Benefits-enrolled employees who participate in the Take Care of Your Health Initiative will receive a $100 cash reward for completing the wellness profile and biometric screening, and agreeing to the preventive physical exam certification, according to Susan Basso, vice president for Human Resources. Those who complete those steps and whose spouse or same-sex domestic partner also completes the wellness profile and agrees to the preventive physical exam certification will receive $150.
"This is being done as a way of recognizing the many benefits-enrolled employees who are participating in the initiative, in light of the suspension of the penalty that originally had been tied to non-participation," Basso said.
The cash reward will be distributed via direct deposit through payroll in January 2014.
Based on privacy and security concerns expressed by some, the Employee Benefits Division website now includes detailed instructions about how employees may delete their account in WebMD Health Services. By permanently deleting the WebMD Health Services account, all data accessible to you through the use of WebMD Health Services tools will be removed from their servers. For detailed instructions on how to delete the WebMD Health Services account and wellness profile, visit http://ohr.psu.edu/benefits/benefits-enrollment/take-care-of-your-health/faq/#CanIDeleteWellnessProfile online.
"It is important to note that if an employee, or the employee's spouse or same-sex partner chooses to delete the WebMD Health Services account, the employee will not be eligible for the cash reward," Basso said.
On Sept. 18, President Rodney Erickson announced the suspension of the $100 per month penalty for employees who fail to participate in the Take Care of Your Health Initiative, saying his administration has clearly heard the concerns from faculty and staff on the issue. At the same time, he said the University is committed to recognizing in an appropriate way the many employees who have participated in the wellness profile, biometric screening and physical attestation. For details, visit http://news.psu.edu/story/288132/2013/09/18/administration/penn-state-suspends-fee-employees-who-dont-take-health-care online.
To receive the reward, the Take Care of Your Health Initiative steps will need to be completed by Nov. 22. Biometric screening appointments are still available through Oct. 8 at University Park. Employees who are unable to attend a biometric screening session may elect to have their physician complete and submit a "Physician Derived Results" form. The form is available until Oct. 8 at http://ohr.psu.edu/assets/benefits/forms/PSUPDR.pdf online; deadline for submission is Oct. 25.
The Take Care of Your Health Initiative was implemented to help lower health care costs by allowing employees to better understand their health and health risks. In addition, the aggregate data collected would inform the University about potential opportunities to improve employee benefits or provide important health services. Although the Take Care of Your Health penalty has been suspended, University officials hope employees who are participating will gain valuable knowledge regarding their health and better understand the resources available for them. In addition, the aggregate data will be valuable for managing the population as a whole. The University will never have access to individual data, and Highmark and WebMD Health Services both follow all required protocols regarding the safety and privacy of personal health information.
Employees should direct questions to benefits@psu.edu.