UnitedHealthcare’s mission is to help people live healthier lives and to help make the health system work better for everyone. For the past 17 years, UnitedHealthcare’s alliance with The School District of Palm Beach County has been just that. Not only have quality programs been implemented in the School District, but awareness has been brought about chronic conditions that would otherwise result in high cost claims. There has been a $4.1million reduction in plan costs since Palm Beach County made plan design changes to their lab and radiology benefits. As UnitedHealthcare moves toward outcomes-based incentives for the upcoming school year, the goal is for members to know their numbers and to be more engaged with their overall health.

The UnitedHealthcare Diabetes Health Plan (DHP) integrates a series of condition-specific features for the diabetic member with the powerful cost-saving, self-management provisions of a standard UnitedHealthcare plan design. The plan rewards adherence to diabetic preventive care by reducing financial and clinical barriers. This can help lower the risk of complications and overall health care costs. The School District of Palm Beach County continues to have the highest Evidence Based Medicine (EBM) compliance out of all DHP customers. 30% of their population as of the 2013-2014 school year is enrolled in this condition-based plan design.

UnitedHealthcare offers an alternative solution for the most cost-effective, high-quality health care plan possible. The School District of Palm Beach County decided to remove the Preferred Provider Organization (PPO) plan from the medical plan choices starting January 1, 2014 and offer the Consumer Driven Health (CDH) plan (with an optional Health Savings Account) as the most cost effective alternative. By their very design, CDH plans engage consumers by imparting incentives, education, and the tools necessary to make informed decisions on the best ways to manage their own health care. The program is designed to transform “passive participants” into value-conscious consumers and is revolutionizing the health care industry. One tool that UHC offers is an online Health Cost Estimator. This integrated online calculator helps members review the quality and efficiency ratings of providers while estimating the cost of common treatments and procedures. UnitedHealthcare is helping School District members know the 4 P’s when shopping for health care: know their procedure, know their provider, know their price, and know the place.

NurseLine is a health advocacy solution that goes far beyond just addressing a member’s symptoms. It provides a single point for members to get support navigating their overall health and well-being. NurseLine connects members to information and services through a single contact point for all UnitedHealthcare health and wellness programs available. The use of warm transfers and the integration with other programs help drive higher referral rates across the continuum of care, including disease management, case management, wellness, and treatment decision support. Through this benefit 70% of callers who initially intended to use the Emergency Room (ER) avoided an unnecessary ER visit. NurseLine has a 96% caller satisfaction level.

Get personalized help through pregnancy and delivery with the Healthy Pregnancy Program. UnitedHealthcare wants to help ensure that members have a smooth pregnancy, delivery, and a healthy baby. That is why the Healthy Pregnancy Program was created. By seeing a doctor regularly, and by enrolling in the Healthy Pregnancy Program, which is provided at no additional cost, for UnitedHealthcare plan members, there will be built-in support through every stage of pregnancy. In addition, Baby Blocks is an interactive incentive program to encourage moms to make and keep doctor appointments during their pregnancy and into the first two years of their baby’s life. Baby Blocks provides valuable gifts for meeting significant milestones that contribute to the health of mother and child.

UnitedHealthcare Health Rewards is an innovative incentive program designed to help members adopt healthy behavior as a way of life. Completion of specific health activities allows them to earn Wellness Rewards. Whatever stage of their health, Wellness Rewards may help them get healthy, stay healthy, or deal with an illness. Employees can earn up to $600 annually in premium incentives from the District.

For the second year in a row The School District of Palm Beach County has won this prestigious award. The Well Deserved Award program is designed to recognize and promote highly engaged Public Sector and Key Accounts customers that have been working with UnitedHealthcare Health Strategies Consultants and using UnitedHealthcare wellness solutions for their worksite wellness programs. As a winner, the District demonstrated the highest level of commitment to worksite wellness while leveraging wellness programs, tools and resources.

This is free, confidential, online access to your Behavioral Health/Substance Abuse, EAP, and WorkLife benefits, plus information and tools to help enhance well-being, work and life. Liveandworkwell.com delivers credible, timely, evidence-based content and tools for members who want to enrich their lives or get help with issues. This is total mind-body integration for a practical, low-cost approach to wellness.

Nurse liaison Gail Diedrick, RN, BSN, promotes the use of clinical programs, disease management, diabetes health plan, and care management. The Nurse-at-Work program provides a registered nurse to:

UnitedHealthcare’s self-service Health Kiosk is an innovative and cost-effective solution that organizations can easily implement to help educate employees at the workplace about their health status. The two Health Kiosks are strategically placed in high-traffic, visible locations within the School District to provide individuals with convenient, immediate and ongoing access to their key health indicators.

If you find it difficult to manage your ongoing health condition and would like one-on-one support, the Disease Management program may be right for you. The program will connect you with a dedicated nurse who will work with you over the phone to develop a personalized action plan to reduce risk factors and may help you save on out-of-pocket medical expenses.

UnitedHealthcare understands that cancer patients will face many challenges and knows the health care system is complicated and can be difficult to navigate. A new program was established that provides a designated team of expert advisors to give members valuable help and guidance. The goal is to reduce the time and effort cancer patients may spend on insurance and paperwork allowing them to remain focused on what is most important: their health.

Did you know that there are two dedicated on-site UnitedHealthcare representatives available to assist members? Stacey Brooks (561) 357-7564 and Gaby Coolican (561) 434-8092 are both located at the Fulton-Holland Educational Services Center building and are available during normal District hours.

The School District of Palm Beach County is dedicated to providing opportunities and resources for employees to maintain a healthy and active lifestyle. These are just some of the many health benefit resources provided by UnitedHealthcare that will increase self-care and health awareness. More resources for employees and their families can be found at www.myuhc.com.