Orthodox Health Plan announces new provisions

Source: Orthodox Church in America

SYOSSET, NY [OCA]  The Orthodox Health Plan [OHP] recently announced that, due to rising health costs, it has moved to a Health Reimbursement Arrangement [HRA].  Aetna continues to serve as the Preferred Provider Organization [PPO], while network and health care providers will remain the same.

The Orthodox Health Plan is the official health plan for the clergy of the Orthodox Church in America, as well as the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America, the Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America, the Diocese of the Armenian Church, the Serbian Orthodox Church, and the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia.  Archpriest Eric G. Tosi, OCA Secretary, represents the OCA on OHP’s board.

The new HRA plan has three parts.

1. The HealthFund®.  At the beginning of each calendar year—May 1 in 2015—participants receive a deposit into their HealthFund® accounts to help pay for eligible out-of-pocket health care costs automatically.
2. The deductible.  The deductible is an amount participants must pay before their health plan begins to pay for most of their eligible expenses.  HealthFund® payments are credited towards the deductible and help meet the deductible.
3. The health plan.  When participants meet their deductible, the health plan pays for most of their eligible expenses.  Participants then pay a smaller share of these costs out-of-pocket until they reach the maximum out-of-pocket limit.

Preventative care—routine physicals, screenings, immunizations, etc.—is covered at 100 percent, so participants need not use their HealthFund®.  In addition, the out-of-pocket maximum is a cap on how much participants pay for covered services in a given year.

Specifics on the new HRA plan are available in PDF format:

For additional information or questions please visit the OHP web site.