The stats don’t lie. Employers are saving money with consumer-driven health plans (CDHPs). In fact, the latest survey results reported by United Benefit Advisors show that premiums for CDHPs in Minnesota rose just 3.4% last year compared to a 9.6% increase for PPO plans. Trying to contain their health care costs, employers are moving in waves to CDHPs.

Showing You the Money!
CDHPs save you money by pairing a high deductible health plan (HDHP) with a Health Reimbursement Account (HRA), a Health Savings Account (HSA) or a Voluntary Employee’ Beneficiary Association (VEBA).

• The HDHP costs less to purchase than a traditional health plan
• Employees tend to use HRA, HSA or VEBA funds more cautiously because they view these funds as their own money

Many employers also offer a flexible spending account (FSA) alongside these plans because they enable employees to get more “bang for their buck” by paying for eligible health and dependent care expenses on a pre-tax basis.

Who’s Buying CDHPs
CDHPs are going from extreme to mainstream. In 2004, early adopters included:

• Nearly 20% of small employers
• 28% of employers that self-insure through a third-party administrator (TPA)
• 20% of retailers

Now large employers are hopping on the bandwagon. In fact, 57% of employers who purchase administrative services only ( ASO ) from a commercial carrier plan to offer a CDHP by 2006.

Why Buy a VEBA?
Do you have employees represented under a collective bargaining unit? Are you a public sector employer with unique personnel policies? A VEBA may be just the ticket. A VEBA is very similar to an HRA, however the HRA funds are deposited in a trust account on behalf of employees. While VEBAs are often overlooked in news articles about CDHPs, your HealthPartners account representative can fill you in on the details. Call today to learn more!

Choosing a CDHP Partner
Without a doubt, employers are shopping for CDHP services and 54% of employers plan to purchase a CDHP from their current carrier. HealthPartners is no stranger to CDHPs. We’ve been offering them since 2004 and currently serve nearly 300 employers with this product line. Our customers realize cost savings similar to the survey results cited earlier. Results based on some of our HRA/HSA customers show a significant reduction in cost trends:

• Renewal increases average 3.4% compared to the industry average of more than 12% for the typical HMO or PPO plan
• Premium reductions of up to 7% for some customers

Cost savings is just one of the reasons employers choose HealthPartners. We deliver:

• Responsive, complete administration for HDHPs, HRAs, FSAs and VEBAs
• Integrated claims processing that often eliminates the need for members to submit manual claims – claims automatically flow between the plans
• Preferred HSA and VEBA pricing through Wells Fargo
• A Wells Fargo HSA debit card that makes it easy for members to access funds
• A wide variety of HSA investment options for members to choose from

Looking to Make the Switch?
Call your HealthPartners account representative today for more information. Ask for our free informative Partner Paper that details several HealthPartners’ clients who successfully made the switch to a CDHP. You may also want to check out these information-packed Web sites:

www.benefitnews.com
www.workforce.com

HSA – A Premium Choice for Wenger Corporation When Wenger Corporation started planning for 2005 benefits, they had done their homework. From the articles appearing in all the human resources magazines – and from information from their broker and their HealthPartners sales executive – it was clear that a CDHP was in their future. Vickie Skala, Human Resources Administrator, notes, “With insurance costs rising, we thought a CDHP with an HSA option was the perfect way to offer employees choices – to offer savings on the front end through lower premiums and enable them to put savings in the account to cover out-of-pocket expenses.” With approximately 500 full-time employees, Wenger is a privately owned manufacturer of music equipment for the performing arts located in Owatonna, Minnesota. They’ve been with HealthPartners for over eight years, moving from offering more traditional plans in the past to offering their employees a choice of three different plan designs in 2005: a copay plan, a deductible plan and a high deductible plan paired with an HSA. Plan design pays off Wenger’s CDHP plan is designed with a $2,000 single/$4,000 family deductible. Once the deductible is met, the plan picks up coverage at 100%. The difference in premiums for employees in the CDHP versus traditional plans is very noticeable. “In our copay and deductible plans, employees bear about 20% of the cost; with the CDHP, it is significantly less, ” Vickie says. Wenger doesn’t contribute funds to the HSA, but the savings in premiums allows employees to put that money into the HSA. A pleasant surprise “We were pleasantly surprised when we rolled the CDHP with an HSA option out,” Vickie says. “To begin with, we were cautious in how we communicated to employees, careful not to make the decision for them, but to give them the facts and tools to make a decision that was right for them and their families. We were very pleased that we had 90 employees step out of the box and choose the CDHP plan.” Currently Wenger covers 205 members in their CDHP plan. Choices and opportunities Vickie notes that the feedback she’s getting from employees is that “they’re very satisfied because of the savings in premiums they’re seeing.” And how does Wenger feel about implementing a CDHP with an HSA option? “We’ve been very pleased with the participation and with HealthPartners’ administration of the plan,” Vickie says. “We’re happy to be able to provide this option to our employees. We believe it provides opportunities for employees to be better consumers. They can take control of where and how much they spend – which makes them very aware of the costs of care. It’s been a win-win for Wenger and our employees.”

It’s not smoke and mirrors
A recent article in the Star Tribune noted that, faced with cigarette prices around 75 cents per pack higher than a month ago, many Minnesota smokers are trying to call it quits. Raising the price of a pack is one of the most effective ways to get smokers to quit, experts say. We say, HealthPartners offers lots of programs – including programs to help smokers quit – that effectively and positively impact employee health and your bottom line.

In fact, since 1997 our tobacco cessation phone course – one of our Achieve^SM health improvement programs – has helped nearly 60,000 members quit, resulting in:

• 250 fewer death from smoking each year
• $100 million in productivity savings per year
• Up to $100 million medical savings per year
• In Minnesota, about 21% of the population smokes – within the HealthPartners membership, only about 16% are smokers

That’s a big impact, no matter how you slice it. But there’s more to Achieve than breathing easier.

Ready to take action and improve employee health – and your bottom line – with Achieve?
Contact your HealthPartners Sales Executive today or visit Achieve online at http://www.healthpartners.com/portal/e3.html.

Getting quit and staying quit – Cynthia’s story Cynthia is a 20-year-old HealthPartners member who took her doctor’s advice to quit smoking and called HealthPartners Member Services. She was put in touch with our phone line counselors who enrolled her in our free phone course, A Call to Change ... Partners in Quitting®. Through the course, she worked with a counselor to set goals and set and meet a quit date. The course even includes a physical activity component, so Cynthia was encouraged to start exercising and lost 9 pounds. Six months later, the counselor called to check in, and Cynthia was proud to report she was still not smoking.

Are you or your HR staff being hit with a barrage of questions from employees about benefits, coverage, resources and on and on? Don’t spend valuable time tracking down answers! Direct them to HealthPartners full-featured Member Web site. It’s sure to empower your employees with a super selection of online tools that take the burden from you and your HR team’s shoulders.

Our members are definitely looking to healthpartners.com to provide the info they need. In fact, a consumer survey noted that 15% more of our members reported accessing our Web site versus members of our competitors.

Secure, personal access anytime
At healthpartners.com, your employees have a secure, personal Web site with instant, total access to detailed information and helpful services tailored to their personal, specific needs. They can*:

• Schedule an appointment at a HealthPartners Clinic
• View their medical claims
• Request an ID card
• Change their clinic
• Get detailed provider information
• Find a clinic or provider
• Compare providers and hospitals and see where they stack up in terms of quality and affordability
• Refill prescriptions
• View their specific benefits, provider network and member handbook
• Learn about health improvement discounts and programs
• Review medical policies and coverage guidelines and the short list of services that require prior approval
• Find health information links and resources
• Contact Member Services
• Find answers to frequently asked questions (FAQs)

We’ve got smart tools that give employees a leg up on planning ahead – and encourage them to take ownership of their health and health care needs.

• Our Cost Calculators – It’s easier for employees to budget when they know the actual cost of medical care, prescriptions and copays. With our cost calculators at healthpartners.com, your employees can estimate their annual health care costs and find typical costs for conditions and procedures:
• Medical Cost Calculator – Provides the costs of standard procedures
• Pharmacy Cost Calculator – Includes the costs of specific drugs
• Copay Cost Calculator – For estimating annual costs of medical care
• HealthPartners Formulary – Employees can review our preferred drug list that’s approved and regularly reviewed by a committee of doctors and pharmacists to ensure that prescriptions are effective, safe and economical.

HealthPartners Web site delivers excellent personal service, makes benefits easier to understand and provides the information your employees need to make good personal health care and doctor choices. The result? Happier, more informed employees – and less hassle and more available time for you.

See it in action for yourself
Visit our e-demo now.

*The availability of some information depends upon a member’s specific benefits coverage.