South Georgia Conference UMC

NEWS FROM THE ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES OFFICE

Earn money by participating in HealthFlex incentive
by Miriam Hagan, Director of Administrative Services

In 2006 HealthFlex began offering incentives to annual conferences whose participants participated in taking the WebMD Survey. As a result our conference received a check for over $40,000, which was disbursed to our participants and their churches.

The 2007 incentive had two parts: (a) a minimum participation of 40% of eligible participants in the WebMD Health Quotient survey and (b) a minimum participation of 50% of eligible participants having an annual “wellness exam.” South Georgia earned an incentive totaling $78,545.28. We are in the process of determining which churches and participants are eligible to receive the incentive and will be mailing checks before annual conference.

This year we again have the opportunity to earn an incentive from Health Flex using the same criteria as last year: (a) participation in the WebMD Health Quotient survey and (b) having a “wellness exam.” As before, the higher participation in this program, the more South Georgia will receive in this year's incentive. Though retirees are not eligible to receive the incentive, we recommend that they still participate in the survey and have their wellness exam annually as a preventative measure.

Because we know that having a “wellness exam” is important and can help detect potential health problems early, we are again going to be offering the Procheck Health Screening during annual conference. If you are a participant in HealthFlex the cost of the screening will be covered by HealthFlex. This screening is available to all of our participants – both Active AND Retirees.

We encourage our participants to have the screening during annual conference and then take their result with them and share with their doctor during their annual “wellness exam.” We have already heard from participants whose Procheck screening and visit to their doctor resulted in early diagnosis of potentially dangerous health conditions. Participants can have the screening as well as their annual “wellness exam” with their doctor, and HealthFlex will cover them both.

For persons attending annual conference who are not HealthFlex participants, they can also have the health screening done at a cost of $115.

This spring, the General Board of Pensions is sponsoring an “Incentive Blitz” for HealthFlex participants. The reward is a $100 Visa gift card for participants in our PPO (or active) plan who take the WebMD Survey by June 30, 2008. If a married couple both are covered by HealthFlex, then each of them must take the WebMD Health Quotient survey in order for them to earn the incentive. In the case of married participants where both participate they will each receive a $100 Visa gift card. The gift cards will arrive in your mailbox by August 31, 2008. Please note: the Visa card incentive is not available to participants in the Medicare companion plan.

The “Incentive Blitz” is in addition to the incentive that the conference can earn in 2008 described earlier in this article. Taking the WebMD Survey for this incentive will earn you a Visa gift card and also help the conference earn an incentive based on the percentage of participants who take the WebMD Survey.

We are urging you to log into the General Board of Pensions web site, www.gbophb.org and select “HealthFlex WebMD” on the right side of the screen under “Account Login.” If you have questions about how to log on, call the Health Team at the General Board of Pensions at 800-851-2201, or call Bob Shell in our office at 800-535-4224.