Manage your Consumer Advantage Health Plan with MyHealth OnLine
What is a high-deductible health plan (HDHP)?
What is a CDHP?
What is an HRA?
What is an HSA?
Have a question about your HSA?

Manage your Consumer Advantage Health Plan with MyHealth OnLine
MyHealth OnLine gives you access to tools and resources that can help you track your health care services and expenses. When you register at the site, you can:

• View detailed information about your benefits, covered services, and more.
• Access details of recent medical and pharmacy claims.
• View spending summaries.
• Search for physicians as well as compare health care cost and quality.
• Compare prescription drug costs.
• Estimate yearly medical costs.
• Calculate non-covered medical expenses.
• Request new ID cards.
• Track health care services and expenses.

Visit www.upmchealthplan.com to get started.

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What is a high-deductible health plan (HDHP)?
With a high-deductible health plan, you have the security of comprehensive health care coverage. Like a traditional plan, you are responsible for paying your qualified medical expenses up to the in-network deductible; however, the deductible will be higher, and you can use HSA funds to pay for these expenses.

After the annual deductible is met, you are responsible only for a portion of your medical expenses through coinsurance or copayments, just as with a traditional health plan. For 2010, the minimum HDHP deductible, by law, is $1,200 for individuals and $2,400 for families.

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What is a CDHP?
A consumer-directed health plan (CDHP) helps pay for medical expenses and deductibles by combining a tax-advantaged savings account or arrangement with a qualified health plan (according to Internal Revenue Service codes).

Based on UPMC Health Plan’s PPO Plan, UPMC Consumer Advantage offers both a Health Savings Account (HSA) and a Health Reimbursement Arrangement (HRA). HSAs and HRAs feature lower premiums than traditional health plans and an earmarked fund for health care expenses.

With UPMC Consumer Advantage:

• All in- and out-of-network coverage counts toward the deductible.
• Preventive care is 100% covered and is not subject to the deductible.
• Medical services are covered at 100% after the out-of-pocket limits are satisfied.
• Out-of-pocket limits are lower for in-network care.

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What is an HRA?
An HRA allows you to use available employer-provided funds to pay for health care expenses during the plan year. Your employer contributes a predetermined amount to the HRA at the beginning of the plan year. For example, your plan may have a $1,250 deductible, and the HRA could be set up so that you pay the first $625 and your employer pays the remaining $625 of health care costs.

Once the deductible is met, expenses will be covered by the medical plan or at a specified coinsurance percentage. You may also be required to pay copayments for services such as physician office visits
and specialist office visits.

You receive a tax benefit because funds that your employer contributes to the HRA are not considered wages and therefore are not subject to income taxes, FICA, Social Security, or workers’ compensation. Employees cannot, however, contribute funds to an HRA.

In an HRA, the employer owns and provides the funds, which can only be accessed by the health plan to pay claims on behalf of the employee. When employment ends, so does access to the HRA funds.

UPMC Consumer Advantage covers preventive care visits without having to satisfy the deductible:

• Adult physical exams
• Gynecological exams
• Routine mammograms
• Well-child exams
• Routine pediatric immunizations

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What is an HSA
An HSA is a checking account — just for current and future health care expenses. Your employer may contribute to it along with you, but you own your HSA account, keep it year after year, and take it with you when you retire or leave the company. You receive tax advantages because funds that your employer contributes to the HSA are not considered wages and therefore are not subject to income taxes, FICA, Social Security, or workers’ compensation. In addition, contributions are tax-free, interest accumulates tax-free, and the dollars you spend on medical expenses are tax-free.

After the deductible is met, your health plan covers eligible services. During that time, you may still have to pay a coinsurance percentage amount for each service, based on the benefit levels of your health plan. You can, however, continue to use your HSA funds to pay those copayment amounts and coinsurance percentages throughout the rest of the plan year. You can also use HSA funds to pay for medical expenses not covered by your health plan, for example, dental care, vision expenses and eye glasses, and even some types of complementary and alternative medical services.

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Have a question about your HSA?
Chances are you can find the answer on the ACS Mellon website’s FAQ section. This section has the answers, literally, to dozens of questions in each of the following categories:

• About HSAs
• Eligibility and Enrollment
• Contributions
• Distributions
• Managing your HSA
• No longer a member
• Reaching age 65
• Death
• Tax considerations
• Rollovers/Transfers/FSAs/HRAs
• Working with your Health Plan
• Investing your HSA

Just go to https://hsamember.com/ and select the FAQs button.