DIRECTOR'S REPORT–Thomas H. Young, Director

Happy Holidays!

I would like to take this opportunity on behalf of myself, and all the employees in our Ashburn office, to express our gratitude to our Health Benefit Representatives, and other Branch officers, for your time and patience working with the membership throughout the year.

Your hard work, informed knowledge of the Plan, and, most of all, strong dedication have made it possible for us to continue to offer Letter Carriers the highest possible quality of service. In case you haven’t heard — an independent survey of Federal Employee Health Benefit enrollees rated the NALC Health Benefit Plan #1 for the fourth year in a row!!! All the more reason to get to those Branch meetings and promote the Plan to your Branch brothers and sisters.

As the 2003 Open Season draws to a close, we now await the results with great interest. We’ll keep you apprised as the open season numbers start to roll in and I will give you a complete update in the March or April HBR Report.

A new year is on the horizon and it means preparations will be underway for our Breakfast/Workshop at the 64th NALC Biennial Convention in July. Look for information about the Health Benefit Plan’s presence at the Convention in future issues of the HBR Report.

In order to mark the many important coming events, enclosed with this issue is our 2004 pocket calendar, along with our wish for a wonderful holiday and a happy and healthy new year. We hope that the coming year will bring peace and joy to you and your families. Your loyalty and continued service mean a lot to us here in Ashburn, and we look forward to continuing our special relationship with you in 2004.

Thomas H. Young, Jr.

Changes In Our Plan for 2004

Do not rely on these change descriptions; this page is not an official statement of benefits. For that, see our official brochure RI 71-009.

Program-wide changes

• We added information regarding two new Federal Programs that complement FEHB benefits, the Federal Flexible Spending Account Program — FSAFEDS and the Federal Long Term Care Insurance Program.
• We added information regarding preventing medical mistakes.
• We added information regarding enrolling in Medicare.
• We revised the Medicare Primary Payer Chart.

Changes to this Plan

• Your share of the NALC Postal premium will increase by 3.7% for Self Only or 0.9% for Self and Family.
• Your share of the non-Postal premium will increase by 6.7% for Self Only or 6.1% for Self and Family.
• Your catastrophic protection out-of-pocket maximum is $4000 per person or family for PPO providers and $6000 per person or family for PPO and non-PPO providers combined. Previously, it was $3000 and $3500.
• We now cover osteoporosis screening for women with increased risk, age 60
  and older.
• We now cover an annual influenza vaccine for all adults. Previously, coverage was limited to age 65 and older.
• Our coverage for a smoking cessation program no longer requires that the calendar year deductible be met before we consider the charges.
• We changed the copayment for mail order prescription drugs and supplies. For a 60-day supply, you pay $8 for generic drugs and $24 for brand name; for a 90-day supply, you pay $12 for generic drugs and $35 for brand name. Previously, you paid $7 for generic drugs and $20 for brand name for a 60-day supply, and $10 for generic and $30 for brand name for a 90-day supply.
• If you have Medicare, your mail order copayment for a 60-day supply is $7 for generic drugs and $20 for brand name. For a 90-day supply, you pay $10 for generic drugs and $30 for brand name. Previously, you paid $5 for generic drugs and $17 for brand name for a 60-day supply, and $7.50 for generic and $25 for brand name for a 90-day supply.
• Your coinsurance for non-network retail drugs and supplies is 50%. Previously, you paid 40%.

HEALTH IN THE NEWS

Food of the Month

Cranberries

Good-for-your-heart cranberries can increase good cholesterol

Health authorities are placing increased emphasis on the importance of HDL cholesterol in the body. It’s the good kind that helps to prevent cardiovascular disease. (HDL does it by cleaning arteries of clogging LDL cholesterol.)

That’s where cranberries can help. Researchers at the University of Scranton found that people who drank three glasses of cranberry juice each day for a month raised their HDL levels by 10 percent.

You might think that’s a lot to drink, but if you want to raise HDL in other ways, it can be even more difficult. Losing weight and quitting smoking will give you the same 10 percent increase.

The 10 percent number is significant. Raising HDL from 40 to 44 mg/dl, for example, will significantly reduce your chances of having a heart attack.

Cranberries do other things to promote good health. They have high levels of ellagic acid which has been shown to disarm cancer-causing agents and to prevent tumors from growing, say doctors writing in Health magazine.

For people who are prone to urinary infections, an 8-ounce glass of cranberry juice per day will go far toward avoiding them. It contains compounds that keep bacteria from adhering to the lining of the bladder and urethra, according to a Harvard study.

Raw cranberries contain more healing compounds than cooked.

Study: Depression sufferers stop medication too soon

These days people are more likely to seek treatment for depression.

The bad news: Many don’t receive adequate treatment.

According to Harvard Medical School researchers, only 47 percent of depressed patients in a new study were receiving proper care. Patients stopped taking antidepressants because of side effects or because they didn’t see quick results. (It takes two or three weeks for these drugs to work properly.)

About 6.6 percent of Americans suffer major depression each year, or 13 million to 14 million people. Some time during their life, 16.2 percent of adults suffer depression.

The annual cost to employers for absenteeism and other loss of productivity is estimated at $44 billion, more than $31 billion more than such costs for workers who aren’t depressed, according to a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

Avoid holiday stress that could tie you up

It is possible to enjoy the holidays without becoming totally stressed and exhausted. Here are a few ways to do it:

• Shopping: Order early from the Web. Late purchases can be shipped overnight, but be sure to make a record of each purchase, and follow up to see if it arrived. General rule: Ship gifts by December 15.
• Decorating: Your place will look warm and inviting with just one or two displays. No need to decorate inside and out. Finish decorating by the first week of December.
• Baking: If you are busy, give yourself a break and shop at a bakery.
• Christmas dinner: Forget a hundred side dishes. Make a turkey, rib roast or ham and add baked potatoes, vegetables, and salad. Keep it simple.
• Demand appearances: Schedule early so there is no confusion. If two sets of parents want you to celebrate with them, schedule one for Christmas (afternoon after your private celebration) and one for Christmas Eve. Consider visits on Sunday before Christmas or the Saturday after.
• Gift wrapping: Consider gift bags or gift boxes and just add a bow.
• Caring for yourself: Try not to disturb your normal sleep and exercise schedule. Enjoy small, quiet moments.
• Holiday food: Don’t go to holiday dinners famished. Take a small portion of the offered dishes. Stop eating before you feel full.
• Relatives: Decide that you will enjoy a get-together even if some guests aggravate you. Consider the source and take it in stride.

Be on guard against hypothermia

Temperature isn’t necessarily an indicator of potential hypothermia. People have died of hypothermia when the temperature is above the freezing point. It happened because they allowed their body’s core temperature to drop.

If you are working or playing outdoors, always have enough clothing available in case there is a change in the weather. When the temperature drops or the cold wind blows, more protection is needed.

When you will be outside or traveling for some time, drink often and rest often. Food produces heat for the body. Fluids increase your blood volume which helps to protect your hands and feet.

Sometimes your body needs more water in winter than in summer. Skip drinks with caffeine because they make you lose fluid. Stay away from alcohol because it opens the blood vessels in the skin, making you lose heat faster, according to the New England Medical Center in Boston.

Symptoms of hypothermia include impaired motor skills, speech, and decision making. Victims become confused, weak and tired, breathe shallowly, and stop shivering.

Anyone who has these symptoms should have wet clothing removed and insulation added beneath and around him. Cover the person’s head.

Seek medical treatment as soon as possible for anyone with serious symptoms.

How to feel lucky you’re alive even on the most hectic days

There’s decorating, shopping, and getting ready for visitors or a holiday trip. It can make you wonder, "How did I get into this?"

You’re lucky, that’s how. But only a tenth of your joy comes from life circumstances, say researchers at the University of California, Riverside. About 40 percent comes from what we deliberately do to make ourselves happy. To realize you’re lucky to be alive, do this:

• Be grateful. Recording what you are thankful for can make you feel pretty happy. Start by feeling lucky to be living in the developed world.
• Focus on what’s right about your life. You have a job and people who care about you, to begin with. You’ll realize that plenty of other things are right if you think about that.
• Don’t plan so many things. When you can see happy times coming, times that you will be able to enjoy, you are likely to feel lucky to be alive.
• Revel in moments of pleasure. Learn to pick out special moments and savor them. Promise yourself that you will remember them.
• Spend more time with friends and family. Good relationships with friends and family will make you feel lucky to be alive.
• Be thoughtful and kind. Acts of kindness can help make you feel good. A study by the University of Virginia shows that even witnessing acts of loyalty, kindness, or heroism elevate mood and increase the desire to do good deeds. When you see someone who needs help, you can feel lucky that you are able to provide it.

THE PHARMACY CORNER

How this benefit changes in 2004

Covered Medications and Supplies:

You may purchase the following medications and supplies from a pharmacy or by mail:

• Drugs and medicines that, by Federal law of the United States, require a physician’s prescription for their purchase, except as follows:
  

  Drugs and supplies when prescribed for cosmetic purposes. Vitamins, nutrients and food supplements, even when a physician prescribes or administers them. Over-the-counter medicines and supplies. Drugs for smoking cessation, except as described in Section 5(a) of the official Plan brochure under Educational Classes and Programs.

• Drugs and supplies when prescribed for cosmetic purposes.
• Vitamins, nutrients and food supplements, even when a physician prescribes or administers them.
• Over-the-counter medicines and supplies.
• Drugs for smoking cessation, except as described in Section 5(a) of the official Plan brochure under Educational Classes and Programs.
• Insulin
• Needles and syringes for the administration of covered medications.
• Contraceptive drugs and devices.
• Drugs for sexual dysfunction (only when the dysfunction is caused by medically documented organic disease and prior authorization has been given).

What You will Pay:

• Network retail: 25% of cost.
• Network retail Medicare: 15% of cost.
• Non-network retail: 50% of the Plan allowance, and the difference, if any, between our allowance and the billed amount (calendar year deductible applies).
• Non-network retail Medicare: 50% of the Plan allowance, and the difference, if any, between our allowance and the billed amount.

Mail Order:

• 60-day supply: $8.00 Generic, $24.00 Brand Name
• 90-day supply: $12.00 Generic, $35.00 Brand Name

Mail Order — Medicare:

• 60-day supply: $7.00 Generic, $20.00 Brand Name
• 90-day supply: $10.00 Generic, $30.00 Brand Name

Note: If there is no generic equivalent available, you will have to pay the brand name co-pay.

26th National Health Benefit Plan Seminar Deemed a Huge Success!

After a two-year absence, the NALC Health Benefit Seminar returned with much success. On Sunday, October 19, 2003, approximately 360 Health Benefit and other branch representatives registered for two and a half days of classes aimed at providing them with the information necessary to represent the Plan during the upcoming Open Season and throughout the new benefit year.

The structure of the Seminar was revamped and the attendees began their journey with a Health Fair during the registration hours. Our representatives and their guests were able to visit various stations dedicated to screening blood pressure, cholesterol, bone density, vision, and body mass index, as well as receive flu and pneumonia shots. The Health Fair screenings were provided by our PPO partner — First Health.

Monday morning began with the opening General Session. Health Benefit Plan Director Tom Young, started by introducing President Bill Young, President Emeritus Vincent Sombrotto, our Trustees, Larry Brown, Dan Rupp and Randy Keller, as well as Lynn Jester and her Auxiliary Officers.

Trustee Chairman Larry Brown addressed the Seminar attendees regarding the status of the Plan and then introduced his fellow Trustees, Dan Rupp and Randy Keller, who also addressed the participants.

President Emeritus Sombrotto began his address to the audience by stating that it "was great to be here!" He went on to stress his strong support of the NALC Health Benefit Plan and pleasure with the Plan’s "Number One" status.

President Young then took the podium and addressed the Health Benefit Representatives and other Branch officers in attendance stating that the NALC Health Benefit Plan, during negotiations with the Office of Personnel Management, was able to keep the handle on their premiums, which will make the Plan very attractive to active letter carriers during the upcoming Open Season. President Young also had the opportunity to ask the HBRs to make sure they enroll as "e-Activists." The support of all those in attendance is extremely important and, as stated by President Young, "I can do this with you, I can’t do it for you."

NALC Health Benefit Plan Director, Tom Young, then began his report to the General Session. After briefing the Health Benefit Representatives on the status of the Plan and the updates on our Managed Care providers, Director Young stated to those in attendance that it was now up to them to take control of their own health. People attending the General Session received a pedometer and Director Young asked them to put the monitors on and see just how they could improve their health by walking at least 10,000 steps per day — a job not too hard for letter carriers!!

Following the General Session, an Awards Luncheon was held where Ten Year Health Benefit Representatives and Twenty Year Health Benefit Representatives were honored for their support of and service to the NALC Health Benefit Plan.

Those receiving a plaque for their ten years of services were: Thomas Alonso, Branch 4458, Connecticut; Thomas Bovis, Branch 114, Minnesota; Raymond Breshock, Branch 580, Indiana; Duane Brunkow, Branch 10, Kansas; Mark Bussman, Branch 1870, Illinois; Lydia Caffrey, Branch 52; California; Michael Correa, Branch 229; Colorado; Frank Costa, Branch 791, Washington; Nick D’Avanzo, Branch 6000, New York; Theodore DeBose, Branch 1128, North Carolina; Richard Donlon, Branch 33, Massachusetts; Charles Frederick, Branch 182, Ohio; Robert Kirk, Branch 78, Ohio; William Kovacik, Branch 148, Ohio; Bonnie Lippincott, Branch 1100, California; Scott Martz, Branch 330, Indiana; Michael McElroy, Branch 479, Indiana; Steve Puterbaugh, Branch 827, Missouri, Robert Santillo, Branch 4102, New Jersey; Ralph Silvestri, Branch 38, New Jersey; John Trezza, Branch 562, New York; Franklin Woo, Branch 214, California; Donna Wozniak, Branch 444, New Jersey.

Those receiving an award for their twenty years of service were: Lawrence Boone, Branch 456, Virginia; David Donovan, Branch 4941, California; Joe Hill, Branch 30, Missouri; Wilbur Mauck, Branch 1105, Colorado; Dominic Pacile, Branch 137, New York; Peter Rowett, Branch 286, Massachusetts; Bob Savastano, Branch 1902, Arizona; William Shay, Branch 137, New York; Phyllis Tanner, Branch 737, California; Samuel Teresi, Branch 1427, California; Larry Vitale, Branch 262, Michigan; James Williams, Branch 468, Kentucky.

Following the luncheon, the Seminar attendees then began their course of studies that continued until Wednesday afternoon.