION
Premiums	Employee only: $8.42 Employee + children: $14.56 Employee + spouse: $14.98 Family: 23.30 Housestaff: $0.00
Eye Exams for Eyeglasses	$0 (once per year)
Lenses - Price Per Pair: - Clear Plastic Single Vision - Bifocal - Trifocal - Polycarbonate - Scratch-Resistant Coating - Ultraviolet Coating - Solid or Gradient Tinting	$0 $0 $0 $0 or $30 $30 $12 $0
Frames	Davis Vision Collection: $0 (up to $160) Any frame: $130 discount + 20% off balance* Visionworks Frame Allowance: $180 + 20% off balance*
Contact Lenses (in lieu of eyeglasses)	Davis Vision Collection: $0 (2 boxes planned replacement or 4 boxes disposable*** Any contacts: $130 discount + 15% off balance* Visually required contacts: $0 (with prior approval)
Laser Vision	40-50% off national average price of traditional LASIK; must be through QualSight location

** Costs are based on in network providers* Some limitations apply to additional discounts

*** Number of contact lens boxes may vary based on manufacturers packaging

For more information, visit the Vision Plan 2021 webpage.

If you want to make changes to your benefits elections, log in to Workday and follow the instructions in your inbox for Open Enrollment. Additional instructions are below.

This year, we've expanded our collection of helpful podcasts, bringing you additional details and scenarios such as what it means to have your prescription drug coverage administered by Aetna instead of OptumRx; retirement options; and advantages of opening an FSA or HSA. 

• Comparison of Benefits
  • UVA Health Plan Options at a Glance
  • UVA Health Plan Schedule of Benefits Comparison
  • Summary of Coverage and Benefits Glossary
  • Basic Health
    • Basic Health schedule of benefits
    • Basic Health summary of benefits and coverage
  • Value Health
    • Value Health schedule of benefits
    • Value Health summary of benefits and coverage
    • Value Health OOA summary of benefits and coverage
  • Choice Health
    • Choice Health schedule of benefits
    • Choice Health summary of benefits and coverage
• Aetna Tools: Visit the Aetna website and click on “Log in/Register” to access these resources:​​​​​  
  • Aetna Navigator: Offers a Find Care & Pricing tool option. This compares costs to give you real-time, personalized estimates and provides average in-network and out-of-network costs 
  • Custom Doctor Find: Confirms whether providers are in-network
  • Aetna Institute of Quality List: Lists IOQ facilities
  • Aetna Plan Selection Tool: Online tool to help you choose your health plan. Follow instructions here. 
• Picwell: Picwell is an online personalized tool that uses big data to compare information you input with millions of other Americans to determine the best fit. Previously just available for the health plan, Picwell now includes details about health, dental, vision, and benefits savings accounts, including how much you should save in your HSA for anticipated medical bills.
• ALEX: ALEX is a step-by-step virtual assistant who helps you choose benefits. Enter basic information and ALEX responds with what’s available and how to get the best value for your investment. 
• Podcasts: These short podcasts deliver topic-specific information in an informal way, including:
  • HSAs and FSAs 
  • Retirement
  • J1 Visa Health Plan
  • Dependent Daycare FSAs
  • Aetna as plan administrator for the prescription drug program (coming soon)
  • Links for all podcasts, and written transcripts of them, are on the right sidebar on this and all Open Enrollment pages
• 2021 Open Enrollment Overview Video: This video provides a high-level summary of 2021 benefits changes, action items for you to take, and resources to help select your benefits
• 2021 Open Enrollment Powerpoint: This powerpoint reports on 2021 benefits changes, resources, premiums, and keys dates to remember
• 2021 Benefits and Wellbeing Expo: Virtual this year, and running during Open Enrollment hours October 5 -16l see the Benefits and Wellbeing Expo section below for more details
• OE Presentations: Virtual Open Enrollment presentations are available to assist you with your benefits choices. You can see the schedule for them here.
• NEW: For Your Benefit: (Coming Soon!) This new series offers short informative videos about Open Enrollment:
  • Schedule of Benefits (In-Network)
  • FSA and HSA Compared
  • Health Plan Options Compared
• Personalized Assistance: If, after reviewing materials and resources on the Open Enrollment website, you would like additional 1:1 personalized assistance, please call 434.243.3344 to schedule a 20-minute Zoom appointment with one of our HR professionals. HR will accommodate as many appointments as possible through Wednesday, October 14.
• For Additional Resources: Visit the Resources 2021 page 
• Still Need Help? Contact the UVA HR Solution Center, by email  at AskHR@virginia.edu or by phone at 434.243.3344.

When you are ready to enroll, log in to Workday and follow the instructions in your inbox for Open Enrollment. Additional instructions are below.

To comply with University guidelines about safety during the coronavirus, the Benefits and Well-Being Expo will be offered completely online this year through the Airbo platform. It will be 10 days instead of 2 days, running during regular work hours from October 5 to 16.

This allows you and your spouse to attend at a convenient time and location, meet with vendors and HR team members privately, and enjoy an array of resources at your fingertips. You can still browse local resources, meet with financial planners and retirement vendors virtually, and connect with HR team members to get your specific questions answered. Seminars during the Virtual Expos include the topics of the UVA Health plans, retirement, investing, Medicare. Visit the Benefits and Well-Being Expo webpage for access to the Airbo platform, a schedule of presentations, and for more information about the Virtual Expo.

Dates and Times:

• October 5 - 16, Monday – Friday
• 8:00 am – 5:00 pm

If you want to make changes to your benefits elections, log in to Workday and follow the instructions in your inbox for Open Enrollment. Additional instructions are below.

Depending on employee type and health plan enrollment, you may have the option to enroll in a: 

• Health Savings Account (HSA)
• Flexible Spending Account (FSA)
• Limited FSA
• Dependent Daycare Reimbursement FSA
• If you earn $42,000 or less per year, you may have access to a Supplemental Benefit Credit. This automatic credit offers a tax savings to help you pay for out-of-pocket costs such as copayments and coinsurance.

Health Savings Account - All active, benefits-eligible employees enrolled in Basic Health are also enrolled in, and must be eligible for, a Health Savings Account (HSA). HSA funds can be used for eligible health care, prescription, dental, and vision expenses. HSA funds roll over each year and are yours to keep for future health care costs.

• If you are enrolling in Basic Health for the first time, don't forget to sign and return the HSA Affidavit, which will show up as an additional action item in Workday.
• Even if you do not want to contribute to an HSA, you must sign and return the affidavit so UVA can deposit its employer contribution. You will be moved to Value Health if you do not.
  • If you have a health care FSA, you must deplete 100% of any remaining funds in your account before December 31. If you do not, your HSA will not be set up until April and you will miss out on any contributions you would like to make.
• 2020 elections for FSAs and HSAs will NOT automatically carry over to 2021. To continue your HSA, you must re-elect the program for 2021 during Open Enrollment.
  • If you do not re-elect and you had an HSA in 2020, your benefit will be elected, and those eligible will receive the employer contribution but with $0 employee contribution. However, you can add your employee contribution at any time in Workday. 
• Depending on your employee type, UVA may contribute money to your HSA. Employee only coverage in Basic Health receives a $1,000 annual contribution from UVA. Coverage for employee + dependents in Basic Health receives a $1,500 annual contribution. 
• You can contribute a maximum of $3,600 for employee only, or $7,200 for employee + dependents. These are pre-tax dollars reserved for health care expenses and carry over beyond your retirement.
  • Those age 55 and older may make an additional catch-up contribution of up to $1,000 per year
• If you are enrolled in an HSA, you are not eligible for a Full Healthcare FSA, but you can enroll in a Limited FSA and/or Dependent Daycare FSA to maximize your savings. Learn more about a Limited Flexible Spending Account.
• Funds are sent to your Chard-Snyder account following your first benefits deduction payroll for 2021
• For highlights, how to switch from FSA to HSA, and additional resources, visit the HSA 2021 webpage
• Listen to the HSAs and FSAs podcast to learn more about the difference between HSAs and FSAs

Flexible Spending Account - All Health Plan participants may have some form of a Flexible Spending Account (FSA), but Basic Health participants may only have a Limited FSA for eligible dental and vision expenses. 

• 2020 elections for FSAs and HSAs will NOT automatically carry over to 2021. To continue your FSA, you must re-elect the program for 2021 during Open Enrollment. If you do not, you will not have access to an FSA in 2021.
• The FSAs and Limited FSAs set aside pretax income for certain medical costs
• The Dependent Daycare Reimbursement FSA set aside pre-tax income for dependent / child daycare expenses. Learn more about Dependent Daycare FSAs on the Dependent Daycare FSAs podcast.
• These funds must be used by the end of the calendar year. However, UVA has a grace period of 2 1/2 months. This allows you to spend FSA money through March 15 of the following year. After the grace period ends, you will lose any remaining money in your FSA account. You may only start, stop, or change FSA elections during Open Enrollment or if you have a qualified life event. 
• The full FSA contribution amount you choose for the year is available as soon as the account is open. Payroll deductions for the FSA would continue through the remainder of the year.
• Current maximum contribution amounts are $2,500 for Full FSA and Limited FSA, and $5,000 for Dependent Daycare Reimbursement FSA
• For additional information about FSA accounts and resources, visit the FSA 2021 webpage.

Supplemental Benefit Credit - For lower-wage full- or part-time, benefits-eligible University Staff employees, the Supplemental Benefit Credit program helps offset employee benefit costs. The program offers a $550 annual supplemental benefit credit to employees earning $42,000 or less. 

• The number of months you work per year and the frequency of your pay affect how much money you receive in a specific paycheck
• The credit is automatically applied to your benefit deductions and appears on your payslip
• The credit is applied toward the amount needed for benefit deductions in any given pay period
• If benefit deductions do not exceed the supplemental benefit credit in any given pay period, the extra supplemental benefit credit funds cannot be received as income
• For additional information about Supplemental Benefit Credit accounts, visit the Supplemental Benefit Credit 2021 webpage.

If you want to make changes to your benefits elections, log in to Workday and follow the instructions in your inbox for Open Enrollment.

UVA's retirement plans help ensure you have enough income to live comfortably after you retire.

While your initial retirement plan is established when you first begin your career at UVA, additional investment and retirement benefit options can be modified throughout the year, not just during Open Enrollment. Changes to your 403(b) and 457 are anytime changes and are not exclusive to Open Enrollment.

For more information and to make changes to your retirement options, visit the Retirement 2021 webpage.

If you want to make changes to your benefits elections, log in to Workday and follow the instructions in your inbox for Open Enrollment. Additional instructions are below.

If you are enrolled in a UVA retirement plan (VRS, ORP, or MCRP), if you are Housestaff, or if you are a Postdoctoral Fellow, you already have basic life insurance coverage at no cost to you while working at UVA. 

VRS members are enrolled in the VRS Basic Group Life Insurance Program. If you would like additional life insurance (for yourself, your spouse, and dependents), you can purchase Optional Group Life Insurance at any time, not specifically during Open Enrollment.

ORP members, MCRP members, and Housestaff are enrolled in Group Term Life Insurance with Accidental Death & Dismemberment through The Standard. You can secure additional life insurance by purchasing Supplemental Life with Accidental Death & Dismemberment at any time, not specifically during Open Enrollment.

Changes to Supplemental Life Insurance are anytime changes, and are not exclusive to Open Enrollment.

For additional information and to make changes to your life insurance, visit the Life Insurance 2021 webpage.

If you want to make changes to your benefits elections, log in to Workday and follow the instructions in your inbox for Open Enrollment. Additional instructions are below.

• If you’re switching over to Basic Health for the first time, you’ll need to use up 100% of your Flexible Spending Account funds before the end of 2020 in order to open your HSA. Otherwise:
  • Your HSA cannot be opened, and you will not be able to make employee contributions until April 1, 2021
  • Deposited funds will become available for use on the third bank day after payday
  • You will not be able to use money in your account to cover any expenses incurred prior to April 1, 2021
• Review how you used your health plan last year. Did you use it for:
  • Medical or dental procedures?
  • Glasses or contact lenses?
  • Changes in dependent care?
  • Replacements to medical or assistive devices?
  • Life events, like marriage, new children?
• Review how you spent any funds and used your benefits by going to your benefit accounts:
  • Medical claims: Aetna website
  • Pharmacy: OptumRx website (for 2020 claims)
  • Dental: United Concordia website
  • Vision:
    • Aetna website
    • Davis Vision website
  • Flexible Spending Account/Health Savings Account: Chard Snyder website
• Review the Workday Open Enrollment Job Aid, so you are familiar with the steps you will need to take:
  • Modify medical, dental, vision benefits, if desired
  • Enroll in FSA or HSA, if desired
  • Confirm beneficiaries for life insurance
  • Modify long-term disability coverage, if applicable
  • Add or modify dependents, if applicable
• Don't forget to redeem your 2020 Hoos Well rewards in the RedBrick portal by November 30, 2020.

Chard Snyder manages the Open Enrollment process for all retirees, COBRA participants, and Postdoctoral Fellows. The Open Enrollment process for all other employee categories are managed through UVA. 

If you are a retiree, COBRA participant, or Postdoctoral Fellow, you can get started by:

• Visiting the Resources 2021 webpage, where you’ll find tools to help you choose your 2021 benefits. Complete benefit summaries, plan comparisons, required annual notices, and rates are available on the Chard Snyder website.
• Visiting the Chard Snyder web portal to:
  • Review comprehensive plan information to help you make informed decisions
  • Access plan comparison charts and premium rates for each plan and coverage level
  • Modify dependent information to ensure accuracy for your coverage needs this coming year
  • Finalize your enrollment
• Contacting Chard Snyder at cobra_retiree@chard-snyder.com or 888.878.6175 with questions.

For additional information specific to retirees, COBRA participants, and Postdoctoral Fellows, visit the Retirees, COBRA participants, and Postdoctoral Fellows 2021 webpage.

HR supports a Total Rewards strategy to support you and your family during your career at UVA:

• A comprehensive array of benefits
• Employee community resources to assist employees in meeting basic needs such as affordable housing, etc.
• A competitive compensation strategy
• Employee well-being programs

  

• Navigate to Workday
• In your Workday Inbox, click on the message titled "Open Enrollment Change: [Your Name] on 01/01/2021"
• Follow the instructions to navigate through each part of the Workday Open Enrollment screens:
  1. Modify medical, dental, vision benefits, if desired
  2. Add or drop dependents, if applicable (adding a spouse requires spousal affidavit to be completed before finalizing your benefits elections). Confirm social security numbers for dependents.
  3. Elect/waive Health Savings Account and Flexible Spending Account
  4. View insurances and long-term disability
  5. Confirm or change beneficiaries for life insurance
  6. If you are not ready to submit, back up one page using your "back" arrow in your browser, and select "Save for Later"
  7. When you are ready to submit, electronically sign at the bottom of the last page and press the SUBMIT button
  8. Workday does not currently offer the option to confirm your elections in writing, so after you submit your elections, it is a good idea to print a copy of your elections confirmation for your records. This will save a PDF of the document, which you can print or save.
  9. Watch for additional emails in your Workday Inbox related to post-Open Enrollment action items you made need to take

 

You can make changes to your elections as long as the Open Enrollment period is open, even after you have submitted your elections.

1. From the Benefits app in Workday, click on "Change Open Enrollment"
2. You will be making changes to what has been previously submitted. Any changes made will need to be resubmitted. If you do not resubmit, the changes will be deleted and the previous submission will remain in effect.
3. Move through the same screens to elect or waive coverage
4. Once changes are complete, electronically sign at the bottom of the last page and press the SUBMIT button
5. Print the new confirmation of benefits elections

Coming soon! Watch a short video that gives step-by-step instructions for navigating the Open Enrollment screens in Workday.

Yes, two UVA spouses may choose who covers and who waives, or they may have separate plans.

Employee's non-UVA spouses who have access to health benefits that meet affordability and minimum value standards as defined by the Affordable Care Act are not eligible for enrollment in UVA's health plans.

 

Try our health care analytical tools, Picwell or Alex, to help you choose.

Look at the new Medical Scenarios webpage to learn how the deductible, coinsurance, copayment, and out-of-pocket maximum affect your cost across the 3 health plan options.

You can map out what you’ll need from your benefits in 2021 by reviewing how you’ve used them in 2020 and thinking about anything new you might need next year. Reviewing how you’ve spent funds and used benefits over the last year can be a huge help when selecting a plan. The following resources can help you look back, in order to take care of yourself in 2021:

• Medical Claims: Aetna website
• Pharmacy: OptumRx website (for 2020 claims)
• Dental: United Concordia member website
• Vision: Davis Vision member website
• Flexible Spending Accounts/Health Savings Accounts: Chard Snyder website

Here are helpful questions to ask yourself. Do you have: 

• Any medical or dental procedures planned? 
• Any upcoming glasses or contact lens needs?
• Any changes in dependent care ?
• A need for replacements to medical or assistive devices?
• Potential life events — for example, new marriage, new children, or children after age 13 no longer eligible for Dependent Care FSA funds?
• Dependents' social security numbers listed correctly in Workday?​

Remember that choosing a health plan option is a personal choice about how you pay for health care services. The services are the same for all three health plan options. It's how you pay for them that is different. Would you want to pay more in premiums up front and pay less out of pocket for using health care services throughout the year? Or pay less in premiums and pay more out of pocket as you use the services?

Preventive care services (in-network only) are the same for all three health plan options, and are covered at 100%, with no deductible.

The Affordable Care Act Employer mandates that large employers (50+ employees) must offer health insurance that is affordable and provides minimum value to 95% of their full-time employees (or FTE equivalent) and their children up to age 26, or be subject to penalties.

What are the requirements for Academic Wage employees?

The Commonwealth has specific guidelines built within the Manpower Control Program that UVA is required to follow regarding working hour limitation for wage employees. This is a budgeting requirement, and we are mandated by the guidelines as a state institution of higher education.

Are there limitations regarding hours worked for Academic Wage employees?

Wage employees cannot work more than an average of 29 hours per week in a 12-month measurement. All wage employees are monitored through weekly reporting, and terminated prior to reaching 1500 hours.

What are the requirements for Medical Center Wage employees?

The Medical Center is not mandated by the Commonwealth, and as such they do offer benefits to wage employees who meet the ACA mandate.

Wage employees who average 30 hours per week in the 12-month measurement period are eligible for the Basic Wage Health Plan (no HSA).

FT/PT employees who transfer to a wage position within the plan year may also qualify based on their hours.

What time frame are wage employees' hours monitored?

October to October. The plan is effective 1/1 through 12/31 of the current plan year.

How will I know if I am benefits eligible? 

You will receive a Workday inbox task during Open Enrollment. Allowing you to choose benefits. 

A dependent is a person who is eligible to be covered by you under the health, dental and vision plans. A beneficiary can be a person or a legal entity that is designated by you to receive a benefit, such as life insurance.

A spouse included in your medical coverage and designated as a recipient of your life insurance is both a dependent and a beneficiary.

For another example, a parent is not an eligible dependent for medical coverage but could be designated as a beneficiary.

For additional details about required documentation for eligible dependents, visit the Open Enrollment Eligibility 2021 webpage.

Detailed information about eligibility for the UVA Health, Dental, and Vision Plans can be found on the Eligibility 2021 webpage. In a nutshell, the Plans are open to:

• UVA Academic and Health System salaried employees, full-time or part-time working at least 20 hours/week, except J1 visa holders, who are eligible for the UVA J1 Visa Health Plan
• Spouses of eligible UVA employees (some exception noted on the Eligibility 2021 webpage)
• Children of eligible UVA employees - children (as defined on the Eligibility 2021webpage) are eligible through their birthday at age 26, or longer if documented to have mental or physical disabilities (see the Eligibility 2021  webpage for more details)

The Basic Health option has some additional requirements; please visit the Eligibility 2021 webpage for those details.

 

Below is a simple illustration of how deductibles, coinsurance, and out-of-pocket maximums work for a single employee on Basic Health. For additional examples, please see the new Medical Scenarios webpage, or call Aetna for customized scenarios based on your preferred health plan option and potential future health care expenses.

No. If you plan to enroll in Medicare, you are not eligible to sign up for Basic Health and are not eligible for a HSA. The UVA Health Plan does not allow movement from one health plan option to another during the year for any reason. Therefore, you cannot move from Basic Health to Value Health or Choice Health or vice versa anytime during 2021 if you are thinking about enrolling in Medicare for the same year. You will be out of compliance with IRS which may incur a penalty and will have to address this when you complete your 2021 tax returns.

When considering health plan options during Open Enrollment, make sure your choices for the following calendar year are appropriate for the entire year.

Yes. You may use HSA funds for your spouse even if your spouse is on Medicare. The spouse must be declared on your federal income taxes as a dependent (i.e. filing jointly), and the expense in question is not already covered by Medicare. Otherwise, if the expense is eligible, not already covered by insurance, and your spouse is a tax dependent, then you may use HSA funds to pay for it.

You and your Medicare-eligible dependent will still receive $1,500 seed money for your Basic Plan HSA.

You do not have to enroll in Medicare until you end your employment with UVA. Your benefits counselor will provide you with the form CMS-L564 to negate the late enrollment penalty. 

You can choose to enroll in part A and waive part B, but this will terminate your eligibility for UVA's Basic Health option. 

If you have been newly granted a J1 Visa during the year, you must move from the UVA Health Plan to the UVA J1 Visa Health Plan. These are two entirely different health plans, and moving from the UVA Health Plan to the UVA J1 Visa Health Plan is allowed throughout the year in order to comply with federal health coverage requirements.

If you have been on the UVA J1 Visa Health Plan and are newly granted a different type of visa, you must stay on the UVA J1 Visa Plan for the rest of the calendar year. You must elect enrollment in the UVA Health Plan during the next Open Enrollment. 

Basic Health participants have a deductible that applies to both medical and prescription costs. You must pay for covered health care services and prescriptions up to your deductible amount before the UVA Health Plan begins to pay. 

Value and Choice Health participants have a deductible that applies to both medical and prescription costs for preferred brand and non-preferred brand retail drugs. You must pay for covered prescriptions up to your deductible amount before the UVA Health Plan begins to pay for preferred brand, non-preferred brand retail prescriptions and specialty prescriptions. Generic medications are not subject to the deductible.

The table below shows costs for retail pharmacy outside of UVA pharmacies (such as CVS, Kroger, etc.); this excludes specialty prescriptions and mail order prescriptions.

Drug Tier	Choice	Value	Basic
Generic, low cost	$6 co-pay 30-day supply	$6 co-pay 30-day supply	Deductible + 20% for up to 30-day supply
Preferred Brand	Deductible + 20% $34 min/$150 max 30-day supply	Deductible + 20% $34 min/$150 max 30-day supply	Deductible + 20% for up to 30-day supply
Non-Preferred Brand	Deductible + 20% $68 min/$225 max 30-day supply	Deductible + 20% $68 min/$225 max 30-day supply	Deductible + 20% for up to 30-day supply

You can find information on our Prescription Drug Program 2021 webpage.

If you need additional details, contact Aetna for assistance.

AETNA CUSTOMER SERVICE

Phone: 800.987.9072

Hours of Operation:

• Monday through Friday: 9 am - 9 pm, EST
• Saturday: 8 am - 4:30 pm, EST

Claims Mailing Address: P.O. Box 981106, El Paso, TX 79998-1106

AETNA MEDICAL/PHARMACY PRE-CERTIFICATION DEPARTMENT

Phone: 855.240.0535

Hours of Operation:

• Monday through Friday: 8 am - 6 pm Central Time
• Fax: 877.268.9916
• Aetna Pre-certification Request Form 

To get specialty prescription drugs, you must use the UVA Specialty Pharmacy, which can be reached at 434.297.5500 or by email at specialtymedsrx@virginia.edu.

Health Savings Account - For Basic Health participants only; use pre-tax dollars for health care, dental, and vision expenses. Funds in these accounts roll over each year and are yours to keep for future health care costs.

Flexible Spending Account - For all Health Plan participants as follows:

• FULL Flexible Spending Account - for Value and Choice participants; use pre-tax dollars for out-of-pocket health care, dental, vision, and some medication expenses. Funds in these account do NOT roll over each year. Use or lose before the end of the calendar year.
• LIMITED Flexible Spending Account - for Basic Health participants only; use pre-tax dollars for out-of-pocket dental and vision care expenses. Funds in these account do NOT roll over each year. Use or lose before the end of the calendar year.

Dependent Daycare Reimbursement Account - For all Health Plan participants with covered dependents under the age of 13; use pre-tax dollars for daycare expenses.

Here are resources to help you learn more:

• HSA and FSA Guide
• HSA 2021 webpage
• FSA 2021 webpage

After moving to Basic Health, you must complete banking forms that will go to Chard Snyder, the company that administers UVA’s HSAs, FSAs, and Dependent Daycare Reimbursement Accounts. Contributions are accepted into new HSAs the month after the account is opened by Chard Snyder. Sometimes Chard Snyder may request more information to open an account. Be sure to follow up on any requests to get your HSA opened in a timely manner.

• UVA contributes either $1,000 (employee only) or $1,500 (employee plus) once your account is opened, and the funds will show up in your Chard Snyder account and on the your second payslip in January 2021
• If you were hired in December, you may not have your HSA funds available until February 2021
• Funds deposited into your Health Savings Accounts will be available to spend three bank days after the payday when they are deposited. There are two ways to spend those funds for eligible expenses:
  1. Use your prepaid benefits card, the Benefits Card, at the time of purchase for eligible expenses
  2. Submit claims or make payments from your accounts online through the Chard Snyder website

If you are enrolled in the Basic Health option with HSA, you should contribute as much as you can afford, up to the annual maximum, since the HSA offers several tax advantages that make it an excellent long-term savings vehicle.

At the very minimum, you should contribute enough to cover the average out-of-pocket costs that you will likely incur over the course of the year. This strategy makes it more likely that you’ll have the funds on hand to cover the medical care you will need. And, as bonus, if you end up with extra funds at the end of the year, you get to keep that money to cover future medical expenses – including in retirement. 

Current maximum contribution amounts are $3,600 for an employee and $7,200 for employee + dependents.

• Those age 55 and older may make an additional catch-up contribution of up to $1,000 per year.

UVA does not allow the front loading of employee contributions to the HSA. If you elect the HSA, then your seed funds will load at the beginning of the year, and your employee contributions will be evenly deducted over your paydays in 2021.

 

Depending on your employee type, UVA may contribute money to your HSA to help offset the higher deductible.

You may choose to contribute to your HSA, though you are not required to do so. Employee contributions made by payroll are deducted before taxes. Each year, the IRS sets a contribution limit. This limit includes employer and employee contributions and is per household.

Anyone with a PO Box as their home address in Workday will have their request to open a health savings account rejected by Chard Snyder. It is a Patriot Act requirement to have a physical address on file before the HSA can be opened.

Please verify your contact information contains your physical address within Workday during Open Enrollment.

Picwell is a decision support tool that combines big data, artificial intelligence, and economic models to help you find the health insurance plan that's right for you and your family.

• Picwell asks basic questions about you and your past medical care use
• Picwell algorithms generate a personalized risk assessment for the Basic, Value, and Choice Health options, based on actual medical use by millions of people in its database that share your medical care needs and are similar in age and gender
• Picwell asks you questions about your preference for risk protection versus cost savings
• Picwell scores each of the health plan options to show you how they meet your needs based on both personalized health risk predictions and your risk preferences

Picwell protects the privacy of all participants, and will never ask for personally identifiable information. Picwell asks you information about:

• Age and gender for each member of your household covered under your health plan
• Household income, to determine what potential tax benefits you may qualify for based on different health plan options (such as pre-tax dollars in the HSA or FSA)
• Healthcare utilization over the last 12 months, to refine predictions about future health care costs
• Prescription drugs, to also predict future health care spending
• Risk tolerance, to contribute to scoring each health plan option based on both your health care needs and your risk tolerance
• Your ability to pay for unexpected medical care, to determine if a high-deductible plan option meets both your risk tolerance, medical care needs, AND budget

The Picwell Score measures how well each of UVA's health plan options matches your individual needs and preferences. It takes into account:

• Plan premiums and design
• Your health risk and preferences

The health plan option with the highest score best matches your responses, and is the best match and best value for you.

While the Basic Health option has the lowest premiums, this is not always the best match for everyone. Picwell will sometimes recommend Value or Choice Health to people with higher health risks or stronger preferences for risk protection.

The total cost of health care is defined as the annual premium plus your medical expenses. You may find that the combined cost of lower premium for Basic Health plus your total medical expenses comes out lower than choosing the more expensive plan up front. This often happens because the higher premiums for Value or Choice may offset any savings you would realize when using medical care.

If you change your survey answers, you may see your estimated costs and scores changing while the rankings stay the same. This typically happens when Basic Health appears to be a particularly good deal relative to Value or Choice. Modifying your risk preference might change the relative score for each of the health plans, but may not change the fact that there is a clear best value available.

Sometimes when Picwell evaluates health plans, one option always has the highest score. Economists call this a "Dominant Option," which means that regardless of the health care you end up using, you will always be better off under a specific plan. This typically occurs when employees have the opportunity to enroll in a low-premium, high-deductible plan and their employers makes HSA contributions. If the combined premium savings plus the employer HSA contribution is high enough, the higher deductible plan can end up being less expensive even in worst-case scenarios where you need a lot of high-cost medical care.

Picwell is 100% objective and solely focused on finding the ideal health plan for you, not your employer and not your insurance company.

Yes. When a plan is HSA eligible, Picwell assumes that you will use an HSA to help pay for eligible out-of-pocket costs. Since HSA contributions are tax-free, using them to cover your medical expenses provides an additional benefit that is accounted for in the Picwell score. For example, if you have a 22% marginal tax rate and you contribute $1,000 to an HSA, that saves you $220 in taxes, and is included as an extra value in Picwell's calculations. 

When UVA makes your Basic Plan HSA contribution, Picwell includes that in the Picwell score, Total Estimated Cost estimate, and your recommended HSA contribution. For example, if we predict that you will spend $1,000 out-of-pocket, but UVA contributes $500 to your HSA, we would use the UVA contribution to offset the costs that you would incur by reducing the Total Estimated Cost estimate by this amount. We would also recommend that you personally save $500 in your HSA account to make up for the estimated out-of-pocket costs that would not be covered by UVA’s contribution. The lower costs are also reflected in the plan’s Picwell score. 

ALEX is an online benefits counselor that will help you select the best benefits plan for you and your family. He’s a super personalized resource to help you make health care decisions that save you money throughout the year. When you talk to ALEX, he’ll ask you a few questions about your health care needs, crunch some numbers, and point out what makes the most sense for you. And anything you tell ALEX remains anonymous, so don’t be afraid to be honest.

Most users spend about 8 minutes with ALEX, but it really just depends on your needs and how deeply you want to learn about your benefits. If you find yourself short on time and want to continue exploring, just save your place in ALEX and return later simply by providing your email address.

Using ALEX is very simple. You won’t have to dig through your insurance records, but if you want to prepare, ALEX will ask you to estimate what type of medical care you might need this year (doctors' visits, surgeries, therapist appointments, ER visits, prescriptions), so you may want to tally those up and talk to your family about their needs. If you don’t know these numbers offhand, ALEX can also help you come up with some estimates. ALEX is completely anonymous, so your information will not be stored or shared.

ALEX is personalized, so he’ll analyze you and your family’s entire medical situation to recommend a plan. He takes the amount each plan would cost you out of your paycheck (your premium) and adds that to the amount it would cost for the services you said you might use. Then he’ll recommend the least expensive plan for your needs.

ALEX will always recommend the plan that’s best for your pocketbook, so if your health care needs are least expensive in the Basic Health option, he’ll recommend that health plan option. This year, ALEX will now incorporate your savings and risk tolerance into the conversation as well, so he’ll talk you through the differences between upfront costs and premium payments and what plan might be the best fit based on your unique savings scenario.

Yes. ALEX is optimized for any device you’ve got and works on any browser.