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Aetna Premium Holiday for 2011/2012 Plan Year As part of the 2011 insurance renewal process, the Health and Life Insurance Committee agreed that
staff members and retirees who were enrolled in the Aetna health insurance plan on 1 July 2010 and 1 July 2011
and are currently enrolled in a UNHQ-administered medical insurance plan be entitled to a one-month premium holiday.
Therefore, staff members and retirees who meet the above criteria will see a credit equivalent to a month’s premium in their May
2012 pay slip/pension benefit.
EMPIRE Blue Cross to Issue New ID Numbers to Insurance Participants: In June 2011, the United States Government began issuing Social Security Numbers that begin with the number “8”. This new issue of “800 series” numbers could affect identification numbers used by UN staff members and retirees enrolled in the Empire Blue Cross Blue Shield plan because all Empire ID numbers for UN members begin with the number “8” and have 9 digits like the US government issued social security numbers. Although no UN staff member or retiree has been directly affected by having an Empire ID number that matches a recently issued social security number, steps have been taken to prevent this from happening now and in the future. To resolve this problem, new ID numbers will be issued to all Empire members between 1 January 2012 and 1 July 2012. The new numbers will be issued in two phases: Phase I will run through 30 June 2012 and during this time “8-digit ID numbers” will be issued to staff members, retirees, & dependents enrolling in the Empire plan for the first time; as well as to current participants whose insurance may terminate and subsequently be reinstated. The 8-digit ID numbers are not specific to the UN and will not include staff members’ index numbers. Phase II will occur on 1 July 2012 when all participants, including those who received 8-digit ID cards in Phase I, will be issued new alpha-numeric ID cards that are UN-specific and will include staff members’ index numbers. The naming convention for the new UN-specific ID numbers is: YLD + U + six digit index number + 00 or “YLDU12345600” for active staff YLD + U + six digit index number + 91 or “YLDU12345691” for retirees. These alpha-numeric ID numbers will prevent problems that may arise in the future when a current Empire ID number is identical to the social security number of a US citizen or resident. For Staff/Retirees with Empire Health Insurance: Walgreens, Duane Reade and Happy Harry's have exited the Express Scripts pharmacy network as of December 31, 2011. Finding other network pharmacies is easy. To find other pharmacies in your area, please use the Empire website (www.empireblue.com) or call the number on the back of your ID card (1-800-342-9816). Steps for Finding a Pharmacy on Empire's website: 1) Click "Find A Doctor" 2) Scroll to the bottom of the screen 3) Click "Find a pharmacy for your prescription needs" 4) Complete required fields Update: Two leaders in their field, MEDEX and Frontier, have joined forces. The services are still the same but MEDEX is now FrontierMEDEX. New! Manage Your Health ... Take Control ... Go For It!!! For Retirees: Currently the USA Medicare Program is having its enrolment period for Medicare Part D. Please DO NOT enrol in Medicare Part D. This enrolment is NOT for Medicare Part B. The Medicare Part B enrolment starts in January of each year. For Retirees: All about Medicare and what the UN now requires! US Healthcare Laws 2010: The UN healthcare plans are not subject to US Healthcare Laws. Therefore the UN is not changing the maximum age for covered dependents. However, this request will be brought to the attention of the Health and Life Insurance Committee in preparation for July 2011 renewals. Currently, the UNHQ plans cover children until 31 December of the year they reach 25. We are working with our carriers to ensure that their customer service representatives are providing our staff members and retirees with the correct information. CIGNA Explanation of Benefits now available on paper, online or both. Blue View Vision plan - new vision care benefits plan provided by Empire Blue Cross How to establish eligibility for Vision Care under Empire Blue View Empire Blue Cross eBulletin "Specialty Pharmacy Update: Upcoming Brand Change and Enhancements" Effective 1 August 2010 Stellaris Health Network is back into Empire Blue Cross network A complete guide to Medicare coverage for older New Yorkers is now available "Changes in the Health Insurance programmes" presentation from 14 September 2010 briefing is now available online
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This site is maintained by the UN Health and Life Insurance Section, Insurance and Disbursements Service. Last updated on 26 January 2011 . |
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