AlaskaCare Retiree Health News | Monthly e-newsletter

• Fall Health Fairs - Save the Date
• Know your Benefits: Vision Care
• Did you know the Voluntary Dental-Vision-Audio (DVA) plan has Two Dental Options?
• Keyword of the Month: Employer Group Waiver Plan
• Proposed Updates to the AlaskaCare Defined Benefit Retiree Health Plan
• We Want to Hear from You - AlaskaCare Town Hall Event
• We Value Your Feedback!
• Health Benefit Contact Information

Fall Health Fairs - Save the Date

The AlaskaCare Health Plan, in partnership with the Pacific Health Coalition, is offering Health Fairs this fall. Health Fairs give AlaskaCare plan participants easy access to flu shots as well as convenient blood screening, prostate-specific antigen testing, thyroid testing, Vitamin D testing, and other preventive care services at no out-of-pocket cost.

The pre-registration website is scheduled to open beginning August 2, 2023. Pre-registration can be completed online only. Health fair services are limited to members who successfully use the online tool to complete pre-registration and receive an appointment.

The Health Fair offers preventive care lab tests to adults aged 18 and over and there are no charges for lab services provided at the health fairs. Screenings like these can help you learn about your health and detect potential problems early on.

This year, the comprehensive lab tests being provided are:

• Chemistry/Hematology Profile (includes A1C): This screens the kidney function, liver enzymes, electrolyte (salt) imbalance, diabetes, tissue disease or damage, coronary heart disease, and more.
• Thyroid Screen: The Thyroid Stimulating Hormone (TSH) screening tests thyroid function. The thyroid gland regulates the way the body uses energy.
• Prostate Disease Screen (PSA): The PSA is a blood test primarily used to screen for prostate cancer. This test is offered to men 40 years of age and older.
• Vitamin D Screening: Vitamin D deficiency increases the risk of heart disease, and is also linked to high blood pressure, diabetes, and obesity.

For more information on the Health Fairs visit the AlaskaCare website.

Reminder:  Effective January 1, 2022, AlaskaCare expanded preventive care coverage in the Retiree Defined Benefit health plan. AlaskaCare covers preventive care for you and your eligible dependents. There are no copays, deductibles, or coinsurance for covered preventive services when you see a network provider.

Know Your Benefits: Vision Care

Being able to see whatever you want without glasses or contacts would be fantastic. Unfortunately, people don’t have the vision of a Bald Eagle, and most of us experience at least one vision condition at some point during our lives.

Our eyes are incredibly complicated and even the slightest disruption in the lens, cornea, retina, or iris can drastically change your vision. The good news is that many vision conditions can be corrected through a comprehensive eye exam followed by the correct prescription for glasses or contact lenses.

If you are enrolled in the AlaskaCare retiree Dental-Vision-Audio (DVA) plan, the following services and supplies are a covered benefit*:

• One complete eye examination, including a required refraction, by a legally qualified ophthalmologist or optometrist, during a calendar year.
• Up to two single vision, bifocal, trifocal, or lenticular lenses per calendar year.
• Frames, but not more than one pair during any two consecutive calendar years.
• One pair of cosmetic contacts elected in lieu of glasses. These will be covered the same as any other single vision spectacle lenses appropriate to the member’s vision prescription. This means that you must pay the difference between the recognized charge for spectacle lenses and contact lenses.
• Contact lens fitting provided by an ophthalmologist or optometrist, or by a technician under the direct supervision of the prescribing practitioner, when contact lenses are elected in lieu of glasses.
• One pair of contact lenses required following cataract surgery or because visual acuity is correctable to 20/70 or better only with the use of contact lenses. The maximum lifetime amount payable for necessary contact lenses is $400. After you reach this maximum, necessary contacts are covered the same as cosmetic contacts.
• Certain lens options, limited to those listed below:
  • scratch resistant coating
  • antireflective coating
  • polycarbonate lenses

*See Section 10 of the AlaskaCare defined benefit Retiree Insurance Information Booklet 

Exercise Your Way to Healthier Eyes  Regular exercise is good for your eyes, and there are plenty of fun ways to get moving. Decrease your risk for glaucoma, diabetic retinopathy, and age-related macular degeneration with exercise.

It's no secret that exercise is a great way to get in shape and avoid serious health conditions. But you may be surprised to learn that you can exercise your way to healthy eyes too.

Like your heart, brain, and lungs, your eyes are impacted by how you care for your body. Regular exercise can help prevent eye conditions linked to obesity and being out of shape.

• Glaucoma causes damage to the optic nerve. Simply walking 2 or 3 times a week can help lower pressure on the nerve in the eyes.
• Diabetic Retinopathy can lead to blindness unless a regimen of the right diet and exercise is followed.
• Age-related Macular Degeneration(AMD) is a leading cause of vision loss in Americans 60 years of age and older. Lowering blood pressure through a good diet and exercise may help slow the progress of AMD.

Find more information regarding your vision and healthcare benefits on our website.

Did you know the Voluntary Dental-Vision-Audio (DVA) plan has Two Dental Options?

Upon retirement, AlaskaCare retiree beneficiaries may choose to participate in a voluntary Dental-Vision-Audio (DVA) plan to provide coverage for themselves and their eligible dependents. The Division of Retirement and Benefits is dedicated to providing affordable, valuable, and sustainable benefits to retirees.

Effective in plan year 2020, AlaskaCare began offering two retiree dental plan options, the Legacy Dental Plan, and the Standard Dental Plan. The plans have different dental coverage provisions. The AlaskaCare Retiree Insurance Information Booklets contains the complete benefit provisions for both the standard and legacy dental plans. Offering two dental plans provides maximum benefit and choice to all members. Each DVA plan has different dental coverage provisions and different monthly premium rates. The vision and audio coverage does not vary between the two DVA plans.

For information about dental benefits contact: Delta Dental of Alaska toll-free at (855) 718-1768.

Keyword of the Month: Employer Group Waiver Plan

The world of health care is complex and uses a lot of jargon. You don’t need to be a health care specialist to get the most out of your benefits and knowing some of the technical terms makes it a little less mysterious. This month’s keyword(s) is Employer Group Waiver Plan (EGWP).

Effective January 1, 2019, AlaskaCare implemented an Employer Group Waiver Plan for all Medicare-eligible members covered under the AlaskaCare retiree health plan. An Employer Group Waiver Plan, known as an EGWP or “Egg Whip,” is a program offered by the federal government that increases federal subsidies for prescription drugs for the retiree health trust. This was an administrative change to how pharmacy benefits were previously managed for Medicare-eligible retirees and dependents. 

AlaskaCare was already receiving a federal subsidy for the retiree health prescription drug benefit. Moving to an EGWP plan means the retiree health trust receives significantly higher subsidies than previous years. The Division must manage the health plan to ensure retirees can access their earned benefits throughout the entire course of their life, and an AlaskaCare EGWP allows the State to maintain the same valuable pharmacy benefits for Medicare-eligible retirees and dependents, while reducing the State’s direct costs for these benefits in the long-term.

More than 90% of states that provide drug benefits to Medicare retirees have already implemented EGWPs. As Alaska, along with the rest of the U.S., faces rising health care costs, EGWPs are a proven win-win for maintaining high quality coverage for today’s and tomorrow’s Alaska retirees.

An AlaskaCare EGWP is just one way the Division is looking to reduce the cost of health care while maintaining or improving benefits for retirees. As part of the ongoing retiree health plan modernization project, the Division is evaluating changes like:

1. Adding Supplemental Non-Emergent Surgery and Travel Benefits (SurgeryPlus)
2. Adding Virtual Physical Therapy and Musculoskeletal Care Program (Hinge Health)
3. Updating or removing the Lifetime Maximum

Our goal is to improve, protect, and sustain the health plan as it continues to offer high quality benefits for current and future generations of retirees.

Find more information regarding EGWP here. Find our glossary of more health care terms here.

The public comment period regarding the proposed addition of Supplemental Non-Emergent Surgery and Travel Benefits, Virtual Physical Therapy and Musculoskeletal Care, and an update to the Lifetime Benefit Maximum in the AlaskaCare Retiree Defined Benefit Health Plan is now closed.

However, please note that the Division of Retirement and Benefits (Division) and the Retiree Health Plan Advisory Board (RHPAB) are always accepting comments from the public. You can submit public comments to the RHPAB at any time by emailing alaskarhpab@alaska.gov.

For more information about the AlaskaCare plans, visit AlaskaCare.gov.

If you have questions about the AlaskaCare Retiree DB Health Plan or your benefits, please contact the Division at (907) 465-4460.

We Want to Hear From You!
Retiree Town Hall Events

Retiree Town Hall Events are group calls hosted by the Alaska Department of Administration, Division of Retirement and Benefits for all interested AlaskaCare retirees and families to ask questions about the AlaskaCare health plans. Town hall events occur on the third Thursday of each month, and you are welcome to join us.

You can pre-register now online to join the call to learn more about your health plan and ask Division staff any questions you have about your benefits. This format gives retirees a chance to connect directly with Division staff to hear the latest news on all things AlaskaCare, raise questions, share comments, and learn more about the health plans.

Upcoming Town Hall Events:

• Thursday, August 17, 2023, at 10 a.m. Alaska Time

• Thursday, September 21, 2023, at 10 a.m. Alaska Time

We Value Your Feedback!

Your input is valued and important. Below, please see a list of ways to contact us with your feedback. Also, a full list of AlaskaCare health plan and partner contact information can be found on our website.

AlaskaCare – Plan Administrator

• Toll-Free: (800) 821-2251

• In Juneau: (907) 465-4460

• TDD: (907) 465-2805

• Fax: (907) 465-3086

• Email: doa.drb.mscc@alaska.gov

Health Benefit Contact Information

Division of Retirement and Benefits
Member Education Center: (907) 465-4460
Toll-Free: (800) 821-2251

Medical Benefits: Aetna
Member Services: (855) 784-8646

Long Term Care Benefits: CHCS Services, Inc.
Member Services: (888) 287-7116

Dental Benefits: Moda/Delta Dental
Member Services: (855) 718-1768

Pharmacy Benefits: Optum Rx
Member Services: (855) 409-6999