Blue Cross and Blue Shield Service
Benefit Plan
http:// www. fepblue. org
2002
A fee-for-service plan with a preferred provider organization
Sponsored and administered by: The Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Association and
participating Blue Cross and Blue Shield Plans
Who may enroll in this Plan: All Federal employees and annuitants who
are eligible to
enroll in the FEHB
Enrollment codes for this Plan:
104 Standard Option -Self Only
105
Standard Option -Self and Family 111 Basic Option -Self Only
112 Basic Option -Self and Family
RI 71-005
For changes
in benefits
see page 8. 1
1 Page 2 3
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 2 Table of
Contents
Table of Contents
Introduction
........................................................................................................................................................................................
4
Plain Language
...................................................................................................................................................................................
4
Inspector General
Advisory................................................................................................................................................................
5
Section 1. Facts about this fee-for-service
Plan...............................................................................................................................
6
Section 2. How we change for 2002
................................................................................................................................................
8
Section 3. How you receive
benefits................................................................................................................................................
9
Identification
cards..........................................................................................................................................................
9
Where you get covered
care............................................................................................................................................
9
Covered professional providers
..............................................................................................................................
9
Covered facility
providers.....................................................................................................................................
10
What you must do to get covered
care..........................................................................................................................
11
How to get approval for
................................................................................................................................................
12
Your hospital stay (precertification)
.....................................................................................................................
12
Other services
.......................................................................................................................................................
13
Section 4. Your costs for covered services
....................................................................................................................................
15
Copayments
..........................................................................................................................................................
15
Deductible.............................................................................................................................................................
15
Coinsurance
..........................................................................................................................................................
15
Waivers.................................................................................................................................................................
16
Differences between our allowance and the bill
...................................................................................................
16
Your catastrophic protection out-of-pocket maximum
.................................................................................................
18
When government facilities bill
us................................................................................................................................
19
If we overpay you
.........................................................................................................................................................
19
When you are age 65 or over and you do not have
Medicare.......................................................................................
20
When you have
Medicare..............................................................................................................................................
21
Section 5. Benefits
.........................................................................................................................................................................
22
Overview.......................................................................................................................................................................
22
(a) Medical services and supplies provided by
physicians and other health care professionals..................................
23
(b) Surgical and anesthesia services provided by
physicians and other health care professionals ..............................
44
(c) Services provided by a hospital or other
facility, and ambulance services
............................................................ 55
(d) Emergency services/
accidents................................................................................................................................
65
(e) Mental health and substance abuse
benefits...........................................................................................................
70
(f) Prescription drug benefits
......................................................................................................................................
77
(g) Special
features......................................................................................................................................................
85
Flexible benefits
option.....................................................................................................................................
85
24-hour nurse
line..............................................................................................................................................
85 2
2 Page 3 4
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 3 Table of
Contents
Services for the deaf and hearing impaired
.......................................................................................................
85
Travel benefit/ services
overseas........................................................................................................................
85
Health support programs
...................................................................................................................................
85
(h) Dental benefits
.......................................................................................................................................................
86
(i) Non-FEHB benefits available to Plan members
....................................................................................................
92
Section 6. General exclusions – things we don't
cover..................................................................................................................
93
Section 7. Filing a claim for covered services
...............................................................................................................................
94
Section 8. The disputed claims
process..........................................................................................................................................
97
Section 9. Coordinating benefits with other
coverage
...................................................................................................................
99
When you have other health coverage
..........................................................................................................................
99
What is Medicare?
........................................................................................................................................................
99
TRICARE
...................................................................................................................................................................
104
Workers'
Compensation..............................................................................................................................................
104
Medicaid
.....................................................................................................................................................................
104
When other Government agencies are responsible
for your
care................................................................................
104
When others are responsible for
injuries.....................................................................................................................
105
Section 10. Definitions of terms we use in this
brochure...............................................................................................................
106
Section 11. FEHB
facts..................................................................................................................................................................
111
Coverage information
.................................................................................................................................................
111
No pre-existing condition
limitation....................................................................................................................
111
Where you get information about enrolling in the
FEHB
Program.....................................................................
111
Types of coverage available for you and your
family..........................................................................................
111
When benefits and premiums
start.......................................................................................................................
111
Your medical and claims records are
confidential...............................................................................................
112
When you retire
...................................................................................................................................................
112
When you lose
benefits...............................................................................................................................................
112
When FEHB coverage
ends.................................................................................................................................
112
Spouse equity coverage
.......................................................................................................................................
112
Temporary Continuation of Coverage
(TCC)......................................................................................................
112
Converting to individual
coverage.......................................................................................................................
113
Getting a Certificate of Group Health Plan
Coverage
.........................................................................................
113
Long term care insurance is coming later in
2002..........................................................................................................................
114
Department of Defense/ FEHB Program Demonstration
Project
....................................................................................................
115
Index...............................................................................................................................................................................................
117
Summary of Standard Option
benefits............................................................................................................................................
118
Summary of Basic Option
benefits.................................................................................................................................................
119
Rates
...................................................................................................................................................................................
Back cover 3
3 Page
4 5
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 4
Introduction/ Plain Language/ Advisory
Introduction
Blue Cross and Blue Shield Service
Benefit Plan 1310 G Street, NW, Suite 900
Washington, DC 20005
This
Plan is underwritten by participating Blue Cross and Blue Shield Plans (Local
Plans) that administer this Plan on behalf of the
Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Association (the Carrier).
This brochure describes the benefits of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan under our contract (CS 1039) with the
Office of
Personnel Management (OPM), as authorized by the Federal Employees Health
Benefits law. This brochure is the official
statement of benefits. No oral
statement can modify or otherwise affect the benefits, limitations, and
exclusions of this brochure.
If you are enrolled in this Plan, you are entitled to the benefits described
in this brochure. If you are enrolled for Self and Family
coverage, each
eligible family member is also entitled to these benefits. You do not have a
right to benefits that were available
before January 1, 2002, unless those
benefits are also shown in this brochure.
OPM negotiates benefits and rates with each plan annually. Benefit changes
are effective January 1, 2002, and changes are
summarized on page 8. Rates are shown at the end of this brochure.
Plain Language
Teams of Government and health
plans' staff worked on all FEHB brochures to make them responsive, accessible,
and
understandable to the public. For instance,
Except for necessary technical terms, we use common words. For instance,
"you" means the enrollee or family member; "we" means the Blue Cross and Blue
Shield Service Benefit Plan.
We limit acronyms to ones you know. FEHB is the Federal Employees Health
Benefits Program. OPM is the Office of Personnel Management. If we use others,
we tell you what they mean first.
Our brochure and other FEHB plans'
brochures have the same format and similar descriptions to help you compare
plans.
If you have comments or suggestions about how to improve the structure of this brochure,
let OPM know. Visit OPM's "Rate Us"
feedback area at www. opm. gov/ insure or e-mail OPM at fehbwebcomments@ opm. gov. You may
also write to the Office of
Personnel Management, Insurance Planning and Evaluation Division, 1900 E Street, NW,
Washington, DC 20415-3650. 4
4 Page 5 6
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 5
Introduction/ Plain Language/ Advisory
Inspector General Advisory
Fraud increases the
cost of health care for everyone. If you suspect that a physician,
pharmacy,
or hospital has charged you for services you did not receive, billed you twice
for the same service, or misrepresented any information, do the following:
Call the provider and ask for an explanation. There may be an error. If the
provider does not resolve the matter, call us at 1-800-FEP-8440 and explain
the situation.
If we do not resolve the issue, call or write:
THE HEALTH CARE FRAUD HOTLINE
202/ 418-3300 The United States
Office of Personnel Management
Office of the Inspector General Fraud Hotline
1900 E Street, NW, Room
6400
Washington, DC 20415
Penalties for Fraud Anyone who falsifies a claim to obtain FEHB
Program benefits can be prosecuted for fraud. Also, the
Inspector General
may investigate anyone who uses an ID card if the person tries to obtain
services for
someone who is not an eligible family member, or is no longer
enrolled in the Plan, and tries to obtain
benefits. Your agency may also
take administrative action against you.
Stop health care fraud! 5
5 Page 6 7
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 6 Section
1
Section 1. Facts about this fee-for-service Plan
This Plan is a
fee-for-service (FFS) plan. You can choose your own hospitals, physicians, and
other professional health care
providers.
We reimburse you or your provider for your covered services, usually based on
a percentage of the amount we allow. The type and
extent of covered
services, and the amount we allow, may be different from other plans. Read
brochures carefully.
We have Preferred Provider Organizations (PPO):
Our
fee-for-service plan offers services through a PPO. When you use our PPO
(Preferred) providers, you will receive covered
services at a reduced cost.
Your Local Plan (or, for retail pharmacies, AdvancePCS) is solely responsible
for the selection of PPO
providers in your area. Contact your Local Plan for
the names of PPO (Preferred) providers and to verify their continued
participation. You can also go to our web page, which you can reach through
the FEHB website, www. opm. gov/ insure.
Do not call
OPM or your agency for our provider directory. Contact your
Local Plan to request a PPO directory.
Under Standard Option, non-PPO (Non-preferred) benefits are the
standard benefits. PPO (Preferred) benefits apply only when
you use a PPO
(Preferred) provider. PPO networks may be more extensive in some areas than in
others. We cannot guarantee the
availability of every specialty in all
areas. If no PPO (Preferred) provider is available, or you do not use a PPO
(Preferred) provider,
the standard non-PPO (Non-preferred) benefits apply.
Under Basic Option, you must use Preferred providers in order to receive
benefits. See page 11 for the exceptions to this
requirement.
How we pay professional and facility providers:
We pay benefits
when we receive a claim for covered services. Each Local Plan contracts with
hospitals and other health care
facilities, physicians, and other health
care professionals in its service area, and is responsible for processing and
paying claims for
services you receive within that area. Many, but not all,
of these contracted providers are in our PPO (Preferred) network.
PPO providers. PPO (Preferred) providers have agreed to accept a
specific negotiated amount as payment in full for services provided to you.
We refer to PPO facility and professional providers as "Preferred." They
will generally bill the Local Plan
directly, who will then pay them
directly. You do not file a claim. Your out-of-pocket costs are generally less
when you receive
services from Preferred providers, and are limited to your
coinsurance or copayments (and, under Standard Option only, the
applicable deductible), for covered services.
Participating providers. Some Local Plans also contract with other
providers that are not in our Preferred network. If they are professionals,
we refer to them as "Participating" providers, and if they are facilities, we
refer to them as "Member"
facilities. They have agreed to accept a
different negotiated amount than our Preferred providers as payment in full.
They will
also generally file your claims for you. They have agreed not to
bill you for more than your applicable deductible, and
coinsurance or
copayments, for covered services. We pay them directly, but at our Non-preferred
benefit levels. Your out-of-pocket
costs will be greater than if you use
Preferred providers.
Note: Not all areas have Participating providers and/ or Member
facilities. To verify the status of a provider, please contact the
Local
Plan serving the area where the services are to be performed.
Non-participating providers. Providers who are not Preferred or
Participating providers do not have contracts with us, and may or may not accept
our allowance. We refer to them as "Non-participating providers" generally,
although if they are
facilities we refer to them as "Non-member facilities."
When you use Non-participating providers, you may have to file your
claim with us. We will then pay our benefits to you, and you must pay the
provider. 6
6 Page 7
8
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 7 Section
1
You must pay any difference between the amount Non-participating providers
charge and our allowance, in addition to any
applicable coinsurance amounts,
copayment amounts, amounts applied to your calendar year deductible, and amounts
for
noncovered services. Important: Under Standard Option, your
out-of-pocket costs may be substantially higher when you
use
Non-participating providers than when you use Preferred or Participating
providers. Under Basic Option, you must
use Preferred providers to
receive benefits. See page 11 for the exceptions to this
requirement.
Note: In Local Plan areas other than those described below,
Preferred providers and Participating providers who contract with us
will
generally accept 100% of the Plan allowance as payment in full for covered
services. As a result, you are only responsible for
applicable coinsurance
or copayments (and, under Standard Option only, the applicable
deductible), for covered services, and any
charges for noncovered services.
However, under Standard Option, this may not apply when there is another
source of
payment besides you and us. When you have other coverage (see
Section 9), the following exceptions exist in our
arrangements
with Preferred and Participating professional providers.
Contact your Local Plan if you have questions about the amounts Preferred
and Participating providers may collect from you.
In Arizona, when there is any other source of payment (whether we pay primary
or secondary), Preferred and Participating physicians are not obligated to
accept our allowance as payment in full.
In New York areas served by the Rochester Plan, and in West Virginia, except
when we pay secondary to other Blue Cross and Blue Shield coverage administered
by the same Local Plan, Preferred and Participating physicians may collect the
difference
between the total payments made by us and the primary carrier and
the billed amount.
In Pennsylvania and Utah, when we pay secondary, Preferred physicians are not
obligated to accept our allowance as payment in full unless we make a payment as
the secondary payer.
In Montana, when we pay secondary, Preferred and Participating physicians may
collect the difference between the total payments made by us and the primary
carrier and the billed amount.
In South Carolina, except when we pay
secondary to other Blue Cross and Blue Shield coverage, Preferred and
Participating physicians may collect the difference between the total payments
made by us and the primary carrier and the billed amount.
Your Rights
OPM requires that all FEHB Plans provide certain
information to their FEHB members. You may get information about us, our
networks, and providers. You can also find out about care management,
including medical practice guidelines, disease management
programs, and how
we determine if procedures are experimental or investigational. OPM's FEHB
website (www. opm. gov/ insure)
lists the specific types of information that we must make available to
you.
If you want more information about us, call or write to us. Our telephone
number and address are shown on the back of your
Service Benefit Plan ID
card. You may also visit our website at www.
fepblue. org. 7
7 Page
8 9
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 8
Section 2
Section 2. How we change for 2002
Do not rely only on these change
descriptions; this page is not an official statement of benefits. For that, go
to Section 5 (Benefits).
Also, we edited and clarified
language throughout the brochure; any language change not shown here is a
clarification that does not
change benefits.
Program-wide changes
We clarified the brochure to show why we
think you should use generic drugs whenever possible. We
moved other language around within the Prescription drugs section but didn't
change its meaning. (Section 5( f))
We changed the address for sending disputed claims to OPM. (Section 8)
Georgia, Montana, North Dakota, and Texas are
added to and Louisiana is deleted from the list of states designated as
medically underserved in 2002. (Section 3)
Changes to this Plan
Your share of the non-Postal Standard Option
premium will increase by 20.0% for Self Only or 17.2% for Self and Family.
We have merged our High Option into Standard Option. High Option is no
longer available.
We have added a new option called Basic Option.
You pay no deductible under Basic Option.
You must use Preferred
providers in order to receive benefits (see page 11 for the
exceptions to this requirement).
Please carefully review this brochure,
including Section 5 (Benefits), to understand Basic Option
benefits. If you have any questions about Basic Option, please call us at the
customer service telephone number on the back of your Service Benefit
Plan ID card.
We have discontinued our Point of Service (POS) pilot
program.
Under Standard Option, your catastrophic protection out-of-pocket
limit is now $4,000 per contract when you use only Preferred providers and
$6,000 per contract when you use a combination of Preferred and Non-preferred
providers. Previously, your
catastrophic protection out-of-pocket limit was $3,000 (Preferred only) and
$5,000 (Preferred and Non-preferred). (Section 4)
We now provide
benefits at Preferred benefit levels for covered services performed by certain
other covered health care professionals (for example, nurse practitioners,
audiologists, nurse anesthetists, etc.) that contract with Local Plans. (Section 3)
We now provide benefits at Preferred benefit levels for covered services
performed in Preferred facilities by covered Non-preferred radiologists,
anesthesiologists, certified registered nurse anesthetists (CRNAs),
pathologists, and emergency room
physicians. (Sections 5(
a) and 5( b))
We now provide benefits for routine
screening for chlamydial infection. (Section 5( a))
We
now provide benefits for organ/ tissue transplants to include autologous stem
cell support for amyloidosis. (Section 5( b))
We now
provide benefits for organ/ tissue transplants in clinical trials to include
nonmyeloablative allogeneic stem cell transplants for chronic myelogenous
leukemia, acute lymphocytic or non-lymphocytic (i. e., myelogenous) leukemia,
advanced Hodgkin's
lymphoma, advanced non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, advanced forms of myelodysplastic
syndromes, multiple myeloma, chronic
lymphocytic leukemia, early stage
(indolent or non-advanced) small cell lymphocytic lymphoma, and renal cell
carcinoma.
(Section 5( b))
Under Standard Option, we now provide benefits in full for ambulance services
provided in connection with, and within 72 hours after, an accidental injury. (Section 5( d))
We now provide benefits for dental accidental injury only when treatment is
started promptly and completed within 12 months of the accident. (Section 5( h))
Under Standard Option, your Mail Service
Prescription Drug Program copayments have changed: for generic drugs the
copayment has decreased to $10 and for brand-name drugs the copayment has
increased to $35. Previously, the Mail Service
Prescription Drug Program
copayments were $12 for generic drugs and $20 for brand-name drugs. (Section 5( f))
We now treat smoking cessation services
the same as other medical or mental health/ substance abuse services.
Previously, under Standard Option, smoking cessation services were limited to
$100 of coverage per lifetime. In addition, we no longer limit
smoking cessation drugs to one course of treatment per year; additional
courses of treatment do require prior approval and
participation in a
smoking cessation program. (Sections 3, 5( a), 5( e), and 5(
f)) 8
8 Page 9 10
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 9
Section 3
Section 3. How you receive benefits
Identification cards We will
send you an identification (ID) card when you enroll. You should carry your ID
card with you at all times. You will need it whenever you receive services from
a
covered provider, or fill a prescription through a Preferred retail or
internet pharmacy.
Until you receive your ID card, use your copy of the
Health Benefits Election Form,
SF-2809, your health benefits enrollment
confirmation letter (for annuitants), or your
Employee Express confirmation
letter.
If you do not receive your ID card within 30 days after the effective date of
your
enrollment, or if you need replacement cards, call the Local Plan
serving the area where
you reside and ask them to assist you, or write to us
directly at: FEP Enrollment
Services, 550 12 th Street, SW, Washington, DC
20065-1463.
Where you get covered care Under Standard Option, you can get care
from any "covered professional provider" or "covered facility provider." How
much we pay – and you pay – depends on the type
of covered provider you use.
If you use our Preferred, Participating, or Member
providers, you will pay
less.
Under Basic Option, you must use those "covered professional
providers" or "covered facility providers" that are Preferred providers
for Basic Option in order to receive
benefits. Please refer to page 11 for the exceptions to
this requirement. Refer to page 6
for more information
about Preferred providers.
Covered professional providers We consider the following to be covered
professionals when they perform services within the scope of their license or
certification.
Physicians – Doctors of medicine (M. D.); osteopathy (D. O.); dental
surgery (D. D. S.);
medical dentistry (D. M. D.); podiatric medicine (D. P.
M.); and optometry (O. D.). For
Basic Option, the term "primary care
provider" includes family practitioners, general
practitioners, medical
internists, pediatricians, and obstetricians/ gynecologists.
Other Covered Health Care Professionals – Professionals who provide
additional
covered services and meet the state's applicable licensing or
certification requirements
and the requirements of the Local Plan. Other
covered health care professionals
include:
Clinical Psychologist – A psychologist who (1) is licensed or
certified in the state where the services are performed; (2) has a doctoral
degree in psychology (or an
allied degree if, in the individual state, the academic licensing/
certification
requirement for clinical psychologist is met by an allied
degree) or is approved by
the Local Plan; and (3) has met the clinical
psychological experience requirements
of the individual State Licensing
Board.
Clinical Social Worker – A social worker who (1) has a master's or
doctoral degree in social work; (2) has at least two years of clinical social
work practice;
and (3) if the state requires it, is licensed, certified, or registered as a
social worker
where the services are performed.
Independent Laboratory – A laboratory that is licensed under state law
or, where no licensing requirement exists, that is approved by the Local Plan.
Nurse Midwife – A person who is certified by the American College of
Nurse Midwives or, if the state requires it, is licensed or certified as a nurse
midwife.
Nurse Practitioner/ Clinical Specialist – A person who (1)
has an active R. N. license in the United States; (2) has a baccalaureate or
higher degree in nursing;
and (3) if the state requires it, is licensed or
certified as a nurse practitioner or
clinical nurse specialist. 9
9 Page 10 11
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 10 Section
3
Physical, Speech, and Occupational Therapist – A professional who is
licensed where the services are performed or meets the requirements of the Local
Plan to
provide physical, speech, or occupational therapy services.
Nursing School Administered Clinic – A clinic that (1) is licensed or
certified in the state where services are performed; and (2) provides ambulatory
care in an
outpatient setting – primarily in rural or inner-city areas where there is a
shortage
of physicians. Services billed for by these clinics are considered
outpatient
"office" services rather than facility charges.
Audiologist – A professional who, if the state requires it, is
licensed, certified, or registered as an audiologist where the services are
performed.
Dietician – A professional who, if the state requires it, is licensed,
certified, or registered as a dietician where the services are performed.
Diabetic educator – A professional who, if the state requires it, is
licensed, certified, or registered as a diabetic educator where the services are
performed.
Nutritionist – A professional who, if the state requires
it, is licensed, certified, or registered as a nutritionist where the services
are performed.
Other professional providers
specifically shown in the benefit descriptions in Section 5.
Medically underserved areas. In states that OPM determines are
"medically
underserved":
Under Standard Option, we cover any licensed medical practitioner for
any
covered service performed within the scope of that license.
Under Basic Option, we cover any licensed medical practitioner who is
Preferred
for any covered service performed within the scope of that
license.
For 2002, the states are: Alabama, Georgia, Idaho, Kentucky, Mississippi,
Missouri,
Montana, New Mexico, North Dakota, South Carolina, South Dakota,
Texas, Utah, and
Wyoming.
Covered facility providers Covered facilities include those listed below,
when they meet the state's applicable licensing or certification requirements.
Hospital – An institution, or a distinct portion of an institution,
that:
(1) Primarily provides diagnostic and therapeutic facilities for
surgical and medical
diagnoses, treatment, and care of injured and sick
persons provided or supervised
by a staff of licensed doctors of medicine
(M. D.) or licensed doctors of osteopathy
(D. O.), for compensation from its
patients, on an inpatient or outpatient basis;
(2) Continuously provides
24-hour-a-day professional registered nursing (R. N.)
services; and
(3)
Is not, other than incidentally, an extended care facility; a nursing home; a
place
for rest; an institution for exceptional children, the aged, drug
addicts, or
alcoholics; or a custodial or domiciliary institution having as
its primary purpose
the furnishing of food, shelter, training, or
non-medical personal services.
Note: We consider college infirmaries to be Non-member
hospitals. In addition,
we may, at our discretion, recognize any institution
located outside the 50 states and the
District of Columbia as a Non-member
hospital.
Freestanding Ambulatory Facility – A freestanding facility, such as an
ambulatory surgical center, freestanding surgi-center, freestanding dialysis
center,
or freestanding ambulatory medical facility, that:
(1) Provides
services in an outpatient setting;
(2) Contains permanent amenities and
equipment primarily for the purpose of
performing medical, surgical, and/ or
renal dialysis procedures; 10
10 Page 11 12
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 11 Section
3
(3) Provides treatment performed or supervised by doctors and/ or nurses, and
may
include other professional services performed at the facility; and
(4) Is not, other than incidentally, an office or clinic for the private
practice of a doctor
or other professional.
Note: We may, at our discretion, recognize any other similar
facilities, such as birthing
centers, as freestanding ambulatory facilities.
Cancer Research Facility – A facility that is:
(1) A National
Cooperative Cancer Study Group institution that is funded by the
National
Cancer Institute (NCI) and has been approved by a Cooperative Group as
a
bone marrow transplant center;
(2) An NCI-designated Cancer Center; or
(3) An institution that has an NCI-funded, peer-reviewed grant to study
allogeneic or
autologous bone marrow transplants and blood stem cell
transplant support.
Other facilities specifically listed in the benefits descriptions in
Section 5( c).
What you must do to get covered care
Under Standard Option, you can go to any covered provider you want, but in
some circumstances, we must approve your care in advance.
Under Basic
Option, you must use Preferred providers in order to receive
benefits,
except under the special situations listed below. In addition, we must approve certain
types of care
in advance. Please refer to Section 4, Your costs for covered services,
for
related benefits information.
(1) Medical emergency or accidental injury care in a hospital emergency room
and
related ambulance transport as described in Section 5(
d), Emergency
services/ accidents;
(2) Professional care
provided by certain Non-preferred providers (radiologists,
anesthesiologists, certified registered nurse anesthetists (CRNAs),
pathologists,
emergency room physicians, and assistant surgeons) at
Preferred facilities;
(3) Laboratory and pathology services, X-rays, and
diagnostic tests billed by Non-preferred
laboratories, radiologists, and
outpatient facilities;
(4) Services of assistant surgeons;
(5) Special
provider access situations (contact your Local Plan for more information);
or
(6) Care received outside the United States and Puerto Rico.
Unless otherwise noted in Section 5, when services of
Non-preferred providers are covered in a special exception, benefits will be
provided based on the Plan allowance.
You are responsible for the applicable
coinsurance or copayment, and may also be responsible for any difference between
our allowance and the billed amount.
Transitional care: Specialty Care: If you have a chronic or disabling
condition and
lose access to your specialist because we drop out of the
Federal Employees Health Benefits (FEHB) Program and you enroll in another FEHB
plan, or
lose access to your Preferred specialist because we terminate our contract
with your specialist for other than cause,
you may be able to continue
seeing your specialist and receiving any Preferred benefits
for up to 90
days after you receive notice of the change. Contact us or, if we drop out
of the Program, contact your new plan. 11
11
Page 12 13
2002
Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 12 Section 3
If you are in the second or third trimester of pregnancy and you lose access
to your
specialist based on the above circumstances, you can continue to see
your specialist and
any Preferred benefits will continue until the end of
your postpartum care, even if it is
beyond the 90 days.
Hospital care: If you are in the hospital when your enrollment in our
Plan begins, call us immediately. If you have not yet received your Service
Benefit Plan ID card, you can contact your
Local Plan at the telephone
number listed in your local telephone directory. If you
already have your
new Service Benefit Plan ID card, call us at the number on the back
of the
card. If you are new to the FEHB Program, we will reimburse you for your
covered expenses while in the hospital.
However, if you changed from another FEHB plan to us, your former plan will
pay for
the hospital stay until:
You are discharged, not merely moved to an alternative care center; or
The day your benefits from your former plan run out; or
The 92 nd day
after you become a member of this Plan, whichever happens first.
These provisions apply only to the benefits of the hospitalized person.
How to get approval for…
Your hospital stay Precertification is the process by which – prior to
your inpatient hospital admission – we evaluate the medical necessity of your
proposed stay and the number of days required to
treat your condition.
Unless we are misled by the information given to us, we will not
change our
decision on medical necessity.
In most cases, your physician or hospital will take care of precertification.
Because you
are still responsible for ensuring that we are asked to
precertify your care, you should
always ask your physician or hospital
whether they have contacted us.
Warning: We will reduce our benefits for the inpatient hospital stay
by $500 if no one contacts us for precertification. If the stay is not medically
necessary, we will not pay any benefits.
How to precertify an admission: You, your representative, your doctor,
or your hospital must call us at the telephone number listed on the back of your
Service Benefit Plan ID card any time prior to
admission.
If you have an
emergency admission due to a condition that you reasonably believe puts
your life in danger or could cause serious damage to bodily function, you, your
representative, your doctor, or your hospital must telephone us within two
business
days following the day of the emergency admission, even if you have
been
discharged from the hospital.
Provide the following information:
Enrollee's name and Plan
identification number;
Patient's name, birth date, and phone number;
Reason for hospitalization, proposed treatment, or surgery;
Name and
phone number of admitting doctor;
Name of hospital or facility; and
Number of planned days of confinement.
We will then tell the doctor and/
or hospital the number of approved inpatient days and we will send written
confirmation of our decision to you, your doctor, and the
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 13 Section
3
Maternity care You do not need to precertify a maternity admission for
a routine delivery. However, if your medical condition requires you to stay more
than 48 hours after a vaginal delivery
or 96 hours after a cesarean section,
then your physician or the hospital must contact us
for precertification of
additional days. Further, if your baby stays after you are
discharged, then
your physician or the hospital must contact us for precertification of
additional days for your baby.
If your hospital stay If your hospital stay – including for maternity
care – needs to be extended, you, your
needs to be extended:
representative, your doctor, or the hospital must ask us to approve the
additional days.
What happens when you When we precertified the admission but you
remained in the hospital beyond the do not follow the number of days we
approved and you did not get the additional days precertified,
precertification rules then:
for the part of the admission that
was medically necessary, we will pay inpatient benefits, but
for the part of the admission that was not medically necessary, we will pay
only medical services and supplies otherwise payable on an outpatient basis and
we
will not pay inpatient benefits.
If no one contacted us, we will
decide whether the hospital stay was medically necessary.
If we determine that the stay was medically necessary, we will pay the
inpatient charges, less the $500 penalty. [See Section 5( c)
for payment information.]
If we determine that it was not medically
necessary for you to be an inpatient, we will not pay inpatient hospital
benefits. We will only pay for any covered
medical supplies and services
that are otherwise payable on an outpatient basis.
If we denied the
precertification request, we will not pay inpatient hospital benefits or
inpatient physician care benefits. We will only pay for any covered medical
supplies
and services that are otherwise payable on an outpatient basis.
Exceptions: You do not need precertification in these cases:
You
are admitted to a hospital outside the United States.
You have another group
health insurance policy that is the primary payer for the hospital stay.
Your Medicare Part A is the primary payer for the hospital stay.
Note: If you exhaust your Medicare hospital benefits and do
not want to use your
Medicare lifetime reserve days, then we will become the
primary payer and you do
need precertification.
Other services These services require prior approval under both Standard
and Basic Option:
Home hospice care – Contact us at the customer
service number listed on the back of your ID card before obtaining services. We
will request the medical evidence we
need to make our coverage determination
and advise you which home hospice care
agencies we have approved.
Partial hospitalization or intensive outpatient treatment for mental
health/ substance abuse – Contact us at the mental health and substance
abuse
number listed on the back of your ID card before obtaining services for
intensive
outpatient treatment or partial hospitalization. We will request
the medical evidence
we need to make our coverage determination. We will
also consider the necessary
duration of either of these services. 13
13 Page 14 15
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 14 Section
3
Organ/ tissue transplants – Contact us at the customer service number
listed on the back of your ID card before obtaining services. We will request
the medical
evidence we need to make our coverage determination. We will
consider whether
the facility is approved for the procedure and whether you
meet the facility's
criteria.
Clinical trials for certain organ/ tissue transplants – Contact our
Clinical Trials Information Unit at 1-800-225-2268 for information or to request
prior approval
before obtaining services. We will request the medical evidence we need to
make
our coverage determination. Use this number only for prior
approval of clinical
trials for bone marrow and peripheral blood stem cell
transplant support procedures
for those conditions shown on page 52 as covered only in clinical trials.
Cardiac rehabilitation – Contact us at the customer service number
listed on the back of your ID card prior to starting treatment. We will request
the information we
need to make our coverage determination.
Prescription drugs –
Certain prescription drugs require prior approval. Contact our Retail
Pharmacy Program at 1-800-624-5060 (TDD: 1-800-624-5077 for the hearing
impaired) to request prior approval, or to obtain an updated list of
prescription drugs
that require prior approval. We will request the
information we need to make our
coverage determination.
You must periodically renew prior approval for certain
drugs. See page
83 for more about our prescription drug prior approval program,
which is
part of our Patient Safety and Quality Monitoring (PSQM) program.
Note: Benefits for drugs to aid smoking cessation that require
a prescription by
Federal law are limited to one course of treatment per
calendar year. Prior approval
is required before benefits will be provided
for additional medication. To obtain
approval, the physician must certify
the patient is participating in a smoking
cessation program that provides
clinical treatment, including counseling and
behavioral therapies.
Note: Until we approve them, you must pay for these drugs in
full when you
purchase them – even if you purchase them at a Preferred
retail pharmacy or
through an internet pharmacy – and submit the expense( s)
to us on a claim form.
Preferred pharmacies will not file these claims for
you.
Under Standard Option, members may use our Mail Service Prescription
Drug
Program to fill their prescriptions. However, the Mail Service
Prescription Drug
Program also will not fill your prescription until you
have obtained prior approval.
Merck-Medco Rx Services, the administrator of
the Mail Service Prescription Drug
Program, will return your prescription to
you along with a Prior Approval Request
Form and a letter explaining the
prior approval procedures.
The Mail Service Prescription Drug Program is not available under Basic
Option.
In addition to the types of care listed above, these services also require
prior approval under Basic Option:
Outpatient mental health and substance abuse treatment – You must call us
at the number listed on the back of your ID card for mental health and
substance abuse
before receiving any outpatient professional or facility
care. We will then
provide you with the names and phone numbers of
several Preferred providers to
choose from and tell you how many visits we
are initially approving. 14
14 Page 15 16
2002 Blue Cross
and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 15 Section 4
Section 4. Your costs for covered services
This is what you will
pay out-of-pocket for your covered care:
Copayments A copayment is a
fixed amount of money you pay to the provider, facility, pharmacy, etc., when
you receive certain services.
Example: Under Standard Option, when you see your Preferred physician, you
pay a
copayment of $15 per visit and when you go in a Preferred hospital,
you pay $100 per
admission. We then pay the remainder of the bill for
covered services.
Note: If the billed amount (or the Plan allowance that
providers we contract with have
agreed to accept as payment in full) is less
than your copayment, you pay the lower
amount.
Deductible A deductible is a fixed amount of covered expenses you must
incur for certain covered services and supplies before we start paying benefits
for them. Copayments do not
count toward your deductible. When a covered
service or supply is subject to a
deductible, only the Plan allowance for
the service or supply that you then pay counts
toward meeting your
deductible.
Under Standard Option, the calendar year deductible is $250 per
person. Under a
family enrollment, the calendar year deductible for each
family member is satisfied and
benefits are payable for all family members
when the combined covered expenses of
the family reach $500.
Note: If the billed amount (or the Plan allowance that
providers we contract with have
agreed to accept as payment in full) is less
than the remaining portion of your
deductible, you pay the lower amount.
Example: If the billed amount is $100, the provider has an agreement with us
to accept
$80, and you have not paid any amount toward meeting your Standard
Option calendar
year deductible, you must pay $80. We will apply $80 to your
deductible. We will
begin paying benefits once the remaining portion of your
Standard Option calendar year
deductible ($ 170) has been satisfied.
Note: If you change plans during Open Season and the effective
date of your new plan
is after January 1 of the next year, you do not have
to start a new deductible under your
old plan between January 1 and the
effective date of your new plan. If you change
plans at another time during
the year, you must begin a new deductible under your new
plan.
Under Basic Option, there is no calendar year deductible.
Coinsurance Coinsurance is the percentage of the Plan allowance that
you must pay for your care. Your coinsurance is based on the Plan allowance, or
billed amount, whichever is less.
Under Standard Option only,
coinsurance does not begin until you meet your deductible.
Example: You pay 10% of the Plan allowance under Standard Option for durable
medical equipment obtained from a Preferred provider, after meeting your
$250
calendar year deductible.
Note: If your provider routinely waives (does not
require you to pay) your applicable
deductible (under Standard Option only),
coinsurance, or copayments, the provider is
misstating the fee and may be
violating the law. In this case, when we calculate our
share, we will reduce
the provider's fee by the amount waived.
Example: If your physician ordinarily charges $100 for a service but
routinely waives
your 25% Standard Option coinsurance, the actual charge is
$75. We will pay $56.25
(75% of the actual charge of $75). 15
15 Page 16 17
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 16 Section
4
Waivers In some instances, a Preferred, Participating, or Member
provider may ask you to sign a "waiver" prior to receiving care. This waiver may
state that you accept responsibility
for the total charge for any care that
is not covered by your health plan. If you sign
such a waiver, whether you
are responsible for the total charge depends on the content
of the contracts
that the Local Plan has with its providers. If you are asked to sign this
type of waiver, please be aware that, if benefits are denied for the
services, you could
be legally liable for the related expenses. If you would
like more information about
waivers, please contact us at the customer
service number on the back of your ID card.
Differences between Our "Plan allowance" is the amount we use
to calculate our payment for certain types our allowance and of covered
services. Fee-for-service plans arrive at their allowances in different ways,
the bill so allowances vary. For information about
how we determine our Plan allowance, see
the definition of Plan
allowance in Section 10.
Often, the provider's bill is more than a fee-for-service plan's allowance.
Whether or
not you have to pay the difference between our allowance and the
bill will depend on
the type of provider you use. In this Plan, we have the
following types of providers:
Preferred providers. These types of providers have agreements with the
Local
Plan to limit what they bill our members. Because of that, when you
use a Preferred
provider, your share of the provider's bill for covered care
is limited.
Under Standard Option, your share consists only of your deductible and
coinsurance or copayment. Here is an example of coinsurance: You see a
Preferred
physician who charges $150, but our allowance is $100. If you have
met your
deductible, you are only responsible for your coinsurance. That is,
under Standard
Option, you pay just 10% of our $100 allowance ($ 10).
Because of the agreement,
your Preferred physician will not bill you for the
$50 difference between our
allowance and his/ her bill. See page 7 for exceptions.
Under Basic Option, your share consists only of your copayment or
coinsurance
amount, since there is no calendar year deductible. Here is an
example involving a
copayment: You see a Preferred physician who charges
$150 for covered services
subject to a $20 copayment. Even though our
allowance may be $100, you still pay
just the $20 copayment. Because of the
agreement, your Preferred physician will
not bill you for the $130
difference between your copayment and his/ her bill.
Remember, under Basic Option, you must use Preferred providers in order to
receive benefits. See page 11 for the exceptions
to this requirement.
Participating providers. These types of Non-preferred providers
have
agreements with the Local Plan to limit what they bill our
Standard Option
members.
Under Standard Option, when you use a Participating provider, your
share of
covered charges consists only of your deductible and coinsurance or
copayment.
Here is an example: You see a Participating physician who charges
$150, but the
Plan allowance is $100. If you have met your deductible, you
are only responsible
for your coinsurance. That is, under Standard Option,
you pay just 25% of our $100
allowance ($ 25). Because of the agreement,
your Participating physician will not
bill you for the
$50 difference between our allowance and his/ her bill. See page 7
for
exceptions.
Under Basic Option, there are no benefits for care performed by
Participating
providers; you pay all charges. See page
11 for the exceptions to this
requirement. 16
16 Page 17 18
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 17 Section
4
Non-participating providers. These Non-preferred providers have no
agreement to
limit what they will bill you.
Under Standard Option, when you use a Non-participating provider, you
will pay
your deductible and coinsurance – plus any difference
between our allowance and the
charges on the bill. For example, you see a
Non-participating physician who charges
$150. The Plan allowance is again
$100, and you have met your deductible. You are
responsible for your
coinsurance, so you pay 25% of the $100 Plan allowance or $25.
Plus, because
there is no agreement between the Non-participating physician and us,
the
physician can bill you for the $50 difference between our allowance and his/ her
bill.
Under Basic Option, there are no benefits for care
performed by Non-participating providers; you pay all charges. See page
11 for the exceptions to
this requirement.
The following table illustrates examples of how much
you have to pay out-of-pocket
for services from a Preferred physician, a
Participating physician, and a Non-participating
physician. The table uses
our example of a service for which the
physician charges $150 and the Plan
allowance is $100. For Standard Option, the table
shows the amount you pay
if you have met your calendar year deductible.
EXAMPLE
Preferred
physician
Standard Option
Preferred
physician
Basic Option
Participating
physician (Standard Option*)
Non-participating
physician (Standard Option*)
Physician's charge $150 $150 $150 $150
Our allowance We set it at: 100 We
set it at: 100 We set it at: 100 We set it at: 100
We pay 90% of our allowance: 90 Our allowance less copay: 80 75% of our
allowance: 75 75% of our allowance: 75
You owe:
Coinsurance
10% of
our
allowance: 10 Not applicable
25% of our
allowance: 25
25% of
our
allowance: 25
You owe:
Copayment Not applicable 20 Not applicable Not applicable
+Difference up to
charge? No: 0 No: 0 No: 0 Yes: 50
TOTAL YOU PAY $10 $20 $25 $75
*Under Basic Option, there are no benefits for care performed by
Participating and
Non-participating physicians. You must use Preferred
providers in order to receive benefits. See page 11
for the exceptions to this requirement.
Note: Under Standard Option, had you not met any of your
deductible in the above
examples, only our allowance ($ 100), which you
would pay in full, would count toward
your deductible.
Overseas providers. We pay overseas claims at Preferred benefit
levels, using an Overseas Fee Schedule as our Plan allowance. Most overseas
professional providers
are under no obligation to accept our allowance, and you must pay any
difference
between our payment and the provider's bill. For facility care
you receive overseas,
we provide benefits in full after you pay the
applicable copayment or coinsurance.
See Section 5( g) for
more information about our overseas benefits. 17
17 Page 18 19
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 18 Section
4
Dental care. Under Standard Option, we pay scheduled amounts for
routine dental services and you pay any balance. Under Basic Option, you
pay $20 for any
covered evaluation and we pay the
balance for covered services. See Section 5( h) for
a listing of covered
dental services.
Hospital care. You pay the coinsurance or copayment
amounts listed in Section 5( c).
Under Standard Option, you must meet your deductible before we begin
providing benefits for certain hospital-billed
services. Under Basic Option, you
must use Preferred
facilities in order to receive benefits. See page 11
for the
exceptions to this requirement.
Your catastrophic protection out-of-pocket maximum If the total amount
of out-of-pocket expenses in a calendar year for you and your covered family
members for deductibles (Standard Option only), coinsurance, and
copayments
(other than those listed below) exceeds $6,000 under Standard Option, or
$5,
000 under Basic Option, then you and any covered family members will not have to
continue paying them for the remainder of the calendar year.
Standard Option Preferred maximum: If the total amount of these
out-of-pocket
expenses from using Preferred providers for you and your
covered family members
exceeds $4,000 in a calendar year under Standard
Option, then you and any covered
family members will not have to pay these
expenses for the remainder of the calendar
year when you continue to use
Preferred providers. You will, however, have to pay
them when you use
Non-preferred providers, until your out-of-pocket expenses (for the
services
of both Preferred and Non-preferred providers) reach $6,000 under Standard
Option, as shown above.
Basic Option maximum: If the total amount of these out-of-pocket
expenses from
using Preferred providers for you and your covered family
members exceeds $5,000 in
a calendar year under Basic Option, then you and
any covered family members will not
have to pay these expenses for the
remainder of the calendar year.
The following expenses are not included under this feature. These
expenses do not count toward your catastrophic protection out-of-pocket maximum,
and you must
continue to pay them even after your expenses exceed the limits described
above.
The difference between the Plan allowance and
the billed amount. See pages 16-17;
Expenses for services, drugs, and supplies in excess of our maximum benefit
limitations;
Under Standard Option, your 30% coinsurance for inpatient care
in a Non-member hospital;
Under Standard Option, your 25% coinsurance for
outpatient care by a Non-member facility;
Your expenses for mental
conditions and substance abuse care by a Non-preferred professional or facility
provider;
Your expenses for dental services in excess
of our fee schedule payments under Standard Option. See Section 5( h);
The $500 penalty for failing to obtain precertification, and any
other amounts you pay because we reduce benefits for not complying with our cost
containment
requirements;
Under Basic Option, coinsurance you pay for
non-formulary brand-name drugs; and
Under Basic Option, your expenses for care received from Participating/
Non-participating professional providers or Member/ Non-member facilities,
except for
coinsurance and copayments you pay in those special situations
where we do pay
for care provided by Non-preferred providers. Please see page 11 for the
exceptions to the requirement to use
Preferred providers.
Note: If you change to another plan during Open Season, we will
continue to provide
benefits between January 1 and the effective date of
your new plan. 18
18 Page
19 20
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 19 Section
4
If you had already paid the out-of- pocket maximum, we
will continue to provide benefits as described on page 18 until the
effective date of your new plan.
If you had not yet paid the out-of-
pocket maximum, we will apply any expenses you incur in January (before the
effective date of your new plan) to our prior
year's out-of-pocket maximum.
Once you reach the maximum, you don't need to
pay our deductibles,
copayments or coinsurance amounts (except as shown on
page
18) from that point until the effective date of your new plan.
Note: Because benefit changes are effective January 1, we will
apply our next year's
benefits to any expenses you incur in January.
Note: If you change options in this Plan during the year, we
will credit the amounts
already accumulated toward the catastrophic
protection out-of-pocket limit of your old
option to the catastrophic
protection out-of-pocket limit of your new option. If you
change from Self
Only to Self and Family, or vice versa, during the calendar year,
please
call us about your out-of-pocket accumulations and how they carry over.
When government facilities bill us Facilities of the Department of
Veterans Affairs, the Department of Defense, and the Indian Health Service are
entitled to seek reimbursement from us for certain services
and supplies
they provide to you or a family member. They may not seek more than
their
governing laws allow.
If we overpay you We will make diligent efforts to recover benefit
payments we made in error but in good faith. We may reduce subsequent benefit
payments to offset overpayments.
Note: We will generally first seek recovery from the provider
if we paid the provider
directly, or from the person (covered family member,
guardian, custodial parent, etc.) to
whom we sent our payment. 19
19 Page 20 21
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit
Plan 20 Section 4
When you are age 65 or over and you do not have Medicare
Under the
FEHB law, we must limit our payments for those benefits you would be entitled to
if you had Medicare. And, your
physician and hospital must follow Medicare
rules and cannot bill you for more than they could bill you if you had Medicare.
The
following chart has more information about the limits.
If you…
are age 65 or over; and
do not have Medicare Part A,
Part B, or both; and
have this Plan as an annuitant, as a former spouse,
or as a family member of an annuitant or former spouse; and
are not
employed in a position that gives FEHB coverage. (Your employing office can tell
you if this applies.)
Then, for your inpatient hospital care,
the law requires us to
base our payment on an amount – the "equivalent Medicare amount" – set by
Medicare's rules for what Medicare would pay and not on the actual charge;
you are responsible for your deductible (Standard Option only), coinsurance,
or copayments you owe under this Plan;
you are not responsible for any
charges greater than the equivalent Medicare amount; we will show that amount on
the explanation of benefits (EOB) form that we send you; and
the law prohibits a hospital from collecting more than the equivalent
Medicare amount.
And, for your physician care, the law requires us to
base our payment and your applicable coinsurance or copayment on…
an amount
set by Medicare and called the "Medicare approved amount" or
the actual
charge if it is lower than the Medicare approved amount.
If your physician… Then you are responsible for…
Standard Option: your deductibles, coinsurance, and copayments Participates
with Medicare or accepts Medicare assignment for the claim and is in our
Preferred
network Basic Option: your copayments and coinsurance
Standard Option: your deductibles, coinsurance, and copayments, and any
balance up to the Medicare approved amount Participates with Medicare or accepts
Medicare
assignment and is not in our Preferred network Basic Option:
all charges
Standard Option: your deductibles, coinsurance, and copayments, and any
balance up to 115% of the Medicare approved amount
Basic Option: your
copayments and coinsurance Does not participate with Medicare, and is in
our
Preferred network Note: In many cases, your payment will be less
because
of our Preferred agreements. Contact your Local Plan
for
information about what your specific Preferred
provider can collect from
you.
Standard Option: your deductibles, coinsurance, copayments, and any balance
up to 115% of the Medicare approved amount Does not participate with Medicare
and is not in
our Preferred network Basic Option: all charges
It is generally to your financial advantage to use a physician who
participates with Medicare. Such physicians are permitted to collect
only up
to the Medicare approved amount.
Our explanation of benefits (EOB) form will tell you how much the physician
or hospital can collect from you. If your physician or
hospital tries to
collect more than allowed by law, ask the physician or hospital to reduce the
charges. If you have paid more than
allowed, ask for a refund. If you need
further assistance, call us. 20
20 Page 21 22
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 21 Section
4
When you have the We limit our payment to an amount that supplements
the benefits that Medicare Original Medicare Plan would pay under
Medicare Part A (Hospital Insurance) and Medicare Part B (Medical
(Part
A, Part B, or both) Insurance), regardless of whether Medicare pays.
Note: We pay our regular benefits for emergency services to a
facility provider, such as
a hospital, that does not participate with
Medicare and is not reimbursed by Medicare.
If you are covered by Medicare Part B and it is primary, your out-of-pocket
costs for
services that both Medicare Part B and we cover depend on whether
your physician
accepts Medicare assignment for the claim.
If your physician accepts Medicare assignment, then you pay nothing for
covered
charges.
If your physician does not accept Medicare assignment, then you pay the
difference
between our payment combined with Medicare's payment, and the
charge.
Note: Under Basic Option, you must see
Preferred providers in order to receive
benefits. See page 11 for
the exceptions to this requirement.
Note: The physician who does not accept Medicare assignment may
not bill you for
more than 115% of the amount Medicare bases its payment on,
called the "limiting
charge." The Medicare Summary Notice (MSN) form that
you receive from Medicare
will have more information about the limiting
charge. If your physician tries to collect
more than allowed by law, ask the
physician to reduce the charges. If the physician
does not, report the
physician to your Medicare carrier who sent you the MSN form.
Call us if you
need further assistance.
When you have a Medicare Private Contract A physician may ask you to
sign a private contract agreeing that you can be billed directly for services
Medicare ordinarily covers. Should you sign an agreement,
Medicare will not
pay any portion of the charges, and we will not increase our payment
to you
or the physician. We will still limit our payment to the amount we would have
paid after Medicare's payment. You will be responsible for paying the
difference
between the limiting charge and the amount we paid.
Please see Section 9, Coordinating benefits with
other coverage, for more information about how we coordinate benefits with
Medicare. 21
21 Page
22 23
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 22 Section
5
Section 5. Benefits --OVERVIEW
(See page 8
for how our benefits changed this year and pages 118-119
for a benefits summary.)
NOTE: This benefits section is divided into subsections. Please read the important things you should keep in mind at the
beginning of each subsection. Also read the General exclusions in Section 6;
they apply to the benefits in the following
subsections. To obtain claim
forms, claims filing advice, or more information about our benefits, contact us
at the customer
service telephone number on the back of your Service Benefit
Plan ID card or at our website at www. fepblue.
org.
(a) Medical services and supplies provided by physicians and other health
care professionals.....................................................
23-43
Diagnostic and treatment services
Lab, X-ray, and other
diagnostic tests
Preventive care, adult
Preventive care, children
Maternity care
Family planning
Infertility services
Allergy care
Treatment therapies
Physical therapy
Occupational and speech
therapies
Hearing services (testing, treatment, and supplies)
Vision services
(testing, treatment, and supplies)
Foot care
Orthopedic and prosthetic
devices
Durable medical equipment (DME)
Medical supplies
Home health
services
Chiropractic
Alternative treatments
Educational classes and
programs
(b) Surgical and anesthesia services provided by physicians and other health
care professionals................................................. 44-54
Surgical procedures
Reconstructive surgery
Oral and maxillofacial surgery
Organ/ tissue transplants
Anesthesia
(c) Services provided by a hospital or other facility, and ambulance services...............................................................................
55-64
Inpatient hospital
Outpatient hospital or ambulatory surgical
center
Extended care benefits/ Skilled nursing care facility
benefits
Hospice care
Ambulance
(d) Emergency services/ Accidents
.................................................................................................................................................
65-69
Medical emergency
Accidental injury
Ambulance
(e) Mental health and substance abuse benefits .............................................................................................................................
70-76
(f) Prescription drug
benefits.........................................................................................................................................................
77-84
(g) Special
features..............................................................................................................................................................................
85
Flexible benefits option
24-hour nurse line
Services for the deaf and
hearing impaired
Travel benefit/ services overseas
Health support
programs
(h) Dental benefits..........................................................................................................................................................................
86-91
(i) Non-FEHB benefits available to Plan members............................................................................................................................
92
SUMMARY OF BENEFITS .........................................................................................................................................................
118-119 22
22 Page
23 24
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 23
Section 5( a)
Section 5 (a). Medical services and supplies provided by physicians and
other health care professionals
I M
P O
R T
A N
T
Here are some important things you should keep in mind about these
benefits:
Please remember that all benefits are subject to the
definitions, limitations, and exclusions in this brochure and are payable only
when we determine they are medically necessary.
Under Standard Option, the calendar year deductible is $250 per person
($ 500 per family). The calendar year deductible applies to almost all benefits
in this Section. We added "( No deductible)"
to show when the calendar year
deductible does not apply.
Under Basic Option, there is no
calendar year deductible.
Under Basic Option, you must use Preferred
providers in order to receive benefits. See page 11 for the exceptions to this requirement.
Please refer to Section 3, How you receive benefits,
for a list of providers we consider to be primary care providers (under
Basic Option) and other health care professionals.
Be sure to read Section 4, Your costs for covered services, for
valuable information about how cost sharing works, with special sections for
members who are age 65 or over. Also read Section 9
about coordinating benefits with other coverage, including Medicare.
We base payment on whether a facility or a health care professional bills
for the services or supplies. You will find that some benefits are listed in
more than one section of the brochure.
This is because how they are paid depends on what type of provider bills for
the service. For
example, physical therapy is paid differently depending on
whether it is billed by an inpatient
facility, a doctor, a physical
therapist, or an outpatient facility.
The amounts listed below are for the charges billed by
a physician or other health care professional for your medical care. Look in
Section 5( c) for charges associated with the facility (i. e., hospital
or other outpatient facility, etc.).
The non-PPO benefits are the
standard benefits for Standard Option. PPO benefits apply only when you use a
PPO provider. When no PPO provider is available, non-PPO benefits apply.
I M
P O
R T
A N
T
Benefit Description You Pay
NOTE: The calendar year deductible applies
to almost all Standard Option benefits in this Section. We say "( No
deductible)" when the Standard Option deductible does not apply.
There is no
calendar year deductible under Basic Option.
Diagnostic and treatment
services You Pay – Standard Option You Pay – Basic Option
Professional
services of physicians and other health
care professionals:
Outpatient consultations
Outpatient second surgical opinions
Office
visits
Home visits
Initial examination of a newborn needing definitive
treatment when covered under a family enrollment
Preferred: $15 copayment for
the office visit charge (No
deductible)
Participating: 25% of the Plan
allowance
Non-participating: 25% of the
Plan allowance, plus any
difference
between our
allowance and the billed
amount
Preferred primary care
provider or other health care
professional:
$20 copayment
per visit
Preferred specialist: $30
copayment per visit
Participating/ Non-participating:
You pay all
charges
Diagnostic and treatment services – continued on next page 23
23 Page 24 25
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 24 Section
5( a)
NOTE: The calendar year deductible applies to almost all Standard Option
benefits in this Section.
We say "( No deductible)" when the Standard Option
deductible does not apply.
There is no calendar year deductible under Basic
Option.
Diagnostic and treatment services (continued) You Pay –
Standard Option You Pay – Basic Option
Outpatient professional services:
Pharmacotherapy [see Section 5( f) for prescription drug coverage]
Neurological testing
Preferred: 10% of the Plan
allowance
Participating: 25% of the
Plan allowance
Non-participating: 25% of
the Plan allowance, plus any
difference
between our
allowance and the billed
amount
Preferred primary care
provider or other health care
professional:
$20 copayment
per visit
Preferred specialist: $30
copayment per visit
Participating/ Non-participating:
You pay all
charges
Inpatient professional services:
During a hospital stay
Services for
nonsurgical procedures when ordered, provided, and billed by a physician during
a
covered inpatient hospital admission
Medical care by the attending
physician (the physician who is primarily responsible for your
care when you are hospitalized) on days we pay
inpatient hospital
benefits
Note: A consulting physician employed by the
hospital is
not the attending physician.
Consultations when requested by the attending physician
Concurrent care – hospital inpatient care by a physician other than the
attending physician for a
condition not related to your primary diagnosis,
or
because the medical complexity of your condition
requires this
additional medical care
Physical therapy by a physician other than the attending physician
Initial examination of a newborn needing definitive treatment when covered
under a family
enrollment
Pharmacotherapy [see Section
5( c) for prescription drug coverage]
Neurological testing
Second surgical opinion
Preferred: 10% of the Plan
allowance
Participating: 25% of the
Plan allowance
Non-participating: 25% of
the Plan allowance, plus any
difference
between our
allowance and the billed
amount
Note: We provide benefits at
90% of the Plan allowance
for services provided in
Preferred facilities by Non-preferred
radiologists,
anesthesiologists, certified
registered nurse
anesthetists
(CRNAs), pathologists, and
emergency room physicians.
You are responsible for any
difference between our
allowance and the
billed
amount.
Preferred: Nothing
Participating/ Non-participating:
You pay all
charges
Note: We provide benefits at
100% of the Plan allowance
for services provided in
Preferred facilities by Non-preferred
radiologists,
anesthesiologists, certified
registered nurse
anesthetists
(CRNAs), pathologists,
emergency room physicians,
and
assistant surgeons. You
are responsible for any
difference between our
allowance and the billed
amount.
Diagnostic and treatment services – continued on next page 24
24 Page 25 26
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 25 Section
5( a)
NOTE: The calendar year deductible applies to almost all Standard Option
benefits in this Section.
We say "( No deductible)" when the Standard Option
deductible does not apply.
There is no calendar year deductible under Basic
Option.
Diagnostic and treatment services (continued) You Pay –
Standard Option You Pay – Basic Option
Not covered:
Routine services except for those Preventive care
services described on pages 27-30
Inpatient private duty nursing
Standby physicians
Routine radiological and staff consultations required by hospital
rules and regulations
Inpatient physician care when your hospital admission or portion of an admission is not
covered [see Section 5(
c)]
Note: If we determine that a hospital admission
is not covered, we will not provide benefits for
inpatient room and
board or inpatient physician
care. However, we will provide benefits for
covered services or supplies other than room
and board and inpatient
physician care at the
level that we would have paid if they had been
provided in some other setting.
All charges All charges 25
25 Page 26 27
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 26 Section
5( a)
NOTE: The calendar year deductible applies to almost all Standard Option
benefits in this Section.
We say "( No deductible)" when the Standard Option
deductible does not apply.
There is no calendar year deductible under Basic
Option.
Lab, X-ray, and other diagnostic tests You Pay – Standard Option You Pay –
Basic Option
Diagnostic tests provided, or ordered and billed
by a
physician, such as:
Blood tests
CT scans/ MRIs
EKGs and EEGs
Laboratory tests
Pathology services
Ultrasounds
Urinalysis
X-rays
Laboratory
and pathology services billed by an
independent laboratory
Note: See Section 5( c) for services
billed for by
a facility, such as the outpatient department of a
hospital.
Preferred: 10% of the Plan
allowance
Participating: 25% of the
Plan allowance
Non-participating: 25% of
the Plan allowance, plus any
difference
between our
allowance and the billed
amount
Note: If your Preferred
provider uses a Non-preferred
laboratory or
radiologist, we will pay Non-preferred
benefits for
any
laboratory and X-ray
charges.
Preferred primary care
provider or other health care
professional:
$20 copayment
per visit
Preferred specialist: $30
copayment per visit
Participating/ Non-participating:
You pay all
charges
Note: For services billed by
Participating and
Non-participating
laboratories or
radiologists, you pay a
separate
$20 copayment, plus
any difference between our
allowance and the billed
amount.
Other diagnostic tests provided, or ordered and
billed by a physician,
such as:
Fecal occult blood tests
Non-routine mammograms
Non-routine Pap tests
Prostate Specific Antigen (PSA) tests
Sigmoidoscopies
Note:
See Section 5( c) for services billed for by
a
facility, such as the outpatient department of a
hospital.
Preferred: $15 copayment for
associated office visits (No
deductible); nothing for
services or tests
Participating: 25% of the
Plan allowance
Non-participating: 25% of
the Plan allowance, plus any
difference
between our
allowance and the billed
amount
Note: If your Preferred
provider uses a Non-preferred
laboratory or
radiologist, we will pay Non-preferred
benefits for
any
laboratory and X-ray
charges.
Preferred primary care
provider or other health care
professional:
$20 copayment
per visit
Preferred specialist: $30
copayment per visit
Participating/ Non-participating:
You pay all
charges
Note: For services billed by
Participating and
Non-participating
laboratories or
radiologists, you pay a
separate
$20 copayment, plus
any difference between our
allowance and the billed
amount. 26
26 Page
27 28
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 27 Section
5( a)
NOTE: The calendar year deductible applies to almost all Standard Option
benefits in this Section.
We say "( No deductible)" when the Standard Option
deductible does not apply.
There is no calendar year deductible under Basic
Option.
Preventive care, adult You Pay – Standard Option You Pay – Basic Option
Home and office visits for routine (screening)
physical examinations
Under Standard Option, benefits are limited
to the following
services when performed as
part of a routine physical examination:
History and risk assessment
Chest X-ray
EKG
Urinalysis
Basic
or comprehensive metabolic panel test
CBC
Cholesterol tests (may be done
by any independent laboratory)
Chlamydial infection test
Under Basic Option, benefits are
provided for
all of the services listed above and for other
appropriate
screening tests and services.
Note: These benefits do not apply to children
up to age 22.
(See benefits under Preventive
care, children, this section.)
Preferred: $15 copayment for
the examination (No
deductible); nothing
for
services or tests
Note: We cover one routine
physical examination every
three calendar years for
members under age 65 and
one each calendar
year for
members age 65 and older.
Note: We provide benefits
for adult routine physical
examinations only when you
receive these services from a
Preferred provider.
Participating:
You pay all charges
Non-participating:
You pay all charges
Note: When billed by a
facility, such as the
outpatient
department of a
hospital, we provide benefits
as shown here, according
to
the contracting status of the
facility.
Preferred primary care
provider or other health care
professional:
$20 copayment
per visit
Preferred specialist: $30
copayment per visit
Participating/ Non-participating:
You pay all
charges
Note: For services billed by
Participating and
Non-participating
laboratories or
radiologists, you pay a
separate
$20 copayment, plus
any difference between our
allowance and the billed
amount.
Note: See Section 5( c) for
our
payment levels for these
services when billed for by a
facility,
such as the
outpatient department of a
hospital.
Preventive care, adult – continued on next page 27
27 Page 28 29
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 28 Section
5( a)
NOTE: The calendar year deductible applies to almost all Standard Option
benefits in this Section.
We say "( No deductible)" when the Standard Option
deductible does not apply.
There is no calendar year deductible under Basic
Option.
Preventive care, adult (continued) You Pay – Standard Option
You Pay – Basic Option
Cancer screening
Colorectal cancer screening, including:
Fecal occult
blood test
Sigmoidoscopy
Prostate cancer screening – Prostate Specific
Antigen (PSA) test
Cervical cancer screening
Breast cancer screening (routine mammograms)
Preferred: $15 copayment for
associated office visits (No
deductible); nothing for
services or tests
Note: We provide benefits in
full for preventive
(screening) tests and
immunizations only when
you receive these
services
from a Preferred provider
on an outpatient basis. If
these services are billed
separately from the routine
physical
examination, you
may be responsible for
paying an additional
copayment for each office
visit billed.
Participating: 25% of the
Plan allowance
Non-participating: 25% of
the Plan allowance, plus any
difference
between our
allowance and the billed
amount
Note: When billed by a
facility, such as the
outpatient
department of a
hospital, we provide benefits
as shown here, according
to
the contracting status of the
facility.
Preferred primary care
provider or other health care
professional:
$20 copayment
per visit
Preferred specialist: $30
copayment per visit
Participating/ Non-participating:
You pay all
charges
Note: For services billed by
Participating and
Non-participating
laboratories or
radiologists, you pay a
separate
$20 copayment, plus
any difference between our
allowance and the billed
amount.
Note: See Section 5( c) for
our
payment levels for these
services when billed for by a
facility, such as
the
outpatient department of a
hospital.
Preventive care, adult – continued on next page 28
28 Page 29 30
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 29 Section
5( a)
NOTE: The calendar year deductible applies to almost all Standard Option
benefits in this Section.
We say "( No deductible)" when the Standard Option
deductible does not apply. There is no calendar year deductible under Basic
Option.
Preventive care, adult (continued) You Pay – Standard Option
You Pay – Basic Option
Cancer screening (continued) Note:
If you go to a
Participating or Non-participating
provider for
these services, the following
limits apply:
Fecal occult blood test – one annually starting at age
40
Sigmoidoscopy – one every five years starting at
age 50
Prostate Specific Antigen (PSA) test – one annually
for males age 40 and older
Cervical cancer screening – one routine Pap
test
annually for females of any
age
Breast cancer screening – routine mammograms for
females age 35 and older,
as follows
From age 35 through 39, one during this five-year
period
From age 40 through 64, one annually
At age 65 and older, one every two consecutive
calendar years
Note: When billed by a
facility, such as the
outpatient department of a
hospital, we provide benefits
as shown
here, according to
the contracting status of the
facility.
Preventive care, adult – continued on next page 29
29 Page 30 31
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 30 Section
5( a)
NOTE: The calendar year deductible applies to almost all Standard Option
benefits in this Section.
We say "( No deductible)" when the Standard Option
deductible does not apply. There is no calendar year deductible under Basic
Option.
Preventive care, adult (continued) You Pay – Standard Option
You Pay – Basic Option
Routine immunizations without regard to age,
limited to:
Hepatitis immunizations (Types A and B) for patients with increased risk or
family history
Influenza and pneumococcal vaccines, annually
Lyme disease vaccine
Tetanus-diphtheria (Td) booster – once every 10 years
Preferred: $15 copayment for
associated office visits (No
deductible); nothing for
immunizations
Participating: 25% of the
Plan allowance
Non-participating: 25% of
the Plan allowance, plus any
difference
between our
allowance and the billed
amount
Preferred primary care
provider or other health care
professional:
$20 copayment
for associated office visits;
nothing for immunizations
Preferred specialist: $30
copayment for associated
office visits;
nothing for
immunizations
Participating/ Non-participating:
You pay all
charges
Not covered: Office visit charges associated
with preventive services
and routine
immunizations performed by Participating and
Non-participating providers
All charges All charges
Preventive care, children
We provide benefits for the following
services:
All healthy newborn visits including routine screening (inpatient
or outpatient)
The following routine services as recommended by the American Academy of
Pediatrics for children up to the age of 22,
including children living,
traveling, or
adopted from outside the United States:
Routine physical examinations
Routine hearing tests
Laboratory tests
Immunizations
Related office visits
Preferred: Nothing (No
deductible)
Participating: Nothing (No
deductible)
Non-participating: Nothing
(No deductible) up to the
Plan allowance.
You are
responsible only for any
difference between our
allowance
and the billed
amount.
Note: When billed by a
facility, such as the outpatient
department of a hospital, we
provide benefits as shown
here,
according to the
contracting status of the
facility.
Preferred primary care
provider or other health care
professional:
$20 copayment
per visit; you pay nothing for
inpatient visits
Preferred specialist: $30
copayment per visit; you pay
nothing for
inpatient visits
Participating/ Non-participating:
You pay all
charges
Note: For services billed by
Participating and
Non-participating
laboratories or
radiologists, you pay a
separate
$20 copayment, plus
any difference between our
allowance and the billed
amount.
Note: See Section 5( c) for
our
payment levels for these
services when billed for by a
facility, such as
the outpatient
department of a hospital. 30
30
Page 31 32
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 31 Section
5( a)
NOTE: The calendar year deductible applies to almost all Standard Option
benefits in this Section.
We say "( No deductible)" when the Standard Option
deductible does not apply. There is no calendar year deductible under Basic
Option.
Maternity care You Pay – Standard Option You Pay – Basic Option
Complete maternity (obstetrical) care including
related conditions
resulting in childbirth or
miscarriage when provided, or ordered and
billed by a physician or nurse midwife, such as:
Prenatal care
Delivery
Postpartum care
Note: Here
are some things to keep in mind:
You do not need to precertify your normal delivery; see
page 13 for other circumstances,
such as extended stays for you or your baby.
You may remain in the
hospital up to 48 hours after a regular delivery and 96 hours
after a cesarean delivery. We will cover an
extended stay, if medically
necessary, but
you, your representative, your doctor, or your
hospital must precertify the extended stay.
See Section 3
for information on requesting
additional days.
We cover routine nursery care of the newborn child during the covered portion
of the
mother's maternity stay, or if the child is
covered under the father's
Self and Family
enrollment.
Preferred: Nothing (No
deductible)
Note: For facility care related
to maternity, including
care
at birthing facilities, we
waive the per admission
copayment
and pay for
covered services in full when
you use Preferred providers.
Participating: 25% of the
Plan allowance
Non-participating: 25% of
the Plan allowance, plus any
difference
between our
allowance and the billed
amount
Preferred: $100 copayment
for the delivery; nothing for
prenatal and
postpartum care
Note: For facility care related
to maternity, including
care
at birthing facilities, see
Section 5( c).
Participating/ Non-participating:
You pay all
charges
Note: For services billed by
Participating and
Non-participating
laboratories and
radiologists, you are
responsible
only for any
difference between our
allowance and the billed
amount.
Note: When a newborn requires definitive
treatment
including incubation charges by
reason of prematurity or evaluation for
medical
or surgical reasons during or after the mother's
confinement,
the newborn is considered a
patient in his or her own right. Expenses of the
newborn including circumcision are eligible for
benefits only if the
child is covered by a Self
and Family enrollment.
Note: We pay assistant surgeon services
(delivery) and
anesthesia the same as for illness
or injury. See Surgical
and anesthesia
benefits in Section 5( b).
Not covered: Procedures, services, drugs, and
supplies related to
abortions except when the
life of the mother would be endangered if the
fetus were carried to term or when the
pregnancy is the result of an act
of rape or
incest
All charges All charges 31
31 Page 32 33
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 32 Section
5( a)
NOTE: The calendar year deductible applies to almost all Standard Option
benefits in this Section.
We say "( No deductible)" when the Standard Option
deductible does not apply. There is no calendar year deductible under Basic
Option.
Family planning You Pay – Standard Option You Pay – Basic Option
A
broad range of voluntary family planning
services, limited to:
Depo-Provera
Diaphragms
Intrauterine devices (IUDs)
Norplant
Oral contraceptives
Voluntary sterilization
Note: See Section 5( f) for prescription drug
coverage.
Preferred: 10% of the Plan
allowance
Participating: 25% of the
Plan allowance
Non-participating: 25% of
the Plan allowance, plus any
difference
between our
allowance and the billed
amount
Preferred primary care
provider or other health care
professional:
$20 copayment
per visit
Preferred specialist: $30
copayment per visit
Note: You pay $100 for
related surgical procedures.
See
Section 5( b) for our
coverage for related
surgical
procedures.
Participating/ Non-participating:
You pay all
charges
Not covered:
Reversal of voluntary surgical sterilization
Contraceptive devices not described above
All charges All charges
Infertility services
Diagnosis and treatment of infertility,
except as
shown in Not Covered
Note: See Section 5( f) for prescription
drug
coverage.
Preferred: 10% of the Plan
allowance
Participating: 25% of the
Plan allowance
Non-participating: 25% of
the Plan allowance, plus any
difference
between our
allowance and the billed
amount
Preferred primary care
provider or other health care
professional:
$20 copayment
per visit
Preferred specialist: $30
copayment per visit
Participating/ Non-participating:
You pay all
charges
Note: For services billed by
Participating and
Non-participating
laboratories or
radiologists, you pay a
separate
$20 copayment, plus
any difference between our
allowance and the billed
amount.
Infertility services – continued on next page 32
32 Page 33 34
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit
Plan 33 Section 5( a)
NOTE: The calendar year deductible applies to almost all Standard Option
benefits in this Section.
We say "( No deductible)" when the Standard Option
deductible does not apply.
There is no calendar year deductible under Basic
Option.
Infertility services (continued) You Pay – Standard Option
You Pay – Basic Option
Not covered:
Assisted reproductive
technology (ART) procedures, such as:
artificial insemination (AI)
in vitro fertilization (IVF)
embryo transfer and Gamete Intrafallopian Transfer (GIFT)
intravaginal insemination (IVI)
intracervical insemination
(ICI)
intrauterine insemination (IUI)
Services and
supplies related to ART procedures, such as sperm banking
All charges All charges
Allergy care
Testing and treatment, including materials (such as
allergy serum)
Allergy injections
Preferred: 10% of the Plan
allowance
Participating: 25% of the
Plan allowance
Non-participating: 25% of
the Plan allowance, plus any
difference
between our
allowance and the billed
amount
Preferred primary care
provider or other health care
professional:
$20 copayment
per visit; nothing for
injections
Preferred specialist: $30
copayment per visit; nothing
for injections
Participating/ Non-participating:
You pay all
charges
Note: For services billed by
Participating and
Non-participating
laboratories or
radiologists, you pay a
separate
$20 copayment, plus
any difference between our
allowance and the billed
amount.
Not covered: Provocative food testing and
sublingual allergy
desensitization
All charges All charges 33
33
Page 34 35
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 34 Section
5( a)
NOTE: The calendar year deductible applies to almost all Standard Option
benefits in this Section.
We say "( No deductible)" when the Standard Option
deductible does not apply.
There is no calendar year deductible under Basic
Option.
Treatment therapies You Pay – Standard Option You Pay – Basic Option
Outpatient treatment therapies:
Chemotherapy and radiation therapy
Note: We cover high dose chemotherapy
and/ or radiation
therapy in connection with
bone marrow transplants, and drugs or
medications to stimulate or mobilize stem
cells for transplant
procedures, only for those
conditions listed as covered
under
Organ/ tissue transplants in Section 5( b). See
also,
Services requiring our prior approval, in
Section 3.
Renal dialysis – Hemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis
Intravenous (IV)/ infusion therapy – Home IV or infusion therapy
Note: Home nursing visits associated with
Home IV/
infusion therapy are covered as
shown under Home health services on page
41.
Pharmacotherapy [see Section 5( f) for prescription
drug coverage]
Outpatient cardiac rehabilitation (Prior approval is
required. See Section 3.)
Note: See Section 5( c) for our payment levels
for treatment
therapies billed for by the
outpatient department of a hospital.
Preferred: 10% of the Plan
allowance
Participating: 25% of the
Plan allowance
Non-participating: 25% of
the Plan allowance, plus any
difference
between our
allowance and the billed
amount
Preferred primary care
provider or other health care
professional:
$20 copayment
per visit
Preferred specialist: $30
copayment per visit
Participating/ Non-participating:
You pay all
charges
Note: You pay 30% of the
Plan allowance for drugs and
supplies related to outpatient
treatment therapies.
Inpatient treatment therapies:
Chemotherapy and radiation therapy
Note: We cover high dose chemotherapy
and/ or radiation
therapy in connection with
bone marrow transplants, and drugs or
medications to stimulate or mobilize stem
cells for transplant
procedures, only for those
conditions listed as covered
under
Organ/ tissue transplants in Section 5( b). See
also, Services requiring our prior
approval, in
Section 3.
Renal dialysis – Hemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis
Pharmacotherapy [see Section 5( f) for prescription
drug coverage]
Preferred: 10% of the Plan
allowance
Participating: 25% of the
Plan allowance
Non-participating: 25% of the
Plan allowance, plus any
difference
between our
allowance and the billed
amount
Note: We provide benefits at
90% of the Plan allowance for
services provided in Preferred
facilities by Non-preferred
radiologists,
anesthesiologists, certified
registered nurse
anesthetists
(CRNAs), pathologists, and
emergency room physicians.
You are responsible for any
difference between our
allowance and the
billed
amount.
Preferred: Nothing
Participating/ Non-participating:
You pay all
charges
Note: We provide benefits at
100% of the Plan allowance
for services provided in
Preferred facilities by Non-preferred
radiologists,
anesthesiologists, certified
registered nurse
anesthetists
(CRNAs), pathologists,
emergency room physicians,
and
assistant surgeons. You
are responsible for any
difference between our
allowance and the billed
amount. 34
34
Page 35 36
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 35 Section
5( a)
NOTE: The calendar year deductible applies to almost all Standard Option
benefits in this Section.
We say "( No deductible)" when the Standard Option
deductible does not apply. There is no calendar year deductible under Basic
Option.
Physical therapy You Pay – Standard Option You Pay – Basic Option
When performed by a physical therapist or
physician:
Physical therapy
Acupuncture as a physical therapy modality and for pain
management
Note: See Section 5( c) for our payment
levels
for physical therapy performed in and billed by
the
outpatient department of a hospital.
Note: When billed by a skilled nursing facility,
nursing
home, or extended care facility, we pay
benefits as shown here for
professional care,
according to the contracting status of the
therapist.
Preferred: 10% of the Plan
allowance
Participating: 25% of the
Plan allowance
Non-participating: 25% of
the Plan allowance, plus any
difference
between our
allowance and the billed
amount
Note: Benefits are limited to
50 visits per person, per
calendar year.
Note: Visits that you pay for
while meeting your calendar
year deductible count toward
the limit cited above.
Preferred primary care
provider or other health care
professional:
$20 copayment
per visit
Preferred specialist: $30
copayment per visit
Note: Benefits are limited to
50 visits per person, per
calendar year for physical,
occupational, or speech
therapy, or a
combination of
all three.
Participating/ Non-participating:
You pay all
charges
Not covered:
Recreational or educational therapy, and any
related diagnostic testing except as provided
by a hospital as part of a covered inpatient
stay
Maintenance or palliative rehabilitative therapy
Exercise programs
Hippotherapy (exercise on horseback)
All charges All charges 35
35 Page 36 37
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 36 Section
5( a)
NOTE: The calendar year deductible applies to almost all Standard Option
benefits in this Section.
We say "( No deductible)" when the Standard Option
deductible does not apply.
There is no calendar year deductible under Basic
Option.
Occupational and speech therapies You Pay – Standard Option You Pay –
Basic Option
Occupational and speech therapy when
performed by an
occupational therapist, speech
therapist, or physician
Note: See Section 5( c) for our payment
levels
for occupational and speech therapy performed
in and billed
by the outpatient department of a
hospital.
Note: When billed by a skilled nursing facility,
nursing
home, or extended care facility, we pay
benefits as shown here for
professional care,
according to the contracting status of the
therapist.
Preferred: 10% of the Plan
allowance
Participating: 25% of the
Plan allowance
Non-participating: 25% of
the Plan allowance, plus any
difference
between our
allowance and the billed
amount
Note: Benefits are limited to
25 visits per person, per
calendar year for
occupational therapy or
speech therapy, or a
combination of both.
Note: Visits that you pay for
while meeting your calendar
year deductible count toward
the limit cited above.
Preferred primary care
provider or other health care
professional:
$20 copayment
per visit
Preferred specialist: $30
copayment per visit
Note: Benefits are limited to
50 visits per person, per
calendar year for physical,
occupational, or speech
therapy, or a
combination of
all three.
Participating/ Non-participating:
You pay all
charges
Not covered:
Recreational or educational therapy, and any
related diagnostic testing except as provided
by a hospital as part of a covered inpatient
stay
Maintenance or palliative rehabilitative therapy
Exercise programs
All charges All charges 36
36 Page 37 38
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 37 Section
5( a)
NOTE: The calendar year deductible applies to almost all Standard Option
benefits in this Section.
We say "( No deductible)" when the Standard Option
deductible does not apply.
There is no calendar year deductible under Basic
Option.
Hearing services (testing, treatment, and supplies) You Pay – Standard
Option You Pay – Basic Option
Hearing tests related to illness or injury Preferred: 10% of the Plan
allowance
Participating: 25% of the
Plan allowance
Non-participating: 25% of
the Plan allowance, plus any
difference
between our
allowance and the billed
amount
Preferred primary care
provider or other health care
professional:
$20 copayment
per visit
Preferred specialist: $30
copayment per visit
Participating/ Non-participating:
You pay all
charges
Not covered:
Routine hearing tests (except as indicated under
Preventive care, children)
Hearing aids (including implanted bone conduction hearing aids)
Testing and examinations for the prescribing or fitting of hearing
aids
All charges All charges
Vision services (testing, treatment, and supplies)
One pair of
eyeglasses, replacement lenses, or contact lenses to correct an impairment
directly caused by a single instance of
accidental ocular injury or
intraocular surgery
Note: This benefit may also be used to obtain
one pair of
eyeglasses or lenses prescribed in
lieu of surgery when the condition can be
corrected by surgery, but surgery is precluded
because of age or medical
condition.
Preferred: 10% of the Plan
allowance
Participating: 25% of the
Plan allowance
Non-participating: 25% of
the Plan allowance, plus any
difference
between our
allowance and the billed
amount
Preferred: 30% of the Plan
allowance
Participating/ Non-participating:
You pay all
charges
Eye examinations related to a specific medical condition
Nonsurgical
treatment for amblyopia and strabismus, for children from birth through
age
12
Note: See Section 5( b), Surgical
procedures,
for coverage for surgical treatment of
amblyopia and
strabismus.
Preferred: 10% of the Plan
allowance
Participating: 25% of the
Plan allowance
Non-participating: 25% of
the Plan allowance, plus any
difference
between our
allowance and the billed
amount
Preferred primary care
provider or other health care
professional:
$20 copayment
per visit
Preferred specialist: $30
copayment per visit
Participating/ Non-participating:
You pay all
charges
Vision services (testing, treatment, and supplies) – continued on next
page 37
37 Page
38 39
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 38 Section
5( a)
NOTE: The calendar year deductible applies to almost all Standard Option
benefits in this Section.
We say "( No deductible)" when the Standard Option
deductible does not apply.
There is no calendar year deductible under Basic
Option.
Vision services (testing, treatment, and supplies) (continued)
You Pay – Standard Option You Pay – Basic Option
Not covered:
Eyeglasses, contact lenses, routine eye
examinations, or vision testing for the
prescribing or fitting of eyeglasses or contact
lenses, except as
described on page 37
Eye exercises, visual training, or orthoptics, except for nonsurgical treatment of amblyopia
and strabismus as described on page 37
LASIK, radial
keratotomy, and other refractive services
All charges All charges
Foot care
Routine foot care when you are under active
treatment for a metabolic or peripheral vascular
disease, such as
diabetes
Note: See orthopedic and prosthetic devices for
information
on podiatric shoe inserts.
Note: See Section 5( b) for our coverage
for
surgical procedures.
Preferred: $15 copayment for
the office visit (No
deductible); 10% of
the Plan
allowance for all other
services (deductible applies)
Participating: 25% of the
Plan allowance
Non-participating: 25% of
the Plan allowance, plus any
difference
between our
allowance and the billed
amount
Preferred primary care
provider or other health care
professional:
$20 copayment
per visit
Preferred specialist: $30
copayment per visit
Participating/ Non-participating:
You pay all
charges
Not covered: Routine foot care, such as cutting,
trimming, or removal
of corns, calluses, or the
free edge of toenails, and similar routine
treatment of conditions of the foot, except as
stated above
All charges All charges 38
38 Page 39 40
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 39 Section
5( a)
NOTE: The calendar year deductible applies to almost all Standard Option
benefits in this Section.
We say "( No deductible)" when the Standard Option
deductible does not apply.
There is no calendar year deductible under Basic
Option.
Orthopedic and prosthetic devices You Pay – Standard Option You Pay –
Basic Option
Orthopedic braces and prosthetic appliances
such as:
Artificial limbs and eyes
Functional foot orthotics when prescribed by a
physician
Rigid devices attached to the foot or a brace, or placed in a shoe
Replacement, repair, and adjustment of covered devices
Following a
mastectomy, breast prostheses and surgical bras, including necessary
replacements
Note: A prosthetic appliance is a
device that is
surgically inserted or physically attached to the
body to
restore a bodily function or replace a
physical portion of the body.
We provide hospital benefits for internal
prosthetic devices, such as
artificial joints,
pacemakers, cochlear implants, and surgically
implanted breast implants following
mastectomy;
see Section 5( c) for payment
information. Insertion of the device
is paid as
surgery; see Section 5( b).
Preferred: 10% of the Plan
allowance
Participating: 25% of the
Plan allowance
Non-participating: 25% of
the Plan allowance, plus any
difference
between our
allowance and the billed
amount
Preferred: 30% of the Plan
allowance
Participating/ Non-participating:
You pay all
charges
Not covered:
Shoes and over-the-counter orthotics
Arch supports
Heel pads and heel cups
Penile
implants
Wigs
Implanted bone conduction hearing aids
All charges All charges 39
39 Page 40 41
2002 Blue Cross
and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 40 Section 5( a)
NOTE: The calendar year deductible applies to almost all Standard Option
benefits in this Section.
We say "( No deductible)" when the Standard Option
deductible does not apply.
There is no calendar year deductible under Basic
Option.
Durable medical equipment (DME) You Pay – Standard Option You Pay – Basic
Option
Durable medical equipment (DME) is equipment
and supplies
that:
1. Are prescribed by your attending physician
(i. e., the physician who
is treating your
illness or injury);
2. Are medically necessary;
3. Are primarily and customarily used only
for
a medical purpose;
4. Are generally useful only to a person with
an illness or injury;
5. Are designed for prolonged use; and
6. Serve a specific therapeutic
purpose in the
treatment of an illness or injury.
We cover rental or purchase, at our option,
including repair and
adjustment, of durable
medical equipment. Under this benefit, we
cover:
Home dialysis equipment
Oxygen equipment
Hospital beds
Wheelchairs
Crutches
Walkers
Other items that we determine to be
DME
Preferred: 10% of the Plan
allowance
Participating: 25% of the
Plan allowance
Non-participating: 25% of
the Plan allowance, plus any
difference
between our
allowance and the billed
amount
Preferred: 30% of the Plan
allowance
Participating/ Non-participating:
You pay all
charges
Not covered:
Exercise and bathroom equipment
Lifts,
such as seat, chair, or van lifts
Car seats
Air
conditioners, humidifiers, dehumidifiers, and purifiers
Breast pumps
Computer "story boards" or "light talkers" for
communication-impaired individuals
Equipment for cosmetic purposes
All charges All charges 40
40 Page 41 42
2002 Blue Cross
and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 41 Section 5( a)
NOTE: The calendar year deductible applies to almost all Standard Option
benefits in this Section.
We say "( No deductible)" when the Standard Option
deductible does not apply.
There is no calendar year deductible under Basic
Option.
Medical supplies You Pay – Standard Option You Pay – Basic Option
Medical foods for children with inborn errors of amino acid metabolism
Medical foods and nutritional supplements when administered by catheter or
nasogastric
tubes
Ostomy and catheter supplies
Oxygen, regardless of
the provider
Blood and blood plasma except when donated or replaced, and
blood plasma expanders
Preferred: 10% of the Plan
allowance
Participating: 25% of the
Plan allowance
Non-participating: 25% of
the Plan allowance, plus any
difference
between our
allowance and the billed
amount
Preferred: 30% of the Plan
allowance
Participating/ Non-participating:
You pay all
charges
Home health services
Home nursing care for two (2) hours per day,
up to 25 visits per calendar year, when:
A registered nurse (R. N.) or licensed practical nurse (L. P. N.) provides
the services; and
A physician orders the care
Preferred: 10% of the Plan
allowance
Participating: 25% of the
Plan allowance
Non-participating: 25% of
the Plan allowance, plus any
difference
between our
allowance and the billed
amount
Note: Visits that you pay for
while meeting your calendar
year deductible count toward
the annual visit limit.
Preferred: $20 copayment per
visit
Participating/ Non-participating:
You pay all
charges
Not covered:
Nursing care requested by, or for the convenience
of, the patient or the patient's
family
Services primarily for bathing, feeding, exercising,
moving the patient, homemaking,
giving medication, or acting as a companion
or sitter
All charges All charges 41
41 Page 42 43
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 42 Section
5( a)
NOTE: The calendar year deductible applies to almost all Standard Option
benefits in this Section.
We say "( No deductible)" when the Standard Option
deductible does not apply.
There is no calendar year deductible under Basic
Option.
Chiropractic You Pay – Standard Option You Pay – Basic Option
Initial office visit
Spinal manipulations
Initial set of X-rays
All charges
Note: Benefits may be
available for
covered
services you receive from
chiropractors in medically
underserved areas. See page
10 for additional
information.
Preferred: $20 copayment per
visit, up to 20 manipulations
per
calendar year
Participating/ Non-participating:
You pay all
charges
Alternative treatments
Acupuncture – when performed and billed by
a
physician or physical therapist, for:
pain relief, and
as a modality of physical therapy
Note:
See page 35 for limitations.
Note:
We may also cover services of certain
alternative treatment
providers in medically
underserved areas. See page 10 for
additional
information.
Preferred: 10% of the Plan
allowance
Participating: 25% of the
Plan allowance
Non-participating: 25% of
the Plan allowance, plus any
difference
between our
allowance and the billed
amount
Preferred primary care
provider or other health care
professional:
$20 copayment
per visit
Preferred specialist: $30
copayment per visit
Participating/ Non-participating:
You pay all
charges
Not covered:
Services you receive from non-covered providers
such as:
naturopaths
hypnotherapists
Biofeedback (or other
forms of self-care or self-help training)
All charges All charges 42
42 Page 43 44
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 43 Section
5( a)
NOTE: The calendar year deductible applies to almost all Standard Option
benefits in this Section.
We say "( No deductible)" when the Standard Option
deductible does not apply.
There is no calendar year deductible under Basic
Option.
Educational classes and programs You Pay – Standard Option You Pay – Basic
Option
Smoking cessation
Note: See Section 5( e)
for our coverage of
individual and group psychotherapy for
smoking cessation and Section 5( f) for our
coverage of smoking cessation drugs.
Preferred: $15 copayment for
the office visit charge (No
deductible);
10% of the Plan
allowance for all other
services (deductible applies)
Participating: 25% of the
Plan allowance
Non-participating: 25% of
the Plan allowance, plus any
difference
between our
allowance and the billed
amount
Preferred primary care
provider or other health care
professional:
$20 copayment
per visit
Preferred specialist: $30
copayment per visit
Participating/ Non-participating:
You pay all
charges
Diabetic education when billed by a covered provider
Note:
We cover diabetic educators, dieticians,
and nutritionists who bill
independently only
as part of a covered diabetic education
program.
Preferred: 10% of the Plan
allowance
Participating: 25% of the
Plan allowance
Non-participating: 25% of
the Plan allowance, plus any
difference
between our
allowance and the billed
amount
Preferred primary care
provider or other health care
professional:
$20 copayment
per visit
Preferred specialist: $30
copayment per visit
Participating/ Non-participating:
You pay all
charges
Not covered:
Marital, family, educational, or other counseling
or training services when
performed as part of an educational class or
program
Premenstrual (PMS), lactation, headache, eating disorder, and other
educational clinics
Recreational or educational therapy, and any related diagnostic testing
except as provided
by a hospital as part of a covered inpatient
stay
Services performed or billed by a school or halfway house or a member of
its staff
All charges All charges 43
43 Page 44 45
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 44 Section
5( b)
Section 5 (b). Surgical and anesthesia services provided by physicians and
other health care professionals
I M
P O
R T
A N
T
Here are some important things you should keep in mind about these
benefits:
Please remember that all benefits are subject to the
definitions, limitations, and exclusions in this brochure and are payable only
when we determine they are medically necessary.
Under Standard Option, the calendar year deductible is $250 per person
($ 500 per family). The calendar year deductible applies to almost all
Standard Option benefits in this Section. We say "( No
deductible)"
to show when the calendar year deductible does not apply.
Under Basic
Option, there is no calendar year deductible.
Under Basic
Option, you must use Preferred providers in order to receive benefits. See page 11 for the exceptions to this requirement.
Be sure to read Section 4, Your costs for covered
services, for valuable information about how cost sharing works, with
special sections for members who are age 65 or over. Also read Section 9 about
coordinating benefits with other
coverage, including Medicare.
We base payment on whether a facility or a
health care professional bills for the services or supplies. You will find that
some benefits are listed in more than one section of the brochure. This is
because how they
are paid depends on what type of provider bills for the service.
The
amounts listed below are for the charges billed by a
physician or other health care professional for your surgical care. Look in
Section 5( c) for charges associated with the facility (i. e., hospital,
surgical
center, etc.).
YOU MUST GET PRIOR APPROVAL for all organ transplant
surgical procedures; and if your surgical procedure requires an inpatient
admission, YOU MUST GET PRECERTIFICATION. Please
refer to the prior approval and precertification information shown in
Section 3 to be sure which services require prior approval or
precertification.
The non-PPO benefits are the standard benefits for Standard Option. PPO
benefits apply only when you use a PPO provider. When no PPO provider is
available, non-PPO benefits apply.
I M
P O
R T
A N
T
Benefit Description You pay
NOTE: The calendar year deductible applies
to almost all Standard Option benefits in this Section.
We say "( No
deductible)" when the Standard Option deductible does not apply.
There is no
calendar year deductible under Basic Option.
Surgical procedures You pay – Standard Option You pay – Basic Option
A comprehensive range of services provided, or
ordered and billed by
a physician, such as:
Operative procedures
Treatment of fractures and dislocations, including
casting
Normal pre-and post-operative care by the surgeon
Correction of amblyopia
and strabismus
Endoscopy procedures
Biopsy procedures
Removal of
tumors and cysts
Correction of congenital anomalies (see Reconstructive
surgery on page 46)
Treatment of burns
Preferred: 10% of the Plan
allowance
Participating: 25% of the
Plan allowance
Non-participating: 25% of
the Plan allowance, plus any
difference
between our
allowance and the billed
amount
Preferred: $100 copayment
per performing surgeon
Note: If you receive the
services of a co-surgeon, you
pay a second $100
copayment for those services.
No additional
copayment
applies to the services of
assistant surgeons.
Participating/ Non-participating:
You pay all
charges
Surgical procedures – continued on next page 44
44 Page 45 46
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 45 Section
5( b)
NOTE: The calendar year deductible applies to almost all Standard Option
benefits in this Section.
We say "( No deductible)" when the Standard Option
deductible does not apply. There is no calendar year deductible under Basic
Option.
Surgical procedures (continued) You pay – Standard Option
You pay – Basic Option
Insertion of internal
prosthetic devices. See Section 5( a) – Orthopedic and prosthetic
devices, and Section 5( c) – Other hospital
services and supplies – for our coverage for
the device.
Voluntary sterilization, Norplant (a surgically implanted contraceptive), and
intrauterine
devices (IUDs)
Assistant surgeons/ surgical assistance by a physician if
required because of the
complexity of the surgical procedures
Gastric bypass surgery or gastric
stapling procedures for morbid obesity – a condition in
which an individual weighs 100 pounds over,
or 100% over, his or her
normal weight
according to current underwriting standards;
eligible
members must be age 18 or over
Note: When multiple surgical procedures that
add time or
complexity to patient care are
performed during the same operative session,
the Local Plan determines our allowance for the
combination of multiple,
bilateral, or incidental
surgical procedures. Generally, we will allow a
reduced amount for procedures other than the
primary procedure.
Note: We do not pay extra for "incidental"
procedures
(those that do not add time or
complexity to patient care).
Note: When unusual circumstances require the
removal of
casts or sutures by a physician other
than the one who applied them, the
Local Plan
may determine that a separate allowance is
payable.
Preferred: 10% of the Plan
allowance
Participating: 25% of the
Plan allowance
Non-participating: 25% of
the Plan allowance, plus any
difference
between our
allowance and the billed
amount
Note: We provide benefits at
90% of the Plan allowance
for services provided in
Preferred facilities by Non-preferred
radiologists,
anesthesiologists, certified
registered nurse
anesthetists
(CRNAs), pathologists, and
emergency room physicians.
You are responsible for any
difference between our
allowance and the
billed
amount.
Preferred: $100 copayment
per performing surgeon
Note: If you receive the
services of a co-surgeon, you
pay a second $100
copayment for those services.
No additional
copayment
applies to the services of
assistant surgeons.
Participating/ Non-participating:
You pay all
charges
Note: We provide benefits at
100% of the Plan allowance
for services provided in
Preferred facilities by Non-preferred
radiologists,
anesthesiologists, certified
registered nurse
anesthetists
(CRNAs), pathologists,
emergency room physicians,
and
assistant surgeons
(including assistant surgeons
in a physician's
office). You
are responsible for any
difference between our
allowance and the billed
amount.
Not covered:
Reversal of voluntary sterilization
Services of a standby physician
Routine surgical treatment
of conditions of the foot [see Section 5( a) – Foot care]
Cosmetic surgery
LASIK, radial keratotomy, and other refractive
surgery
All charges All charges 45
45 Page 46 47
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 46 Section
5( b)
NOTE: The calendar year deductible applies to almost all Standard Option
benefits in this Section.
We say "( No deductible)" when the Standard Option
deductible does not apply.
There is no calendar year deductible under Basic
Option.
Reconstructive surgery You pay – Standard Option You pay – Basic Option
Surgery to correct a functional defect
Surgery to correct a congenital
anomaly – a condition that existed at or from birth and is a
significant deviation from the common form
or norm. Examples of
congenital anomalies
are: protruding ear deformities; cleft lip; cleft
palate; birth marks; and webbed fingers and
toes.
Note: Congenital anomalies do not include
conditions
related to the teeth or intra-oral
structures supporting the teeth.
Treatment to restore the mouth to a pre-cancer state
All stages of breast reconstruction surgery following a mastectomy, such as:
surgery to produce a symmetrical appearance on the other breast
treatment of any physical complications, such as lymphedemas
Note:
Internal breast prostheses are paid as
Medical services and supplies [see Section
5( a)], or Other hospital
services and supplies
[see Section 5( c)].
Note: If you need a mastectomy, you may
choose to have the
procedure performed on an
inpatient basis and remain in the hospital up
to 48 hours after the procedure.
Preferred: 10% of the Plan
allowance
Participating: 25% of the
Plan allowance
Non-participating: 25% of
the Plan allowance, plus any
difference
between our
allowance and the billed
amount
Note: We provide benefits at
90% of the Plan allowance
for services provided in
Preferred facilities by Non-preferred
radiologists,
anesthesiologists, certified
registered nurse
anesthetists
(CRNAs), pathologists, and
emergency room physicians.
You are responsible for any
difference between our
allowance and the
billed
amount.
Preferred: $100 copayment
per performing surgeon
Note: If you receive the
services of a co-surgeon, you
pay a second $100
copayment for those services.
No additional
copayment
applies to the services of
assistant surgeons.
Participating/ Non-participating:
You pay all
charges
Note: We provide benefits at
100% of the Plan allowance
for services provided in
Preferred facilities by Non-preferred
radiologists,
anesthesiologists, certified
registered nurse
anesthetists
(CRNAs), pathologists,
emergency room physicians,
and
assistant surgeons
(including assistant surgeons
in a physician's
office). You
are responsible for any
difference between our
allowance and the billed
amount.
Not covered:
Cosmetic surgery – any operative procedure or any
portion of a procedure performed
primarily to improve physical appearance
through change in bodily form
– unless
required for a congenital anomaly or to
restore or correct a
part of the body that has
been altered as a result of accidental injury,
disease, or surgery (does not include
anomalies related to the teeth or
structures
supporting the teeth)
Surgeries related to sex transformation, sexual dysfunction, or sexual
inadequacy
All charges All charges 46
46 Page 47 48
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 47 Section
5( b)
NOTE: The calendar year deductible applies to almost all Standard Option
benefits in this Section.
We say "( No deductible)" when the Standard Option
deductible does not apply.
There is no calendar year deductible under Basic
Option.
Oral and maxillofacial surgery You pay – Standard Option You pay – Basic
Option
Oral surgical procedures, limited to:
Excision of tumors and
cysts of the jaws, cheeks, lips, tongue, roof and floor of mouth
when pathological examination is necessary
Surgery needed to correct
accidental injuries (see Definitions) to jaws, cheeks, lips, tongue,
roof and floor of mouth
Excision of exostoses of jaws and hard palate
External incision and drainage of cellulitis
Incision and surgical
treatment of accessory sinuses, salivary glands, or ducts
Reduction of dislocations and excision of temporomandibular joints
Removal of impacted teeth
Preferred: 10% of the Plan
allowance
Participating: 25% of the
Plan allowance
Non-participating: 25% of
the Plan allowance, plus any
difference
between our
allowance and the billed
amount
Note: We provide benefits at
90% of the Plan allowance
for services provided in
Preferred facilities by Non-preferred
radiologists,
anesthesiologists, certified
registered nurse
anesthetists
(CRNAs), pathologists, and
emergency room physicians.
You are responsible for any
difference between our
allowance and the
billed
amount.
Preferred: $100 copayment
per performing surgeon
Note: If you receive the
services of a co-surgeon, you
pay a second $100
copayment for those services.
No additional
copayment
applies to the services of
assistant surgeons.
Participating/ Non-participating:
You pay all
charges
Note: We provide benefits at
100% of the Plan allowance
for services provided in
Preferred facilities by Non-preferred
radiologists,
anesthesiologists, certified
registered nurse
anesthetists
(CRNAs), pathologists,
emergency room physicians,
and
assistant surgeons
(including assistant surgeons
in a physician's
office). You
are responsible for any
difference between our
allowance and the billed
amount.
Not covered:
Oral implants and transplants
Surgical
procedures that involve the teeth or their supporting structures (such as the
periodontal membrane, gingiva, and alveolar
bone), except as shown above and in Section
5( h)
Surgical procedures involving orthodontic care, dental implants, or
preparation of the
mouth for the fitting or the continued use of
dentures, except as specifically shown above
and in
Section 5( h)
All charges All charges 47
47 Page 48 49
2002 Blue Cross
and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 48 Section 5( b)
NOTE: The calendar year deductible applies to almost all Standard Option
benefits in this Section.
We say "( No deductible)" when the Standard Option
deductible does not apply.
There is no calendar year deductible under Basic
Option.
Organ/ tissue transplants You pay – Standard Option You pay – Basic Option
Cornea
Heart
Heart-lung
Kidney
Liver
Pancreas
Single or double lung: only for the following end-stage pulmonary diseases:
pulmonary
fibrosis, primary pulmonary hypertension, and
emphysema
Double lung: only for patients with end-stage cystic fibrosis
Intestinal transplants (small intestine) and the small intestine with the
liver or small intestine
with multiple organs such as the liver,
stomach, and pancreas
Preferred: 10% of the Plan
allowance
Participating: 25% of the
Plan allowance
Non-participating: 25% of
the Plan allowance, plus any
difference
between our
allowance and the billed
amount
Note: We provide benefits at
90% of the Plan allowance
for services provided in
Preferred facilities by Non-preferred
radiologists,
anesthesiologists, certified
registered nurse
anesthetists
(CRNAs), pathologists, and
emergency room physicians.
You are responsible for any
difference between our
allowance and the
billed
amount.
Preferred: $100 copayment
per performing surgeon
Note: If you receive the
services of a co-surgeon, you
pay a second $100
copayment for those services.
No additional
copayment
applies to the services of
assistant surgeons.
Participating/ Non-participating:
You pay all
charges
Note: We provide benefits at
100% of the Plan allowance
for services provided in
Preferred facilities by Non-preferred
radiologists,
anesthesiologists, certified
registered nurse
anesthetists
(CRNAs), pathologists,
emergency room physicians,
and
assistant surgeons
(including assistant surgeons
in a physician's
office). You
are responsible for any
difference between our
allowance and the billed
amount.
Organ/ tissue transplants – continued on next page 48
48 Page 49 50
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit
Plan 49 Section 5( b)
NOTE: The calendar year deductible applies to almost all Standard Option
benefits in this Section.
We say "( No deductible)" when the Standard Option
deductible does not apply.
There is no calendar year deductible under Basic
Option.
Organ/ tissue transplants (continued) You pay – Standard
Option You pay – Basic Option
Bone marrow and stem cell transplants,
limited
to:
Allogeneic bone marrow transplants and allogeneic cord blood stem cell
transplants
(from related or unrelated donors) for:
Advanced neuroblastoma
Infantile malignant osteopetrosis
Severe combined immunodeficiency
Mucopolysaccharidosis (e. g., Hunter, Hurler's, Sanfilippo, Maroteaux-Lamy
variants)
Mucolipidosis (e. g., Gaucher's disease, metachromatic
leukodystrophy,
adrenoleukodystrophy)
Severe or very severe aplastic anemia
Thalassemia major (homozygous beta-thalassemia)
Sickle cell anemia
Phagocytic deficiency diseases (e. g., Wiskott-Aldrich
syndrome)
Preferred: 10% of the Plan
allowance
Participating: 25% of the
Plan allowance
Non-participating: 25% of
the Plan allowance, plus any
difference
between our
allowance and the billed
amount
Note: We provide benefits at
90% of the Plan allowance
for services provided in
Preferred facilities by Non-preferred
radiologists,
anesthesiologists, certified
registered nurse
anesthetists
(CRNAs), pathologists, and
emergency room physicians.
You are responsible for any
difference between our
allowance and the
billed
amount.
Preferred: $100 copayment
per performing surgeon
Note: If you receive the
services of a co-surgeon, you
pay a second $100
copayment for those services.
No additional
copayment
applies to the services of
assistant surgeons.
Participating/ Non-participating:
You pay all
charges
Note: We provide benefits at
100% of the Plan allowance
for services provided in
Preferred facilities by Non-preferred
radiologists,
anesthesiologists, certified
registered nurse
anesthetists
(CRNAs), pathologists,
emergency room physicians,
and
assistant surgeons
(including assistant surgeons
in a physician's
office). You
are responsible for any
difference between our
allowance and the billed
amount.
Organ/ tissue transplants – continued on next page 49
49 Page 50 51
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit
Plan 50 Section 5( b)
NOTE: The calendar year deductible applies to almost all Standard Option
benefits in this Section.
We say "( No deductible)" when the Standard Option
deductible does not apply.
There is no calendar year deductible under Basic
Option.
Organ/ tissue transplants (continued) You pay – Standard
Option You pay – Basic Option
Bone marrow and stem cell transplants,
limited
to: (continued)
Allogeneic bone marrow transplants, allogeneic cord blood stem cell
transplants
(from related or unrelated donors) and
allogeneic peripheral blood stem
cell
transplants for:
Acute lymphocytic or non-lymphocytic (i. e., myelogenous) leukemia
Advanced Hodgkin's lymphoma
Advanced non-Hodgkin's lymphoma
Chronic
myelogenous leukemia
Advanced forms of myelodysplastic syndromes
Autologous bone marrow transplants and autologous peripheral blood stem cell
transplants (collectively referred to as
autologous stem cell support)
for:
Acute lymphocytic or nonlymphocytic (i. e., myelogenous) leukemia
Advanced Hodgkin's lymphoma
Advanced non-Hodgkin's lymphoma
Advanced
neuroblastoma
Amyloidosis
Testicular, Mediastinal, Retroperitoneal, and
Ovarian germ cell tumors
Multiple myeloma
Preferred: 10% of the Plan
allowance
Participating: 25% of the
Plan allowance
Non-participating: 25% of
the Plan allowance, plus any
difference
between our
allowance and the billed
amount
Note: We provide benefits at
90% of the Plan allowance
for services provided in
Preferred facilities by Non-preferred
radiologists,
anesthesiologists, certified
registered nurse
anesthetists
(CRNAs), pathologists, and
emergency room physicians.
You are responsible for any
difference between our
allowance and the
billed
amount.
Preferred: $100 copayment
per performing surgeon
Note: If you receive the
services of a co-surgeon, you
pay a second $100
copayment for those
services. No additional
copayment applies to the
services of assistant
surgeons.
Participating/ Non-participating:
You pay all
charges
Note: We provide benefits at
100% of the Plan allowance
for services provided in
Preferred facilities by Non-preferred
radiologists,
anesthesiologists, certified
registered nurse
anesthetists
(CRNAs), pathologists,
emergency room physicians,
and
assistant surgeons
(including assistant surgeons
in a physician's
office). You
are responsible for any
difference between our
allowance and the billed
amount.
Organ/ tissue transplants – continued on next page 50
50 Page 51 52
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 51 Section
5( b)
NOTE: The calendar year deductible applies to almost all Standard Option
benefits in this Section.
We say "( No deductible)" when the Standard Option
deductible does not apply.
There is no calendar year deductible under Basic
Option.
Organ/ tissue transplants (continued) You pay – Standard
Option You pay – Basic Option
Extraction or reinfusion of bone marrow,
blood stem cells, or cord blood as a source of
stem cells as part of a covered allogeneic or
autologous bone marrow
transplant or blood
stem cell transplant support procedure
Marrow harvesting in anticipation of a covered autologous bone marrow
transplant,
for patients diagnosed at the time of
harvesting with one of the
conditions listed on
page 49 or 50
Collection, processing, storage, and distribution of cord blood only when
performed by a cord blood bank approved by
the FDA
Storage of harvested bone marrow, blood stem cells, or cord blood as a source
of stem
cells, only when a covered transplant has
already been scheduled
Related medical and hospital expenses of the donor, as part of a covered
transplant
procedure
Related services or supplies provided to the recipient
Note: See Section 5( a) for coverage for
related
services, such as chemotherapy and/ or radiation
therapy and
drugs administered to stimulate or
mobilize stem cells for covered
transplant
procedures.
Preferred: 10% of the Plan
allowance
Participating: 25% of the
Plan allowance
Non-participating: 25% of
the Plan allowance, plus any
difference
between our
allowance and the billed
amount
Note: We provide benefits at
90% of the Plan allowance
for services provided in
Preferred facilities by Non-preferred
radiologists,
anesthesiologists, certified
registered nurse
anesthetists
(CRNAs), pathologists, and
emergency room physicians.
You are responsible for any
difference between our
allowance and the
billed
amount.
Preferred: $100 copayment
per performing surgeon
Note: If you receive the
services of a co-surgeon, you
pay a second $100
copayment for those
services. No additional
copayment applies to the
services of assistant
surgeons.
Participating/ Non-participating:
You pay all
charges
Note: We provide benefits at
100% of the Plan allowance
for services provided in
Preferred facilities by Non-preferred
radiologists,
anesthesiologists, certified
registered nurse
anesthetists
(CRNAs), pathologists,
emergency room physicians,
and
assistant surgeons
(including assistant surgeons
in a physician's
office). You
are responsible for any
difference between our
allowance and the billed
amount.
Limitations
(1) You must obtain prior approval (see page
14) from the Local Plan, for
both the
procedure and the facility, for the following
transplant
procedures:
Bone marrow, cord blood stem cell, and peripheral blood stem cell transplant
support procedures
Heart
Heart-lung
Liver
Lung (single/
double)
Pancreas
Intestinal transplants (small intestine with or without
other organs)
Organ/ tissue transplants – continued on next page 51
51 Page 52 53
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 52 Section
5( b)
NOTE: The calendar year deductible applies to almost all Standard Option
benefits in this Section.
We say "( No deductible)" when the Standard Option
deductible does not apply.
There is no calendar year deductible under Basic
Option.
Organ/ tissue transplants (continued) You pay – Standard
Option You pay – Basic Option
(2) For the following procedures, we
provide
benefits only when conducted at a
Cancer
Research Facility (see page 11) and
performed as part of a
clinical trial that
meets the requirements shown below:
Allogeneic bone marrow transplants, syngeneic bone marrow transplants, and
allogeneic peripheral blood stem cell
transplants for:
Multiple myeloma
Chronic lymphocytic leukemia
Early stage (indolent
or non-advanced) small cell lymphocytic lymphoma
Nonmyeloablative allogeneic stem cell transplants for:
Chronic
myelogenous leukemia
Acute lymphocytic or non-lymphocytic (i. e.,
myelogenous) leukemia
Advanced Hodgkin's lymphoma
Advanced non-Hodgkin's lymphoma
Advanced
forms of myelodysplastic syndromes
Multiple myeloma
Chronic lymphocytic leukemia
Early stage (indolent
or non-advanced) small cell lymphocytic lymphoma
Renal cell carcinoma
Autologous bone marrow transplants and autologous
peripheral blood stem cell
transplants (collectively referred to as
autologous stem cell support)
for:
Breast cancer
Epithelial ovarian cancer
Chronic myelogenous leukemia
Chronic lymphocytic leukemia
Early stage (indolent or non-advanced)
small cell lymphocytic lymphoma
Preferred: 10% of the Plan
allowance
Participating: 25% of the
Plan allowance
Non-participating: 25% of
the Plan allowance, plus any
difference
between our
allowance and the billed
amount
Note: We provide benefits at
90% of the Plan allowance
for services provided in
Preferred facilities by Non-preferred
radiologists,
anesthesiologists, certified
registered nurse
anesthetists
(CRNAs), pathologists, and
emergency room physicians.
You are responsible for any
difference between our
allowance and the
billed
amount.
Preferred: $100 copayment
per performing surgeon
Note: If you receive the
services of a co-surgeon, you
pay a second $100
copayment for those
services. No additional
copayment applies to the
services of assistant
surgeons.
Participating/ Non-participating:
You pay all
charges
Note: We provide benefits at
100% of the Plan allowance
for services provided in
Preferred facilities by Non-preferred
radiologists,
anesthesiologists, certified
registered nurse
anesthetists
(CRNAs), pathologists,
emergency room physicians,
and
assistant surgeons
(including assistant surgeons
in a physician's
office). You
are responsible for any
difference between our
allowance and the billed
amount.
Organ/ tissue transplants – continued on next page 52
52 Page 53 54
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 53 Section
5( b)
NOTE: The calendar year deductible applies to almost all Standard Option
benefits in this Section.
We say "( No deductible)" when the Standard Option
deductible does not apply.
There is no calendar year deductible under Basic
Option.
Organ/ tissue transplants (continued) You pay – Standard
Option You pay – Basic Option
For these bone marrow transplant procedures
and related services or
supplies covered only
through clinical trials:
1. You must contact our Clinical Trials
Information Unit at
1-800-225-2268 for
prior approval (see page 14);
2. The clinical trial must be reviewed and
approved by the Institutional
Review
Board of the Cancer Research Facility
where the procedure is to
be delivered; and
3. The patient must be properly and lawfully
registered in the clinical
trial, meeting all
the eligibility requirements of the trial.
If a non-randomized clinical trial meeting
these requirements is not
available at a Cancer
Research Facility where you are eligible, we
will
arrange for the transplant to be provided
at another Plan-designated
transplant facility.
Preferred: 10% of the Plan
allowance
Participating: 25% of the
Plan allowance
Non-participating: 25% of
the Plan allowance, plus any
difference
between our
allowance and the billed
amount
Note: We provide benefits at
90% of the Plan allowance
for services provided in
Preferred facilities by Non-preferred
radiologists,
anesthesiologists, certified
registered nurse
anesthetists
(CRNAs), pathologists, and
emergency room physicians.
You are responsible for any
difference between our
allowance and the
billed
amount.
Preferred: $100 copayment
per performing surgeon
Note: If you receive the
services of a co-surgeon, you
pay a second $100
copayment for those services.
No additional
copayment
applies to the services of
assistant surgeons.
Participating/ Non-participating:
You pay all
charges
Note: We provide benefits at
100% of the Plan allowance
for services provided in
Preferred facilities by Non-preferred
radiologists,
anesthesiologists, certified
registered nurse
anesthetists
(CRNAs), pathologists,
emergency room physicians,
and
assistant surgeons
(including assistant surgeons
in a physician's
office). You
are responsible for any
difference between our
allowance and the billed
amount.
Not covered:
Transplants for any diagnosis not listed as
covered
Donor screening tests and donor search expenses, except those performed
for the
actual donor
All charges All charges 53
53 Page 54 55
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 54 Section
5( b)
NOTE: The calendar year deductible applies to almost all Standard Option
benefits in this Section.
We say "( No deductible)" when the Standard Option
deductible does not apply.
There is no calendar year deductible under Basic
Option.
Anesthesia You pay – Standard Option You pay – Basic Option
Anesthesia (including acupuncture) for covered
surgical services
when requested by the
attending physician and performed by:
a certified registered nurse anesthetist (CRNA), or
a physician other than the operating physician (surgeon) or the assistant
Professional services provided in:
Hospital (inpatient)
Hospital
outpatient department
Skilled nursing facility
Ambulatory surgical
center
Office
Anesthesia services consist of administration by
injection or inhalation of a drug or other
anesthetic agent (including
acupuncture) to
obtain muscular relaxation, loss of sensation, or
loss
of consciousness.
Note: See Section 5( c) for our payment levels
for
anesthesia services billed by a facility.
Preferred: 10% of the Plan
allowance
Participating: 25% of the
Plan allowance
Non-participating: 25% of
the Plan allowance, plus any
difference
between our
allowance and the billed
amount
Note: We provide benefits at
90% of the Plan allowance
for services provided in
Preferred facilities by Non-preferred
anesthesiologists
and certified registered nurse
anesthetists
(CRNAs). You
are responsible for any
difference between our
allowance and the billed
amount.
Preferred: Nothing
Participating/ Non-participating:
You pay all
charges
Note: We provide benefits at
100% of the Plan allowance
for services provided in
Preferred facilities by Non-preferred
anesthesiologists
and certified registered nurse
anesthetists
(CRNAs). You
are responsible for any
difference between our
allowance and the billed
amount. 54
54
Page 55 56
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 55 Section
5( c)
Section 5 (c). Services provided by a hospital or other facility, and
ambulance services
I M
P O
R T
A N
T
Here are some important things you should keep in mind about these
benefits:
Please remember that all benefits are subject to the
definitions, limitations, and exclusions in this brochure and are payable only
when we determine they are medically necessary.
Unlike Sections 5( a) and 5( b),
in this Section 5( c) the Standard Option calendar year deductible
applies to only a few benefits. In that
case, we added "( calendar year deductible applies)" when it applies. The
calendar year deductible is $250 per person ($ 500 per family) under
Standard Option.
Under Basic Option, there is no calendar year
deductible.
Under Basic Option, you must use Preferred providers in
order to receive benefits. See page 11 for the exceptions
to this requirement.
Be sure to read Section 4, Your costs for covered
services, for valuable information about how cost
sharing works, with special sections for members who
are age 65 or over. Also read Section 9 about
coordinating benefits with other coverage, including Medicare.
YOU MUST GET PRECERTIFICATION OF HOSPITAL STAYS; FAILURE TO DO SO WILL RESULT IN A $500 PENALTY. Please refer to the
precertification information listed in Section 3 to
be sure which services require precertification.
You should be aware that
some PPO hospitals may have non-PPO professional providers on staff.
We base
payment on whether the facility or a health care professional bills for the
services or supplies. You will find that some benefits are listed in more than
one section of the brochure. This is because how
they are paid depends on what type of provider bills for the service. For
example, physical therapy is
paid differently depending on whether it is
billed by an inpatient facility, a doctor, a physical therapist, or
an
outpatient facility.
The amounts listed below are for the charges billed by the facility (i. e.,
hospital or surgical center) or ambulance service for your inpatient surgery or care. Any costs associated with the
professional charge
(i. e., physicians, etc.) are listed in Sections 5( a) or (b).
The non-PPO benefits are the standard benefits for
Standard Option. PPO benefits apply only when you use a PPO provider. When no
PPO provider is available, non-PPO benefits apply.
I M
P O
R T
A N
T 55
55
Page 56 57
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 56 Section
5( c)
Benefit Description You pay
NOTE: The Standard Option calendar year
deductible applies ONLY when we say below:
"( calendar year deductible
applies) ." There is no calendar year deductible under Basic Option.
Inpatient hospital You pay – Standard Option You pay – Basic Option
Room and board, such as:
semiprivate or intensive care
accommodations
general nursing care
meals and special diets
Note: We cover a private room only when you
must be
isolated to prevent contagion, when
your isolation is required by law, or
when a
Preferred or Member hospital only has private
rooms. Otherwise,
we will pay the hospital's
average daily rate for semiprivate rooms as
determined by the Local Plan. If a Non-member
hospital only has private
rooms, we
base our payment on the average daily rate as
determined by
the Local Plan.
Preferred: $100 per
admission copayment for
unlimited days
Member: $300 per admission
copayment for unlimited
days
Non-member: $300 per
admission copayment for
unlimited days, plus 30%
of
the Plan allowance, and any
remaining balance after our
payment
Note: You pay nothing for
facilities outside of the
United States and Puerto
Rico. See Section 5( g)
for
more information about
benefits for services received
overseas. See Section 7,
Filing a claim for
covered
services, for instructions on
filing claims for overseas
care.
Preferred: $100 per day
copayment up to $500 per
admission for
unlimited days
Member/ Non-member: You
pay all charges
Note: You pay a $100 per
day copayment up to $500
per
admission for facilities
outside of the United States
and Puerto Rico. See
Section 5( g) for more
information about benefits
for services received
overseas. See
Section 7,
Filing a claim for covered
services, for instructions on
filing claims for overseas
care.
Inpatient hospital – continued on next page 56
56 Page 57 58
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 57 Section
5( c)
NOTE: The Standard Option calendar year deductible applies ONLY when we
say below:
"( calendar year deductible applies) ." There is no calendar year
deductible under Basic Option.
Inpatient hospital (continued) You pay – Standard Option You
pay – Basic Option
Other hospital services and supplies, such as:
Operating, recovery, maternity, and other treatment rooms
Prescribed drugs
Diagnostic laboratory tests, pathology services, MRIs,
machine diagnostic tests, and
X-rays
Administration of blood or blood plasma
Dressings, splints,
casts, and sterile tray services
Internal prosthetic devices
Other medical supplies and equipment,
including oxygen
Anesthetics and anesthesia services
Take-home items
Pre-admission
testing recognized as part of the hospital admissions process
Note: Here are some things to keep in mind:
You do not need
to precertify your normal delivery; see page 13 for other
circumstances,
such as extended stays for you or your baby.
If you need to stay
longer in the hospital than initially planned, we will cover an extended
stay if it is medically necessary. However,
you must
precertify the extended stay. See
Section 3 for information on
requesting
additional days.
We pay inpatient hospital benefits for an admission in connection with dental
procedures only when a non-dental physical impairment exists that makes
hospitalization
necessary to safeguard the health of the patient. We provide
benefits for dental
procedures as shown in Section 5(
h).
Note: See page 31 for covered
maternity
services.
Note: See page 41 for coverage of blood
and
blood products.
Preferred: $100 per
admission copayment for
unlimited days
Member: $300 per admission
copayment for unlimited
days
Non-member: $300 per
admission copayment for
unlimited days, plus 30%
of
the Plan allowance, and any
remaining balance after our
payment
Note: You pay nothing for
facilities outside of the
United States and Puerto
Rico. See Section 5( g)
for
more information about
benefits for services received
overseas. See Section 7,
Filing a claim for covered
services, for instructions on
filing claims for overseas
care.
Preferred: $100 per day
copayment up to $500 per
admission for
unlimited days
Member/ Non-member: You
pay all charges
Note: You pay a $100 per
day copayment up to $500
per
admission for facilities
outside of the United States
and Puerto Rico. See Section
5( g) for
more information
about benefits for services
received overseas. See
Section 7, Filing a
claim for
covered services, for
instructions on filing claims
for overseas care.
Inpatient hospital – continued on next page 57
57 Page 58 59
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit
Plan 58 Section 5( c)
NOTE: The Standard Option calendar year deductible applies ONLY when we
say below:
"( calendar year deductible applies) ." There is no calendar year
deductible under Basic Option.
Inpatient hospital (continued) You pay – Standard Option You
pay – Basic Option
Not covered:
Hospital room and board expenses
when in our
judgement, a hospital admission or portion of
an admission
is:
Custodial care
Convalescent care or a rest cure
Domiciliary care provided because care in the home is not available
or unsuitable
Not medically necessary, such as when services did not require the acute/
subacute
hospital inpatient (overnight) setting but could
have been
provided safely and adequately in a
physician's office, the outpatient
department
of a hospital, or some other setting, without
adversely
affecting your condition or the
quality of medical care you receive. Some
examples are:
Admissions for, or consisting primarily of, observation and/ or
evaluation that could have been
provided safely and adequately in
some other setting (such as a
physician's office)
Admissions primarily for diagnostic studies, laboratory and pathology
services, X-rays,
MRIs, or machine diagnostic tests that
could have been
provided safely and
adequately in some other setting (such as
the
outpatient department of a hospital or a
physician's office)
Note: If we determine that a hospital admission
is one
of the types listed above, we will not
provide benefits for inpatient room
and board
or inpatient physician care. However, we will
provide benefits
for covered services or supplies
other than room and board and inpatient
physician care at the level that we would have
paid if they had been
provided in some other
setting.
Admission to non-covered facilities, such as nursing homes, extended care
facilities,
schools, residential treatment centers
Personal comfort items,
such as guest meals and beds, telephone, television, beauty and
barber services
Inpatient private duty nursing
All charges All charges 58
58 Page 59 60
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 59 Section
5( c)
NOTE: The Standard Option calendar year deductible applies ONLY when we
say below:
"( calendar year deductible applies) ." There is no calendar year
deductible under Basic Option.
Outpatient hospital or ambulatory surgical center You pay – Standard
Option You pay – Basic Option
Outpatient medical services performed and
billed for by a hospital
or freestanding
ambulatory facility, such as:
Use of special treatment rooms
Diagnostic tests, such as laboratory and
pathology services, MRIs, machine diagnostic
tests, and X-rays
Administration of blood, blood plasma, and other
biologicals
Cardiac rehabilitation (Prior approval is required. See
Section 3.)
Renal dialysis
Note: See pages 27-30 for covered preventive
services for adults
and children.
Preferred facilities: 10% of
the Plan allowance (calendar
year
deductible applies)
Member facilities: 25% of
the Plan allowance (calendar
year
deductible applies)
Non-member facilities: 25%
of the Plan allowance
(calendar year
deductible
applies); plus any difference
between our allowance and
the billed amount
Note: You pay nothing for
facilities outside the United
States and Puerto Rico. See
Section 5( g) for more
information about benefits
for services received
overseas. See Section 7,
Filing a claim for covered
services, for instructions on
filing claims for overseas
care.
Preferred: $30 copayment
per day per facility
Member/ Non-member: You
pay all charges
Note: For outpatient
diagnostic tests billed for by
a
Member or Non-member
facility, you pay a $30
copayment, plus any
difference between our
allowance and the billed
amount.
Note: You pay a $30 per day
copayment per facility for
outpatient services provided
by facilities outside the
United States
and Puerto
Rico. See Section 5( g) for
more
information about
benefits for services
received
overseas. See
Section 7, Filing a claim for
covered services,
for
instructions on filing claims
for overseas care.
Outpatient hospital or ambulatory surgical center – continued on next page
59
59 Page 60
61
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 60 Section
5( c)
NOTE: The Standard Option calendar year deductible applies ONLY when we
say below:
"( calendar year deductible applies) ." There is no calendar year
deductible under Basic Option.
Outpatient hospital or ambulatory surgical center (continued)
You pay – Standard Option You pay – Basic Option
Outpatient surgery and related services
performed and billed for
by a hospital or
freestanding ambulatory facility, such as:
Operating, recovery, and other treatment rooms
Pre-surgical testing performed within one business day of the covered
surgical services
Facility supplies for hemophilia home care
Diagnostic
tests, such as laboratory and pathology services, MRIs, machine diagnostic
tests, and X-rays
Administration of blood, blood plasma, and other
biologicals
Note: We cover outpatient hospital services and
supplies
related to dental procedures only when
a non-dental physical impairment
exists that
makes the hospital setting necessary to
safeguard the health of the patient. See Section
5( h), Dental benefits,
for additional benefit
information.
Note: See page 31 for covered maternity
services.
Preferred facilities: 10% of
the Plan allowance
Member facilities: 25% of
the Plan allowance
Non-member facilities: 25%
of the Plan allowance, plus
any difference
between our
allowance and the billed
amount
Note: You pay nothing for
facilities outside the United
States and Puerto Rico. See
Section 5( g) for
more
information about benefits
for services received
overseas. See Section 7,
Filing a
claim for covered
services, for instructions on
filing claims
for overseas
care.
Preferred: $30 copayment per
day per facility
Member/ Non-member: You
pay all charges
Note: For outpatient
diagnostic tests billed for by
a
Member or Non-member
facility, you pay a $30
copayment, plus any
difference between our
allowance and the billed
amount.
Note: You pay a $30
copayment per day per
facility for
outpatient
services provided by
facilities outside the United
States and Puerto Rico. See
Section 5( g) for more
information about benefits
for services received
overseas. See Section 7,
Filing a claim for covered
services, for instructions on
filing claims for overseas
care.
Outpatient hospital or ambulatory surgical center – continued on next page
60
60 Page 61
62
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 61 Section
5( c)
NOTE: The Standard Option calendar year deductible applies ONLY when we
say below:
"( calendar year deductible applies) ." There is no calendar year
deductible under Basic Option.
Outpatient hospital or ambulatory surgical center (continued)
You pay – Standard Option You pay – Basic Option
Outpatient drugs and supplies billed for by a
hospital or
freestanding ambulatory facility,
such as:
Prescribed drugs
Blood and blood plasma, if not donated or replaced
Dressings, splints, casts, and sterile tray services
Other medical
supplies, including oxygen
Preferred facilities: 10% of
the Plan allowance (calendar
year
deductible applies)
Member facilities: 25% of
the Plan allowance (calendar
year
deductible applies)
Non-member facilities: 25%
of the Plan allowance
(calendar year
deductible
applies); plus any difference
between our allowance and
the billed amount
Note: You pay nothing for
facilities outside the United
States and Puerto Rico. See
Section 5( g) for
more
information about benefits
for services received
overseas. See Section 7,
Filing a
claim for covered
services, for instructions on
filing claims
for overseas
care.
Preferred: 30% of the Plan
allowance
Note: You may also be
responsible for paying a $30
copayment per day per
facility for outpatient
services.
Member/ Non-member: You
pay all charges
Note: You pay 30% of the
Plan allowance for outpatient
drugs and supplies provided
by facilities outside the
United States and Puerto
Rico. See Section 5( g) for
more information about
benefits for services
received
overseas. See Section 7,
Filing a claim for covered
services, for instructions on
filing claims for overseas
care.
61
61 Page 62 63
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 62 Section
5( c)
NOTE: The Standard Option calendar year deductible applies ONLY when we
say below:
"( calendar year deductible applies) ." There is no calendar year
deductible under Basic Option.
Extended care benefits/ Skilled nursing care facility benefits You pay –
Standard Option You pay – Basic Option
Limited to the following benefits for Medicare
Part A copayments:
When Medicare Part A is the primary payer
(meaning that it pays first)
and has made
payment, Standard Option provides limited
secondary
benefits.
We pay the applicable Medicare Part A
copayments incurred in full
during the first
through the 30 th day of confinement for each
benefit period (as defined by Medicare) in a
qualified skilled nursing
facility. A qualified
skilled nursing facility is a facility that
specializes in skilled nursing care performed by
or under the
supervision of licensed nurses,
skilled rehabilitation services, and other
related
care, and meets Medicare's special qualifying
criteria, but is
not an institution that primarily
cares for and treats mental diseases.
If Medicare pays the first 20 days in full, Plan
benefits will begin on
the 21 st day (when
Medicare Part A copayments begin) and will
end on
the 30 th day.
Note: See pages 35 and 36 for benefits
provided
for outpatient physical, occupational, and
speech therapy
when billed by a skilled nursing
facility. See Section 5(
f) for benefits for
prescription drugs.
Note: If you do not have Medicare Part A, we
do not
provide benefits for skilled nursing facility care.
Preferred: Nothing
Participating/ Member:
Nothing
Non-participating/ Non-member:
Nothing
Note: You pay all charges
not paid by Medicare after
the 30 th day.
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 63 Section
5( c)
NOTE: The Standard Option calendar year deductible applies ONLY when we
say below:
"( calendar year deductible applies) ." There is no calendar year
deductible under Basic Option.
Hospice care You pay – Standard Option You pay – Basic Option
Hospice
care is an integrated set of services and supplies designed to provide
palliative and
supportive care to terminally ill patients in their
homes.
We provide the following home hospice care
benefits for members
with a life expectancy of
six months or less when prior approval is
obtained from the Local Plan and the home
hospice agency is approved
by the Local Plan:
Physician visits
Nursing care
Medical social services
Physical
therapy
Services of home health aides
Durable medical equipment rental
Prescription drugs
Medical supplies
Nothing Nothing
Inpatient hospice for members receiving home
hospice care
benefits:
Benefits are provided for up to five (5)
consecutive days in a hospital
or a freestanding
hospice inpatient facility.
Each inpatient stay must be separated by at least
21 days.
These covered inpatient hospice benefits are
available only when
inpatient services are
necessary to:
control pain and manage the patient's symptoms; or
provide an interval of relief (respite) to the family
Note:
You are responsible for making sure
that the home hospice care
provider has received prior approval from the Local Plan
(see page 13 for instructions). Please check
with
your Local Plan and/ or your PPO directory
for listings of approved
agencies.
Preferred: $100 per
admission copayment
Member: $300 per admission
copayment
Non-member: $300 per
admission copayment plus
30% of the Plan
allowance,
and any remaining balance
after our payment
Preferred: $100 per day
copayment up to $500 per
admission
Member/ Non-member: You
pay all charges
Not covered: Homemaker or bereavement
services
All charges All
charges 63
63 Page
64 65
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 64 Section 5( c)
NOTE: The Standard Option calendar year deductible applies ONLY when we
say below:
"( calendar year deductible applies) ." There is no calendar year
deductible under Basic Option.
Ambulance You pay – Standard Option You pay – Basic Option
Local
professional ambulance transport services
to or from the nearest hospital
equipped to
adequately treat your condition, when medically
appropriate,
and:
Associated with covered hospital inpatient care
Related to medical emergency
Associated with covered hospice care
Preferred: 10% of the Plan
allowance (calendar year
deductible
applies)
Participating/ Member: 25%
of the Plan allowance
(calendar year
deductible
applies)
Non-participating/ Non-member:
25% of the Plan
allowance (calendar
year
deductible applies); plus any
difference between our
allowance
and the billed
amount
Preferred: $50 copayment
per trip
Participating/ Member or
Non-participating/ Non-member:
$50 copayment
per trip
Ambulance services related to accidental injury Preferred: Nothing (No
deductible)
Participating/ Member:
Nothing (No deductible)
Non-participating/ Non-member:
Any difference
between the Plan
allowance
and the billed amount (No
deductible)
Note: These benefit levels
apply only if you receive
care in connection with, and
within 72 hours after, an
accidental
injury. For
services received after 72
hours, see above.
Preferred: $50 copayment
per trip
Participating/ Member or
Non-participating/ Non-member:
$50 copayment
per trip 64
64 Page
65 66
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 65 Section
5( d)
Section 5 (d). Emergency services/ accidents
I M
P O
R T
A
N
T
Here are some important things to keep in mind about these benefits:
Please remember that all benefits are subject to the definitions,
limitations, and exclusions in this brochure and are payable only when we
determine they are medically necessary.
Under Standard Option, the calendar year deductible is $250 per person
($ 500 per family). The calendar year deductible applies to almost all
Standard Option benefits in this Section. We added
"( No deductible)"
to show when the calendar year deductible does not apply.
Under Basic
Option, there is no calendar year deductible.
Under Basic
Option, you must use Preferred providers in order to receive benefits, except in
cases of medical emergency or accidental injury. Refer to the guidelines
appearing below for additional
information.
Be sure to read Section 4,
Your costs for covered services, for valuable information about how cost sharing works, with special
sections for members who are age 65 or over. Also read Section 9 about
coordinating benefits with other coverage, including Medicare.
The
non-PPO benefits are the standard benefits for Standard Option. PPO
benefits apply only when you use a PPO provider. When no PPO provider is
available, non-PPO benefits apply.
I M
P O
R T
A N
T
What is an accidental injury?
An accidental injury is an injury
caused by an external force or element such as a blow or fall and which requires
immediate
medical attention, including animal bites and poisonings. [See Section 5( h) for dental care for accidental injury.]
What is a medical emergency?
A medical emergency is the sudden and
unexpected onset of a condition or an injury that you believe endangers your
life or
could result in serious injury or disability, and requires immediate
medical or surgical care. Some problems are emergencies
because, if not
treated promptly, they might become more serious; examples include deep cuts and
broken bones. Others are
emergencies because they are potentially life
threatening, such as heart attacks, strokes, poisonings, gunshot wounds, or
sudden inability to breathe. There are many other acute conditions that we
may determine are medical emergencies – what
they all have in common is the
need for quick action.
Basic Option benefits for emergency care
Under Basic Option, you
are encouraged to seek care from Preferred providers in cases of accidental
injury or medical
emergency. However, if you need care immediately and
cannot access a Preferred provider, we will provide benefits for the
initial treatment provided in the emergency room of any hospital –
even if the hospital is not a Preferred facility. In addition, we
will
provide benefits for emergency ambulance transportation provided by Preferred or
Non-preferred ambulance providers if the
transport is due to a medical
emergency or accidental injury.
We provide emergency benefits when you have acute symptoms of sufficient
severity – including severe pain – such that a
prudent layperson, who
possesses average knowledge of health and medicine, could reasonably expect the
absence of immediate
medical attention to result in serious jeopardy to the
person's health, or with respect to a pregnant woman, the health of the
woman and her unborn child. 65
65 Page 66 67
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 66 Section
5( d)
Benefit Description You pay
NOTE: The calendar year deductible applies
to almost all Standard Option benefits in this Section.
We say "( No
deductible)" when the Standard Option deductible does not apply.
There is no
calendar year deductible under Basic Option.
Accidental injury You pay – Standard Option You pay – Basic Option
Physician services in the hospital outpatient department, urgent care
center, or
physician's office, including X-rays, MRIs,
laboratory and
pathology services, and
machine diagnostic tests
Related outpatient hospital services and supplies, including X-rays,
MRIs, laboratory
and pathology services, and machine
diagnostic tests
Note: We pay Inpatient hospital benefits if you
are
admitted [see Section 5( c)].
Note: See Section 5( h) for dental benefits for
accidental injuries.
Preferred: Nothing (No
deductible)
Participating/ Member:
Nothing (No deductible)
Non-participating/ Non-member:
Any difference
between the Plan
allowance
and the billed amount (No
deductible)
Note: These benefit levels
apply only if you receive care
in connection with, and
within 72 hours after, an
accidental injury.
For
services received after 72
hours, regular medical and
outpatient
hospital benefits
apply. See Section 5( a),
Medical services and
supplies, Section 5( b),
Surgical procedures, and
Section 5( c), Outpatient
hospital, for
the benefits we
provide.
Preferred emergency room:
$50 copayment per visit
Participating/ Member
emergency room:
$50 copayment per visit
Non-participating/ Non-member
emergency room:
$50 copayment per visit
Note: You are responsible for
the applicable copayment as
shown above. If you use a
Non-preferred provider, you
may also be
responsible for
any difference between our
allowance and the billed
amount.
Note: If you are admitted
directly to the hospital from
the emergency room, you do
not have to pay the $50
emergency room
copayment.
However, the $100 per day
copayment for Preferred
inpatient care still applies.
Note: All follow-up care
must be performed and billed
for by Preferred providers to
be eligible for benefits.
Accidental injury – continued on next page 66
66 Page 67 68
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 67 Section
5( d)
NOTE: The calendar year deductible applies to almost all Standard Option
benefits in this Section.
We say "( No deductible)" when the Standard Option
deductible does not apply. There is no calendar year deductible under Basic
Option.
Accidental injury (continued) You pay – Standard Option You
pay – Basic Option
For the following places of
service, you must
receive care
from a Preferred provider:
Preferred urgent care center:
$30 copayment per visit
Preferred primary care
provider or other health care
professional's office:
$20 copayment per visit
Preferred specialist's office:
$30 copayment per visit
Participating/ Member (for other
than emergency room): You pay
all
charges
Non-participating/ Non-member
(for other than emergency
room): You
pay all charges
Not covered:
Oral surgery except as shown in Section 5( b)
Injury to the teeth while eating
All charges All charges 67
67 Page 68 69
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 68 Section
5( d)
NOTE: The calendar year deductible applies to almost all Standard Option
benefits in this Section.
We say "( No deductible)" when the Standard Option
deductible does not apply.
There is no calendar year deductible under Basic
Option.
Medical emergency You pay – Standard Option You pay – Basic Option
Physician services in the hospital outpatient department, urgent care
center, or
physician's office, including X-rays, MRIs,
laboratory and
pathology services, and
machine diagnostic tests
Related outpatient hospital services and supplies, including X-rays,
MRIs, laboratory
and pathology services, and machine
diagnostic tests
Note: We pay Inpatient hospital benefits if you
are
admitted as a result of a medical
emergency [see
Section 5( c), Inpatient
hospital].
Note: Please refer to Section 3 for
information
about precertifying emergency hospital
admissions.
Preferred: 10% of the Plan
allowance
Note: If you receive services
in a Preferred physician's
office, you pay a $15
copayment (No deductible)
for the office
visit, and 10%
of the Plan allowance for all
other services (deductible
applies).
Participating/ Member: 25%
of the Plan allowance
Non-participating/ Non-member:
25% of the Plan
allowance, plus any
difference between our
allowance and the billed
amount
Note: These benefit levels do
not apply if you
receive care
in connection with, and
within 72 hours after, an
accidental injury. See
Accidental Injury benefits on
pages 65-67 for the benefits
we provide.
Preferred emergency room:
$50 copayment per visit
Participating/ Member
emergency room:
$50 copayment per visit
Non-participating/ Non-member
emergency room:
$50 copayment per visit
Note: You are responsible for
the applicable copayment as
shown above. If you use a
Non-preferred provider, you
may also be
responsible for
any difference between our
allowance and the billed
amount.
Note: If you are admitted
directly to the hospital from
the emergency room, you do
not have to pay the $50
emergency room
copayment.
However, the $100 per day
copayment for Preferred
inpatient care still applies.
Note: All follow-up care
must be performed and billed
for by Preferred providers to
be eligible for benefits.
For the following places of
service, you must receive
care
from a Preferred
provider:
Preferred urgent care center:
$30 copayment per visit
Preferred primary care
provider or other health care
professional's office:
$20 copayment per visit
Preferred specialist's office:
$30 copayment per visit
Participating/ Member (for
other than emergency room):
You pay all
charges
Non-participating/ Non-member
(for other than
emergency room): You
pay
all charges 68
68 Page
69 70
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 69 Section
5( d)
NOTE: The calendar year deductible applies to almost all Standard Option
benefits in this Section.
We say "( No deductible)" when the Standard Option
deductible does not apply. There is no calendar year deductible under Basic
Option.
Ambulance You pay – Standard Option You pay – Basic Option
Local
professional ambulance transport
services to or from the nearest hospital
equipped to adequately treat your condition,
when medically appropriate,
and:
Associated with covered hospital inpatient care
Related to medical emergency
Associated with covered hospice care
Note: See Section 5( c) for
non-emergency
ambulance services.
Preferred: 10% of the Plan
allowance
Participating/ Member: 25%
of the Plan allowance
Non-participating/ Non-member:
25% of the Plan
allowance, plus any
difference between our
allowance and the billed
amount
Preferred: $50 copayment
per trip
Participating/ Member or
Non-participating/ Non-member:
$50 copayment
per trip
Ambulance services related to accidental
injury
Preferred: Nothing
(No
deductible)
Participating/ Member:
Nothing (No deductible)
Non-participating/ Non-member:
Any difference
between the Plan
allowance
and the billed amount (No
deductible)
Note: These benefit levels
apply only if you receive care
in connection with, and
within 72 hours after, an
accidental injury.
For
services received after 72
hours, see above.
Preferred: $50 copayment
per trip
Participating/ Member or
Non-participating/ Non-member:
$50 copayment
per trip 69
69 Page
70 71
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 70 Section
5( e)
Section 5 (e). Mental health and substance abuse benefits
I M
P O
R T
A N
T
Here are some important things to keep in mind about these benefits:
Please remember that all benefits are subject to the definitions,
limitations, and exclusions in this brochure and are payable only when we
determine they are medically necessary.
Under Standard Option, the calendar year deductible or, for facility
care, the inpatient per admission copay, applies to almost all benefits in this
Section. We added "( No deductible)" to show when the
deductible does not
apply.
Under Standard Option, there is a maximum of 25 visits per
year for office visits, partial hospitalization, intensive outpatient treatment,
and other hospital outpatient treatment. The first 25
visits under Standard Option each calendar year by Preferred providers and
Non-preferred providers
count toward this maximum. This maximum may be
waived for services received from Preferred
providers.
Under Standard Option, you may choose to get care Out-of-Network
(Non-preferred) or In-Network (Preferred). Preferred benefits are payable when
the care is clinically appropriate to treat your condition
and when you receive the care as part of a treatment plan that we approve.
Cost-sharing and limitations for
In-Network (Preferred) mental health and
substance abuse benefits are no greater than for similar benefits
for other
illnesses and conditions.
Under Basic Option, you must call us for prior approval before receiving
care. We will provide you with the names and phone numbers of several
Preferred providers and tell you how many visits we are
initially approving. You may then choose which of those providers you would
like to see. You must use Preferred providers in order to receive Basic
Option benefits.
Under Basic Option, there is no calendar year deductible.
Be sure to read Section 4, Your costs for covered
services, for valuable information about how cost sharing works, with
special sections for members who are age 65 or over. Also read Section 9 about
coordinating benefits with other coverage, including Medicare.
YOU
MUST GET PRECERTIFICATION OF HOSPITAL STAYS; FAILURE TO DO SO WILL RESULT IN A $500 PENALTY. Please refer to the
precertification information listed in
Section 3. Some other services also require prior approval. See the
instructions after the benefits
descriptions below.
Standard Option and Basic Option benefits for Preferred (In-Network)
mental health and substance abuse care begin below and are continued on the
following pages. Standard Option benefits for Non-preferred
(Out-of-Network) care begin on page 74.
The non-PPO
benefits are the standard benefits for Standard Option. PPO benefits
apply only when you use a PPO provider. When no PPO provider is available,
non-PPO benefits apply.
I M
P O
R T
A N
T
Benefit Description You pay
NOTE: The calendar year deductible applies
to almost all Standard Option benefits in this Section.
We say "( No
deductible)" when the Standard Option deductible does not apply.
There is no
calendar year deductible under Basic Option.
Preferred (In-Network) benefits You pay – Standard Option You pay – Basic
Option
All diagnostic and treatment services contained
in a
treatment plan that we approve. The
treatment plan may include services,
drugs, and
supplies described elsewhere in this brochure.
Note: Preferred benefits are payable only when
we determine
the care is clinically appropriate
to treat your condition and only when you
receive the care from a Preferred provider as
part of a treatment plan
that we approve.
Your cost sharing
responsibilities are no greater
than for other
illnesses or
conditions.
Your cost sharing
responsibilities are no greater
than for other
illnesses or
conditions.
Preferred (In-Network) benefits – continued on next page 70
70 Page 71 72
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit
Plan 71 Section 5( e)
NOTE: The calendar year deductible applies to almost all Standard Option
benefits in this Section.
We say "( No deductible)" when the Standard Option
deductible does not apply.
There is no calendar year deductible under Basic
Option.
Preferred (In-Network) benefits (continued) Youpay –
StandardOption You pay – Basic Option
Professional services, including individual or
group therapy by providers
such as
psychiatrists, psychologists, clinical social
workers, or
psychiatric nurses
Office and home visits
In a hospital outpatient department (except for
emergency rooms)
Psychotherapy for smoking cessation
Note: Additional
licensed provider types may
be available to you for mental health and
substance abuse services. Consult your PPO
directory or contact your
Local Plan at the
mental health and substance abuse phone
number on the
back of your ID card.
$15 copayment for the visit,
up to two hours per visit (No
deductible)
$20 copayment per visit
Note: You pay a $30
copayment
for outpatient
services billed for by a
facility.
Other services:
Pharmacotherapy (medication management)
Psychological
testing
Note: Additional licensed provider types may
be
available to you for mental health and
substance abuse services. Consult
your PPO
directory or contact your Local Plan at the
mental health and
substance abuse phone
number on the back of your ID card.
10% of the Plan allowance
(deductible applies)
Note: Other services are not
subject to the two-hour limit.
Preferred primary care
provider or other health care
professional:
$20 copayment
per visit
Preferred specialist: $30
copayment per visit
Note: You pay a $30
copayment for outpatient
services
billed for by a
facility.
Inpatient professional visits
Professional charges for facility-based
intensive outpatient treatment
10% of the Plan allowance
Note: Intensive outpatient
treatment is not limited to
two hours per visit but you
must obtain
prior approval.
Nothing
Professional charges for intensive outpatient treatment in a provider's
office or other professional setting
10% of the Plan allowance
Note: Intensive outpatient
treatment is not limited to
two hours per visit but you
must obtain prior approval.
Preferred: $30 copayment per
visit
Professional charges for outpatient diagnostic tests 10% of the Plan
allowance $20 copayment per visit
Preferred (In-Network) benefits –
continued on next page 71
71 Page 72 73
2002 Blue Cross
and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 72 Section 5( e)
NOTE: The calendar year deductible applies to almost all Standard Option
benefits in this Section.
We say "( No deductible)" when the Standard Option
deductible does not apply.
There is no calendar year deductible under Basic
Option.
Preferred (In-Network) benefits (continued) Youpay –
StandardOption You pay – Basic Option
Inpatient services provided and billed by a
hospital or other covered
facility
Room and board, such as semiprivate or intensive accommodations, general
nursing
care, meals and special diets, and other
hospital services
Diagnostic tests
Note: You must get precertification of
inpatient hospital stays; failure to do so will
result in a $500
penalty.
$100 per admission
copayment (No deductible)
$100 per day copayment
up
to $500 per admission
Outpatient services provided and billed by a
hospital or other covered
facility
Diagnostic tests
Services in the following approved treatment programs
(must be prior approved):
partial hospitalization
facility-based intensive outpatient treatment
10% of the Plan allowance $30 copayment per day per
facility
Not covered:
Services we have not approved
Educational or training services
Psychoanalysis or
psychotherapy credited toward earning a degree or furtherance of
education or training regardless of diagnosis
or symptoms that may be
present
All charges All charges
Preferred (In-Network) benefits – continued on next page 72
72 Page 73 74
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 73 Section
5( e)
NOTE: The calendar year deductible applies to almost all Standard Option
benefits in this Section.
We say "( No deductible)" when the Standard Option
deductible does not apply.
There is no calendar year deductible under Basic
Option.
Preferred (In-Network) benefits (continued)
Authorization Procedures Standard Option: To be eligible to
receive Preferred mental health and substance abuse benefits you must see a
Preferred provider, obtain a treatment plan, and
follow the applicable
authorization processes.
To locate a Preferred provider, please refer to
your PPO directory, visit our website
at www. fepblue. org, or contact us at the mental
health and substance abuse phone
number shown on the back of your ID
card.
Basic Option: To be eligible to receive mental health and substance
abuse benefits,
you must call us for prior approval at the mental health and
substance abuse phone
number on the back of your ID card before you receive
care. We will then provide
you with the names and phone numbers of several
Preferred providers to choose
from and tell you how many visits we are
initially approving.
Precertification You must get precertification of inpatient hospital
stays; failure to do so will result in a $500 penalty. Please refer to the
precertification information listed in Section 3
for additional information.
Prior Approval Standard Option: Prior
approval is required for partial hospitalization and intensive outpatient
treatment programs.
Basic Option: Prior approval is required for all mental health and
substance abuse
services.
Prior to starting treatment, you, someone acting on your behalf, your
physician, or your
hospital must call us at the mental health and substance
abuse phone number on the
back of your ID card. We will not pay for mental
health and substance abuse services
under Basic Option or for partial
hospitalization or intensive outpatient treatment
programs under Standard
Option, even at Preferred facilities, until you obtain prior
approval.
Treatment Plans Standard Option: We provide Preferred benefits only when
you receive care as part of a treatment plan that we have approved. In order
to maximize your
benefits, your provider must submit a treatment plan to us prior to your
ninth
outpatient visit. When we approve the treatment plan, we will give
your provider
authorization for additional visits or services. The services
or number of additional
visits authorized will depend on the treatment plan.
We may need to request
updated treatment plans as your treatment progresses.
If a treatment plan is not
submitted or approved, we will provide only
Non-preferred (out-of-network)
benefits. If you change providers, a new
treatment plan must be submitted. We will
be flexible in allowing additional
visits while your treatment plan is being prepared
or under review.
Basic Option: We will work directly with your provider and may request
a treatment plan from your provider.
OPM will base its review of disputes about treatment plans on the treatment
plan's
clinical appropriateness. OPM will generally not order us to pay or
provide one
clinically appropriate treatment plan in favor of another.
Preferred Limitation Under Standard Option, if you do not obtain an
approved treatment plan, we will provide only Non-preferred (out-of-network)
benefits. 73
73 Page
74 75
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 74 Section 5( e)
NOTE: The calendar year deductible applies to almost all Standard Option
benefits in this Section.
We say "( No deductible)" when the Standard Option
deductible does not apply.
Non-preferred (Out-of-Network) benefits You pay – Standard Option You Pay
– Basic Option
Professional services, including individual or
group therapy, by
providers such as
psychiatrists, psychologists, clinical social
workers,
or psychiatric nurses, for:
Office and home visits
In a hospital outpatient department (except for
emergency rooms)
Psychotherapy for smoking cessation
40% of the Plan allowance
for up to two hours per visit
and up to 25
outpatient visits
per calendar year; all charges
after 25 visits*. You
may
also be responsible for any
difference between the Plan
allowance and the billed
amount.
*The 25-visit limit is a
combined maximum for all
outpatient
professional care,
partial hospitalization,
intensive outpatient
treatment, and outpatient
facility care, whether
performed by
Preferred or
Non-preferred providers, or
applied to your calendar year
deductible.
Participating/ Non-participating:
You pay all
charges
Other services:
Pharmacotherapy (medication management)
Psychological
testing
25% of the Plan allowance.
You may also be responsible
for any
difference between
the Plan allowance and the
billed amount.
Note: Other services are not
subject to the 25-visit
limitation.
Participating/ Non-participating:
You pay all
charges
Inpatient visits 40% of the Plan allowance up
to 100 days per calendar
year;
all charges after 100 days.
You may also be responsible
for
any difference between
the Plan allowance and the
billed amount.
Participating/ Non-participating:
You pay all
charges
Non-preferred (Out-of-Network) benefits – continued on next page 74
74 Page 75 76
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 75 Section
5( e)
NOTE: The calendar year deductible applies to almost all Standard Option
benefits in this Section.
We say "( No deductible)" when the Standard Option
deductible does not apply.
Non-preferred (Out-of-Network) benefits (continued) Youpay –
StandardOption You Pay – Basic Option
Inpatient services provided and billed by a
hospital or other covered
facility
Room and board, such as semiprivate or intensive accommodations, general
nursing
care, meals and special diets, and other
hospital services
You must get precertification of inpatient
hospital stays; failure to do
so will result in a
$500 penalty.
$400 copayment per day (No
deductible) up to 100 days per
calendar
year; all charges
after 100 days
Member/ Non-member: You
pay all charges
Outpatient services provided and billed by a
hospital or other covered
facility
Psychological testing
25% of the Plan allowance,
plus any difference between
the Plan
allowance and the
billed amount
Note: Psychological testing is
not subject to the visit
limitations.
Member/ Non-member: You
pay all charges
Partial hospitalization and intensive outpatient
treatment
Note: You must request and receive prior
approval for these
services. See Section 3 for
more information about
prior approval.
25% of the Plan allowance,
plus any difference between
the Plan
allowance and the
billed amount; all charges
after 25 visits*
Note: Visits that you pay for
while meeting your
deductible count toward the
limit cited above.
*The 25-visit limit is a
combined maximum for all
outpatient
professional care,
partial hospitalization,
intensive outpatient
treatment, and outpatient
facility care, whether
performed by
Preferred or
Non-preferred providers, or
applied to your calendar year
deductible.
Participating/ Member or
Non-participating/ Non-
member: You pay all
charges
Non-preferred (Out-of-Network) benefits – continued on next page 75
75 Page 76 77
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 76 Section
5( e)
NOTE: The calendar year deductible applies to almost all Standard Option
benefits in this Section.
We say "( No deductible)" when the Standard Option
deductible does not apply.
Non-preferred (Out-of-Network) benefits (continued) You pay
– Standard Option You Pay – Basic Option
Inpatient care to treat substance abuse includes
room and board and
ancillary charges for
confinements in a treatment facility for
rehabilitative treatment of alcoholism or
substance abuse
Non-preferred facility: $400
copayment per day (No
deductible); all
charges after
28 days per lifetime
Non-preferred professional:
40% of the Plan allowance;
all charges
after 28 days per
lifetime. You may also be
responsible for any
difference
between the Plan allowance
and the billed amount.
Note: Non-preferred inpatient
care for the treatment of
substance abuse is limited to
one treatment program (28-
day maximum)
per lifetime.
Member/ Non-member: You
pay all charges
Participating/ Non-participating:
You pay all
charges
Not covered:
Marital, family, educational, or other counseling
or training services
Services performed by a non-covered provider
Testing and
treatment for learning disabilities and mental retardation
Services
performed or billed by schools, residential treatment centers, halfway
houses, or members of their staffs
Psychoanalysis or
psychotherapy credited toward earning a degree or furtherance of
education or training regardless of diagnosis
or symptoms that may be
present
All charges All charges
Lifetime maximum Non-preferred inpatient care for the treatment of
substance abuse is limited to one treatment program (28-day maximum) per
lifetime under Standard Option.
Precertification You must get
precertification of the medical necessity of your admission to a hospital or
other covered facility. Report emergency admissions within two
business days
following the day of admission, even if you have been
discharged.
Otherwise, we will reduce the benefits payable by $500. See
Section 3 for more
information on precertification.
See these sections of the brochure for more valuable information about these
benefits:
Section 4, Your costs for covered services,
for information about catastrophic protection for mental health and
substance abuse benefits.
Section 7, Filing a claim for covered services,
for information about submitting Non-preferred claims. 76
76 Page 77 78
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 77 Section
5( f)
Section 5 (f). Prescription drug benefits
I M
P O
R T
A N
T
Here are some important things to keep in mind about these benefits:
We cover prescription drugs and supplies, as described in the chart
beginning on page 79.
All benefits are subject to the
definitions, limitations, and exclusions in this brochure and are payable only
when we determine they are medically necessary.
Under Standard Option, the calendar year deductible does not
apply to prescriptions filled through the Retail Pharmacy Program or Mail
Service Prescription Drug Program. We added "( calendar year
deductible
applies)" when it applies.
Under Basic Option, there is no
calendar year deductible.
YOU MUST GET PRIOR APPROVAL FOR CERTAIN
DRUGS, and prior approval must be renewed periodically. Please
refer to the prior approval information shown on page 83
of this
Section and in Section 3.
Prior approval is part of our Patient Safety and Quality Monitoring (PSQM)
program. See page 83
of this Section for more information about this
important program.
Be sure to read Section 4, Your costs for covered
services, for valuable information about how cost
sharing works, with special sections for members who
are age 65 or over. Also read Section 9 about
coordinating benefits with other coverage, including Medicare.
Under
Standard Option, non-PPO benefits are the standard benefits. PPO benefits
apply only when you use a PPO provider. When no PPO provider is available,
non-PPO benefits apply.
Under Basic Option, you must use Preferred providers in order to receive
benefits. See page 11 for the exceptions to this
requirement.
Please note that retail pharmacies and internet pharmacies
that are Preferred under Standard Option are not necessarily Preferred under
Basic Option. Refer to page 80 for information about
locating Preferred
pharmacies.
Under Standard Option, you may use
the Mail Service Prescription Drug Program to fill your prescriptions.
The Mail Service Prescription Drug Program is not available under
Basic Option.
I M
P O
R T
A N
T
We will send each new enrollee a description of our prescription drug program
and a combined prescription drug/ Plan
identification card. Standard Option
members are eligible to use the Mail Service Prescription Drug Program and will
also
receive a mail order form/ patient profile and a preaddressed reply
envelope.
Who can write your prescriptions. A physician or dentist licensed in
the United States or Puerto Rico, or a nurse practitioner in states that permit
it, must write your prescriptions.
Where you can obtain them.
Under Standard Option, you may fill
prescriptions at a Preferred retail pharmacy, through a Preferred internet
pharmacy, at a Non-preferred retail pharmacy, or through our Mail Service
Prescription Drug Program. Under
Standard Option, we pay a higher level of
benefits when you use a Preferred retail pharmacy, a Preferred internet
pharmacy, or our Mail Service Prescription Drug Program.
Under Basic Option, you must fill prescriptions only at a Preferred
retail pharmacy or through a Preferred internet
pharmacy in order to receive
benefits.
We use an open formulary. This is a list of preferred brand-name drugs
selected to meet patient needs at a lower cost to us. If your physician believes
a brand-name drug is necessary or there is no generic equivalent available, ask
your
physician to prescribe a brand-name drug from our formulary list.
Under Standard Option, we may ask your doctor to substitute a
formulary drug in order to help control costs. We
cover drugs that require a
prescription (whether or not they are on our formulary list). Your cooperation
with our cost-savings
efforts helps keep your premium affordable. 77
77 Page 78 79
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 78 Section
5( f)
Under Basic Option, we encourage you to ask your physician to
prescribe a brand-name drug from our formulary list when your physician believes
a brand-name drug is necessary or when there is no generic equivalent available.
If you
purchase a drug that is not on our formulary list, your cost will be
higher. (We cover drugs that require a prescription
whether or not they are
on our formulary list.)
You can view our formulary on our website at www. fepblue. org or request a copy by mail by
calling 1-800-624-
5060 (TDD: 1-800-624-5077). Any savings we receive on the
cost of drugs purchased under this Plan from drug
manufacturers are
credited to the reserves held for this Plan.
Generic equivalents.
Standard Option: By submitting your
prescription (or those of family members covered by the Plan) to your retail
pharmacy or the Mail Service Prescription Drug Program, you authorize them
to substitute any available Federally
approved generic equivalent, unless
you or your physician specifically request a brand-name drug.
Basic Option: By filling your prescriptions (or those of family
members covered by the Plan) at a Preferred retail pharmacy or through a
Preferred internet pharmacy, you authorize the pharmacist to substitute any
available
Federally approved generic equivalent, unless you or your physician
specifically request a brand-name drug.
Why use generic drugs?
Generic drugs are lower-priced drugs that are the therapeutic equivalent to
more expensive brand-name drugs. In most cases, they must contain the same
active ingredients and must be equivalent
in strength and dosage to the original brand-name product. Generics cost less
than the equivalent brand-name
product. The U. S. Food and Drug
Administration (FDA) sets quality standards for generic drugs to ensure that
these drugs meet the same standards of quality and strength as brand-name
drugs.
You can save money by using generic drugs. However, you and your doctor have
the option to request a brand-name
if a generic option is available. Using
the most cost-effective medication saves money.
Disclosure of information. As part of our administration of
prescription drug benefits, we may disclose information about your prescription
drug utilization, including the names of your prescribing physicians, to any
treating physicians or dispensing pharmacies.
These are the
dispensing limitations.
Standard Option: You may purchase up to a 90-day
supply of covered drugs and supplies through the Retail
Pharmacy Program.
You may purchase a supply of more than 21 days up to 90 days through the Mail
Service
Prescription Drug Program for a single copayment.
Basic Option: When you fill a prescription for the first time, you may
purchase up to a 34-day supply for a single copayment. For additional
copayments, you may purchase up to a 90-day supply for continuing prescriptions
and
for refills.
Note: Certain drugs such as narcotics may have
additional FDA limits on the quantities that a pharmacy may dispense.
In
addition, pharmacy dispensing practices are regulated by the state where they
are located and may also be determined
by individual pharmacies. In most
cases, refills cannot be obtained until 75% of the prescription has been used.
Call us
or visit our website if you have any questions about dispensing
limits. See the contact information below.
Important contact information.
Standard Option: Retail Pharmacy
Program: 1-800-624-5060 (TDD: 1-800-624-5077); Mail Service Prescription
Drug Program: 1-800-262-7890 (TDD: 1-800-446-7292); or www. fepblue. org.
Basic Option: Retail Pharmacy Program: 1-800-624-5060 (TDD:
1-800-624-5077) or www. fepblue. org. 78
78 Page 79 80
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 79
Section 5( f)
Covered medications and supplies You pay – Standard Option You pay – Basic
Option
Drugs, vitamins and minerals, and nutritional supplements that by
Federal law of the
United States require a prescription for their
purchase
Insulin
Needles and disposable syringes for the administration of covered
medications
Drugs to aid smoking cessation that require a prescription by Federal law
Note: Prior approval is required if drug
treatment extends beyond the initial course of
treatment. See
Section 3 for more information.
Contraceptive drugs and devices, limited to:
Depo-Provera*
Diaphragms*
Intrauterine Devices (IUDs)
Norplant*
Oral
contraceptives
*available only through retail and internet
pharmacies
Note: See Family planning in Section 5( a).
See following pages See following pages
Covered medications and supplies – continued on next page 79
79 Page 80 81
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 80 Section
5( f)
Covered medications and supplies (continued) You pay –
Standard Option You pay – Basic Option
Here is how to obtain your
prescription drugs
and supplies:
Preferred Retail Pharmacies
Make sure you have your Plan ID card
when you're ready to purchase your prescription
Go to any Preferred retail pharmacy,
or
Visit our special website, www. fepblue.
org, click on "Pharmacy Programs," and follow
the FEP Retail Pharmacy Providers link to
fill your prescription and
receive home
delivery
For a listing of Preferred retail pharmacies, call the Retail Pharmacy
Program at
1-800-624-5060 (TDD: 1-800-624-5077) or
visit our website, www. fepblue. org
Note: Please be sure to request the Preferred retail or
internet pharmacy listing for your
specific option. Retail and internet pharmacies that are Preferred under
Standard
Option are not necessarily Preferred under Basic Option.
Note: For prescription drugs billed for by a
skilled
nursing facility, nursing home, or
extended care facility, we provide
benefits as
shown on this page for retail pharmacy-obtained
drugs, as
long as the pharmacy
supplying the drugs to the facility is a Preferred
pharmacy. For a list of the Preferred Network
Long Term Care pharmacies,
call
1-800-624-5060 (TDD: 1-800-624-5077) or
visit our website at www. fepblue. org. For
benefit
information about drugs supplied by
Non-preferred pharmacies, please
refer to
the next page.
Note: For coordination of benefits purposes, if
you need a
statement of Preferred retail
pharmacy benefits in order to file claims with
your other coverage when this Plan is the
primary payer, call the Retail
Pharmacy
Program at 1-800-624-5060 (TDD: 1-800-624-
5077) or visit our
website at www. fepblue. org.
25% of the Plan allowance First-time purchase of a new
prescription
up to a 34-day supply:
Generic drug:
$10 copayment
Formulary brand-name
drug: $25 copayment
Non-formulary
brand-name drug:
50% of Plan allowance ($ 35
minimum)
Refills or continuing prescriptions up to a 90-day
supply:
Generic drug:
$10 copayment for each
purchase of up to a
34-day
supply ($ 30 copayment for
90-day supply)
Formulary brand-name
drug: $25 copayment for each
purchase of up to a
34-day
supply ($ 75 copayment for
90-day supply)
Non-formulary
brand-name drug:
50% of Plan allowance ($ 35
minimum for each purchase
of up to a 34-day supply, or
$105 minimum
for 90-day
supply)
Note: If there is no generic
equivalent available, you
must still pay the brand-name
copayment when you receive
a
brand-name drug.
Note: For generic and brand-name
drug purchases, if the
cost of your prescription is
less than your cost-sharing
amount
noted above, you pay
only the cost of your
prescription.
Covered medications and supplies – continued on next page 80
80 Page 81 82
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 81 Section
5( f)
Covered medications and supplies (continued) You pay –
Standard Option You pay – Basic Option
Non-preferred Retail Pharmacies
45% of the Plan allowance (AWP), plus any difference
between our
allowance and
the billed amount
Note: If you use a Non-preferred
retail pharmacy,
you
must pay the full cost of
the drug or supply at the time
of purchase and
file a claim
with the Retail Pharmacy
Program to be reimbursed.
Please refer to Section 7 for
instructions on how to file
prescription drug claims.
All charges
Mail Service Prescription Drug Program
Under Standard Option, if
your doctor orders
more than a 21-day supply of covered drugs or
supplies, up to a 90-day supply, you can use
this service for your
prescriptions and refills.
Please refer to Section 7 for instructions on
how
to use the Mail Service Prescription Drug
Program.
Note: Not all drugs are available through the Mail Service
Prescription Drug Program.
Mail Service Program:
$10 generic
$35 brand-name
Note: If there is no generic
equivalent available, you
must still pay the brand-name
copayment when you receive
a
brand-name drug.
Note: If the cost of your
prescription is less than your
copayment, you pay only the
cost of your prescription.
The Mail
Service Prescription
Drug Program will charge
you the lesser of the
prescription cost or the
copayment when you place
your order. If you
have
already sent in your
copayment, they will credit
your account
with any
difference.
No benefit
Note: You may request home
delivery of your
internet
prescription drug purchases.
See page 80 of
this Section
for our payment levels for
drugs obtained through
Preferred retail and internet
pharmacies.
Covered medications and supplies – continued on next page 81
81 Page 82 83
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 82 Section
5( f)
Covered medications and supplies (continued) You pay –
Standard Option You pay – Basic Option
Drugs from other sources
Covered prescription drugs and supplies not obtained at a retail
pharmacy, through an
internet pharmacy, or, for Standard Option
only, through the Mail Service
Prescription
Drug Program
Note: Drugs purchased overseas must be the
equivalent to
drugs that by Federal law of the
United States require a prescription.
Note: For covered prescription drugs and
supplies purchased
outside of the United States
and Puerto Rico, please submit claims on an
Overseas Claim Form. See Section 7 for
information
on how to file claims for overseas
services.
Please refer to Sections 5( a) and 5(
c) for additional benefit information when you
purchase drugs from a:
Physician's office
Home health care agency
Hospital (inpatient or outpatient)
Hospice agency
Preferred: 10% of the Plan
allowance (calendar year
deductible
applies)
Participating/ Member: 25%
of the Plan allowance
(calendar year
deductible
applies)
Non-participating/ Non-member:
25% of the Plan
allowance (calendar
year
deductible applies); plus any
difference between our
allowance
and the billed
amount
Preferred: 30% of the Plan
allowance
Participating/ Member or
Non-participating/ Non-member:
You pay all
charges
Covered medications and supplies – continued on next page 82
82 Page 83 84
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 83 Section
5( f)
Covered medications and supplies (continued) You pay –
Standard Option You pay – Basic Option
Prior Approval
As part of our
Patient Safety and Quality
Monitoring (PSQM) program (see below),
members must request and receive prior
approval for certain prescription
drugs and
supplies in order to use their prescription drug
coverage.
Prior approval must be renewed
periodically. To obtain a list of these drugs
and supplies and to obtain prior approval
request forms, call the Retail
Pharmacy
Program at 1-800-624-5060
(TDD: 1-800-624-5077). You can also
obtain
the list through our website at
www. fepblue. org. Please read Section 3 for
more
information about prior approval.
Note: If your prescription requires prior
approval and you
have not yet obtained prior
approval, you must pay the full cost of the
drug or supply at the time of purchase and file
a claim with the Retail
Pharmacy Program to
be reimbursed. Please refer to
Section 7 for
instructions on how to file prescription drug
claims.
Patient Safety and Quality Monitoring
(PSQM)
We have a special program to promote patient
safety and monitor health
care quality. Our
Patient Safety and Quality Monitoring (PSQM)
program
features a set of closely aligned
programs that are designed to promote the
safe
and appropriate use of medications. Examples
of these programs
include:
Prior approval – As described above, this program requires that approval be
obtained
for certain prescription drugs and supplies
before we provide benefits
for them.
Safety checks – Before your prescription is filled, we perform quality and
safety checks
for usage precautions, drug interactions, drug
duplication, excessive
use, and frequency of
refills.
Quantity allowances – Specific allowances for several medications are based
on FDA-approved
recommendations, clinical studies,
and manufacturer guidelines.
For more information about our PSQM
program, including listings of drugs
subject to
prior approval or quantity allowances, visit our
website at
www. fepblue. org or call the Retail
Pharmacy Program at 1-800- 624-5060
(TDD: 1-800-624-5077).
Covered medications and supplies – continued on next page 83
83 Page 84 85
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit
Plan 84 Section 5( f)
Covered medications and supplies (continued) You pay –
Standard Option You pay – Basic Option
Not covered:
Medical supplies such as dressings and antiseptics
Drugs and supplies for cosmetic purposes
Drugs and supplies for
weight loss
Drugs for orthodontic care, dental implants, and
periodontal disease
Medication that does not require a prescription under Federal law even if
your
doctor prescribes it or a prescription is
required under your State
law
Drugs for which prior approval has been denied or not obtained
All charges All charges 84
84 Page 85 86
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 85 Section
5( g)
Section 5 (g). Special features
Special feature Description
Flexible benefits option Under the flexible benefits option (also
referred to as case management), we determine the most effective way to provide
services.
We may identify medically appropriate alternatives to traditional care and/
or direct the provision of Plan benefits to a less costly alternative
benefit.
Alternative benefits are subject to our ongoing review.
By
approving an alternative benefit, we cannot guarantee you will receive it in the
future.
The decision to offer an alternative benefit is solely ours, and we may
withdraw it at any time and resume regular contract benefits.
Our decision
to offer or withdraw alternative benefits is not subject to OPM review under the
disputed claims process.
24-hour nurse line Help with health concerns is available 24 hours a
day, 365 days a year, by calling a toll-free telephone number, 1-888-258-3432,
or by accessing our
website, www. fepblue.
org. The service, called Blue Health Connection, offers
health advice or
health information and counseling by registered nurses. Also
available
is the AudioHealth Library with hundreds of tapes, ranging from first
aid to
infectious diseases to general health issues.
You can get information about health care resources to help you find local
doctors, hospitals, or other health care services affiliated with the Blue
Cross
and Blue Shield Service Benefit Plan. Contact us at the number above
or visit
our website for more information. Please keep in mind that benefits
for any
health care services you may seek after using Blue Health Connection
are
subject to the terms of your coverage under this Plan.
Services for the deaf and hearing impaired All Blue Cross and Blue
Shield Plans provide TDD access for the hearing impaired to access information
and receive answers to their questions.
Travel benefit/ services overseas Members located overseas who need
assistance locating providers who accept our Plan allowance for overseas
services, should contact the Worldwide
Assistance Center (provided by World
Access Service Corporation), at 1-804-673-1678. Members in the United States,
Puerto Rico, or the Virgin
Islands should call 1-800-699-4337. World Access Service Corporation offers
emergency evacuation services, translation services, and conversion of foreign
medical bills to U. S. currency. You may contact World Access Service
Corporation 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
We pay overseas claims at Preferred benefit levels. See Sections 5( a) -5( f). This payment arrangement is based on
an Overseas Fee Schedule. You must
pay any difference between our
payment and the billed amount, in addition to any applicable deductible,
coinsurance, or copayment amounts.
Health support programs The Service Benefit Plan is developing and may
offer patient education and support programs for certain diagnoses in select
locations on a pilot basis. One
program we have developed is the PPO
Performance Measurement Pilot Program. We will notify you if this pilot or other
programs are available in your area. 85
85 Page 86 87
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 86 Section
5( h)
Section 5 (h). Dental benefits
I
M
P
O
R T
A
N
T
Here are some important things to keep in mind about these benefits:
Please remember that all benefits are subject to the definitions,
limitations, and exclusions in this brochure and are payable only when we
determine they are medically necessary.
Under Standard Option, the calendar year deductible applies only to
the accidental injury benefit below. We added "( calendar year deductible
applies)" when it applies.
Under Basic Option, there is no
calendar year deductible.
Under Basic Option, you must use Preferred
providers in order to receive benefits, except in cases of dental care resulting
from an accidental injury as described below.
Be sure to read Section 4, Your costs for covered
services, for valuable information about how cost
sharing works, with special sections for members who
are age 65 or over. Also read Section 9 about
coordinating benefits with other coverage, including Medicare.
Note: We cover hospitalization for dental procedures only when
a non-dental physical impairment exists that makes hospitalization necessary to
safeguard the health of the patient (even if the dental procedure
itself is not covered).
I
M
P
O
R T
A
N
T
Accidental injury benefit You pay – Standard Option You pay – Basic Option
We provide benefits for services, supplies, or
appliances for dental
care necessary to
promptly repair injury to sound natural teeth
required
as a result of, and directly related to,
an accidental injury.
Note: An accidental injury is an injury
caused by an
external force or element such as
a blow or fall and that requires immediate
attention. Injuries to the teeth while eating are
not considered
accidental injuries.
Note: A sound natural tooth is a tooth that is
whole
or properly restored (restoration with
amalgams only); is without
impairment,
periodontal, or other conditions; and is not in
need of the
treatment provided for any reason
other than an accidental injury. For
purposes
of this Plan, a tooth previously restored with a
crown, inlay,
onlay, or porcelain restoration, or
treated by endodontics, is not
considered a
sound natural tooth.
Note: Treatment must be started promptly and
completed
within 12 months of the accident.
Preferred: 10% of the Plan
allowance (calendar year
deductible
applies)
Participating: 25% of the
Plan allowance (calendar
year deductible
applies)
Non-participating: 25% of
the Plan allowance (calendar
year
deductible applies), plus
any difference between our
allowance and the
billed
amount
Note: Under Standard
Option, we first provide
benefits
as shown in the
Schedule of Dental
Allowances on the following
pages. We then pay benefits
as shown here for any
balances.
$20 copayment
Note: We provide benefits
for
accidental dental injury
care in cases of medical emergency when
performed by Preferred or
Non-preferred providers.
See Section 5( d) for the
criteria we use to determine
if emergency care is
required. You
are
responsible for the applicable
copayment as shown above.
If you
use a Non-preferred
provider, you may also be
responsible for any
difference between our
allowance and the billed
amount.
Note: All follow-up care
must be performed and billed
for by Preferred providers to
be eligible for benefits.
Dental benefits – continued on next page 86
86 Page 87 88
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 87 Section
5( h)
Dental benefits (continued)
What is Covered
Standard
Option dental benefits are presented in the chart beginning below and
continuing on the following pages.
Basic Option dental benefits
appear on page 91.
Note: See
Section 5( b) for our benefits for Oral and maxillofacial surgery, and Section 5( c) for our benefits for hospital services
(inpatient/ outpatient) in connection with dental services,
available under both Standard Option and Basic Option.
Preferred Dental Network
All Local Plans contract with Preferred
dentists who are available in most areas. Preferred dentists agree to accept a
negotiated,
discounted amount called the Maximum Allowable Charge (MAC) as
payment in full for the following services. They will also
file your dental
claims for you. Under Standard Option, you are responsible, as an out-of-pocket
expense, for the difference
between the amount specified in this Schedule of
Dental Allowances and the MAC. To find a Preferred dentist near you or to
obtain a copy of the applicable MAC listing, refer to the Preferred provider
directory, visit our website at www. fepblue. org, or
call us
at the customer service number on the back of your ID card.
Note: These dentists may not be Preferred for other services
covered by this Plan under other benefit provisions (such as oral and
maxillofacial surgery).
Standard Option dental benefits
Under Standard Option, we pay
billed charges for the following services, up to the amounts shown per service
as listed in the
Schedule of Dental Allowances on the following pages below.
This is a complete list of dental services covered under this
benefit for
Standard Option. There are no deductibles, copayments, or coinsurance. You pay
all charges in excess of our listed
fee schedule amounts.
Standard Option dental benefits Standard Option Only
Service and ADA
Code We pay You pay
Clinical oral evaluations
0120 Periodic oral
evaluation*
0140 Limited oral evaluation
0150 Comprehensive oral
evaluation
0160 Detailed and extensive oral evaluation
*Limited to
two per person per calendar year
To age 13
$12
$14
$14
$14
Age 13 and over
$8
$9
$9
$9
Radiographs
0210 Intraoral complete series
0220 Intraoral
periapical first film
0230 Intraoral periapical each additional film
0240 Intraoral occlusal film
0250 Extraoral first film
0260
Extraoral each additional film
0270 Bitewing – single film
0272
Bitewings – two films
0274 Bitewings – four films
$36
$7
$4
$12
$16
$6
$9
$14
$19
$22
$5
$3
$7
$10
$4
$6
$9
$12
All charges in
excess of the
scheduled
amounts listed to
the
left
Dental benefits – continued on next page 87
87 Page 88 89
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit
Plan 88 Section 5( h)
Standard Option dental benefits (continued) Standard Option
Only
Service and ADA Code We pay You pay
Radiographs – continued
0277 Bitewings – vertical
0290 Posterior-anterior or lateral skull
and facial
bone survey film
0330 Panoramic film
To age 13
$12
$45
$36
Age 13 and over
$7
$28
$23
Tests and laboratory exams
0460 Pulp vitality tests $11 $7
Palliative treatment
9110 Palliative (emergency) treatment of
dental
pain – minor procedure
2940 Sedative filling
$24
$24
$15
$15
Preventive
1110 Prophylaxis – adult*
1120 Prophylaxis – child*
1201 Topical application of fluoride (including
prophylaxis) – child*
1203 Topical application of fluoride (prophylaxis
not included) – child
1204 Topical application of fluoride (prophylaxis
not included) – adult
1205 Topical application of fluoride (including
prophylaxis) – adult*
*Limited to two per person per calendar year
---$
22
$35
$13
-----
-
$16
$14
$22
$8
$8
$24
All charges in
excess of the
scheduled
amounts listed to
the
left
Space maintenance (passive
appliances)
1510 Space maintainer – fixed – unilateral
1515 Space maintainer – fixed
– bilateral
1520 Space maintainer – removable – unilateral
1525 Space
maintainer – removable – bilateral
1550 Recementation of space maintainer
$94
$139
$94
$139
$22
$59
$87
$59
$87
$14
Dental benefits – continued on
next page 88
88 Page
89 90
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 89 Section 5( h)
.
Standard Option dental benefits (continued)
Standard Option Only
Service and ADA Code We pay You pay
Amalgam restorations (including
polishing)
2110 Amalgam – one surface, primary
2120 Amalgam – two surfaces, primary
2130 Amalgam – three surfaces, primary
2131 Amalgam – four or more
surfaces, primary
2140 Amalgam – one surface, permanent
2150 Amalgam –
two surfaces, permanent
2160 Amalgam – three surfaces, permanent
2161
Amalgam – four or more surfaces, permanent
To age 13
$22
$31
$40
$49
$25
$37
$50
$56
Age 13 and over
$14
$20
$25
$31
$16
$23
$31
$35
Filled or unfilled resin restorations
2330 Resin – one surface,
anterior
2331 Resin – two surfaces, anterior
2332 Resin – three
surfaces, anterior
2335 Resin – four or more surfaces or involving
incisal angle (anterior)
2380 Resin – one surface, posterior-primary
2381 Resin – two surfaces,
posterior-primary
2382 Resin – three or more surfaces, posterior-primary
2385 Resin – one surface, posterior-permanent
2386 Resin – two surfaces,
posterior-permanent
2387 Resin – three surfaces, posterior-permanent
2388 Resin – four or more surfaces, posterior-permanent
$25
$37
$50
$56
$22
$31
$40
$25
$37
$50
$50
$16
$23
$31
$35
$14
$20
$25
$16
$23
$31
$31
Inlay restorations
2510 Inlay – metallic – one surface
2520 Inlay – metallic – two surfaces
2530 Inlay – metallic – three or
more surfaces
2610 Inlay – porcelain/ ceramic – one surface
2620 Inlay –
porcelain/ ceramic – two surfaces
2630 Inlay – porcelain/ ceramic – three or
more
surfaces
$25
$37
$50
$25
$37
$50
$16
$23
$31
$16
$23
$31
All charges in
excess of the
scheduled
amounts listed to
the
left
Dental benefits – continued on next page 89
89 Page 90 91
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit
Plan 90 Section 5( h)
1
Standard Option dental benefits (continued) Standard
Option Only
Service and ADA Code We pay You pay
Inlay restorations – continued
2650 Inlay – composite/ resin – one surface
2651 Inlay – composite/
resin – two surfaces
2652 Inlay – composite/ resin – three or more
surfaces
To age 13
$25
$37
$50
Age 13 and over
$16
$23
$31
Other restorative services
2951 Pin retention – per tooth,
in addition to
restoration $13 $8
Extractions – includes local
anesthesia and routine
post-operative
care
7110 Single tooth
7120 Each additional tooth
7130 Root removal –
exposed roots
7210 Surgical removal of erupted tooth requiring
elevation
of mucoperiosteal flap and removal of
bone and/ or section of tooth
7250 Surgical removal of residual tooth roots (cutting
procedure)
9220 General anesthesia in connection with covered
extractions
$30
$27
$71
$43
$71
$43
$19
$17
$45
$27
$45
$27
All charges in
excess of the
scheduled
amounts listed to
the
left
Not covered: Any service not specifically listed above Nothing Nothing All
charges
Dental benefits – continued on next page 90
90 Page 91 92
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 91 Section
5( h)
Basic Option dental benefits
Under Basic Option, we provide
benefits for the services listed below. You pay a $20 copayment for each
evaluation, and we
pay any balances in full. This is a complete list of
dental services covered under this benefit for Basic Option. You must use
a
Preferred dentist in order to receive benefits. For a list of Preferred
dentists, please refer to the Preferred provider directory, visit
our
website at www. fepblue. org, or call us at
the customer service number on the back of your ID card.
Basic Option dental benefits Basic Option Only
Service and ADA Code We
pay You pay
Clinical oral evaluations
0120 Periodic oral evaluation
0140 Limited oral evaluation
0150 Comprehensive oral evaluation
Note: Benefits are limited to a combined total of 2
evaluations per person per calendar year for 0120
and 0150.
Radiographs
0210 Intraoral – complete series including
bitewings (limited to 1 complete series
every 3 years)
0270 Bitewing – single film
0272 Bitewings – two films
0274 Bitewings
– four films
Note: Benefits are limited to a combined total of
4
films per person per calendar year for 0270, 0272,
and 0274.
Preventive
1110 Prophylaxis – adult (up to 2 per calendar
year)
1120 Prophylaxis – child (up to 2 per calendar
year)
1201 Topical application of fluoride (including
prophylaxis) – child
(up to 2 per calendar
year)
1203 Topical application of fluoride
(prophylaxis not included) – child
(up to
2 per calendar year)
1351 Sealant – per tooth, first and second
molars only (once per tooth
for children
up to age 16 only)
Note: Benefits are limited to a combined total of 2
visits
per person per calendar year for 1120 and
1201.
Preferred: All charges in
excess of your $20
copayment
Participating/ Non-participating:
Nothing
Preferred: $20 copayment
per evaluation
Participating/ Non-participating:
You pay all charges
Not covered: Any service not specifically listed
above
Nothing All
charges 91
91 Page
92 93
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 92 Section
5( i)
Section 5 (i). Non-FEHB benefits available to Plan members
The
benefits on this page are not part of the FEHB contract or premium, and you
cannot file an FEHB dispute regarding
these benefits. Fees you pay for
these services do not count toward FEHB deductibles or out-of-pocket maximums.
In
addition, these services are not eligible for benefits under the FEHB
program. Please do not file a claim with us for these
services.
Vision Care Program
Service Benefit Plan members may obtain eye
exams and
eyewear at substantial savings from EyeMed* Vision Care
providers. EyeMed Vision Care operates a national
provider network
consisting of over 7,000 providers,
including LensCrafters locations and
doctors located next
to LensCrafters, independent optometrists,
ophthalmologists, and opticians. The names, addresses, and
telephone
numbers of EyeMed providers are available by
calling 1-800-551-3337.
Location information is available
24 hours a day; customer service is
available from 8: 00 a. m.
to 11: 00 p. m. eastern time, Monday through
Saturday, and
from 11: 00 a. m. to 8: 00 p. m. eastern time on Sunday. You
can also visit our website at www. fepblue.
org for a
complete description of the program and provider
locations.
Service Benefit Plan members may also obtain contact
lenses through the
Advantage Program. Contact one of the
participating optometrists next to a
LensCrafters for
information on how to enroll in this program. You can also
save 15% off the retail price or 5% off promotional pricing
on LASIK or
PRK vision correction procedures provided
by the U. S. Laser Network. Simply
call
1-877-552-7376 for the nearest laser facility and to receive
authorization for the discount.
There are no enrollment fees and no additional paperwork
or claim forms
to be filed in this program. All charges for
eye exams and eyewear are
handled directly between you
and the EyeMed provider.
Complementary and Alternative Medicine
Service Benefit Plan
members have access to a national
network of chiropractors, acupuncturists,
and massage
therapists at discounted rates, through American Specialty
Health (ASH)*. The program is simple to use. Members
may call providers
directly and schedule appointments; no
physician referral is required. There
are no enrollment fees
and no additional paperwork or claim forms for this
program. All charges for health services are handled
directly between
you and the ASH provider.
For more information or to find a provider near you, visit
our website at
www. fepblue. org or call ASH Member
Services at 1-877-258-7283. This discount provider
network is
available to members nationwide, unless
prohibited by state law or
regulation.
Through ASH, members may purchase health and wellness
products, including
vitamins, minerals, herbal supplements,
homeopathic remedies, sports
nutrition products, books,
videotapes, and skin care products, at discounted
prices.
Standard shipping is free to Service Benefit Plan members.
You
may order products online at www. fepblue. org
or
request a free catalog by calling ASH at 1-877-258-7283.
ASH Customer Service hours are from 8: 00 a. m. to 9: 00 p. m. eastern time,
Monday through Friday.
Federal DentalBlue
Federal DentalBlue is an optional dental
product with an additional premium that supplements the dental benefits
included in your Service Benefit Plan coverage. To apply for Federal
DentalBlue, you must be:
1. Enrolled in Standard Option and reside in one of the following Plan
areas: Alabama, Oklahoma, or
Washington State (only counties served by
Regence BlueShield); or
2. Enrolled in Basic Option and reside in Alabama.
To purchase
this additional coverage, complete and sign the Federal DentalBlue enrollment
form, which you can obtain
from your Local Plan.
Many other Blue Cross and Blue Shield Plans offer
dental insurance to Service Benefit Plan members for an additional
premium. For more information, contact your Local Plan about the availability
of a non-FEHB dental program in
your area.
Medicare Prepaid Plan Enrollment
Some local Blue Cross and Blue
Shield Plans offer Medicare recipients the opportunity to enroll in a Medicare
prepaid plan without payment of an FEHB premium. Contact your local Blue
Cross and Blue Shield Plan to find
out if a Medicare prepaid plan is
available in your area and the cost, if any, of that enrollment.
*The Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association and participating Local Plans
will receive remuneration from EyeMed and ASH to cover their administrative
costs for offering these programs and for other purposes. 92
92 Page 93 94
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 93 Section
6
Section 6. General exclusions – things we don't cover
The
exclusions in this section apply to all benefits. Although we may list a
specific service as a benefit, we will not cover
it unless we determine it
is medically necessary to prevent, diagnose, or treat your illness, disease,
injury, or condition.
We do not cover the following:
Services, drugs, or supplies you receive
while you are not enrolled in this Plan;
Services, drugs, or supplies that
are not medically necessary;
Services, drugs, or supplies not required
according to accepted standards of medical, dental, or psychiatric practice in
the United States;
Experimental or investigational procedures, treatments, drugs, or devices;
Services, drugs, or supplies related to abortions, except when the life of
the mother would be endangered if the fetus were carried to term, or when the
pregnancy is the result of an act of rape or incest;
Services, drugs, or supplies related to sex transformations, sexual
dysfunction, or sexual inadequacy;
Services, drugs, or supplies you receive
from a provider or facility barred from the FEHB Program;
Services, drugs,
or supplies you would not be charged for if you had no health insurance
coverage;
Services, drugs, or supplies you receive without charge while in
active military service; or that you require as a result of an act of war within
the United States, its territories, or possessions; or during combat;
Amounts charged that neither you nor we are legally
obligated to pay, such as amounts over the Medicare limiting charge or
equivalent Medicare amount as described in Section 4 under Your costs for
covered services, or State premium taxes,
however applied;
Services,
drugs, or supplies you receive from immediate relatives or household members,
such as spouse, parent, child, brother, or sister, by blood, marriage, or
adoption;
Services or supplies (except for medically necessary prescription drugs) that
you receive from a noncovered facility, such as an extended care facility or
nursing home, except as specifically described in Sections 5(
a) and 5( c);
Services, drugs, or supplies you
receive from noncovered providers except in medically underserved areas as
specifically described on page 10;
Services, drugs, or
supplies you receive for cosmetic purposes;
Services, drugs, or supplies for
the treatment of obesity, weight reduction, or dietary control, except for
gastric bypass surgery or gastric stapling procedures;
Any dental or oral surgical procedures or drugs involving orthodontic care,
the teeth, dental implants, periodontal disease, or
preparing the mouth for the fitting or continued use of
dentures, except as specifically described in Section 5( h),
Dental
benefits, and Section 5( b) under
Oral and maxillofacial surgery;
Orthodontic care for
temporomandibular joint (TMJ) syndrome;
Services of standby physicians;
Self-care or self-help training;
Custodial care;
Personal comfort
items such as beauty and barber services, radio, television, or telephone;
Routine services, such as periodic physical exams; screening examinations;
immunizations; and services or tests not related to a specific diagnosis,
illness, injury, set of symptoms, or maternity care,
except for those preventive services specifically
covered under Preventive care, adult and child in Sections 5( a)
and 5( c);
Recreational or educational therapy,
and any related diagnostic testing, except as provided by a hospital during a
covered inpatient stay; or
Services not specifically listed as covered. 93
93
Page 94 95
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 94 Section
7
Section 7. Filing a claim for covered services
How to claim benefits
To obtain claim forms or other claims filing advice, or answers about our
benefits, contact us at the telephone number on the back of your Service Benefit
Plan ID card, or at our website at www.
fepblue. org.
In most cases, physicians and facilities file claims for
you. Just present your
Service Benefit Plan ID card when you receive
services. Your physician must
file on the HCFA-1500, Health Insurance Claim
Form. Your facility will file on
the UB-92 form.
When you must file a claim – such as for overseas claims or when another
group
health plan is primary – submit it on the HCFA-1500 or a claim form
that
includes the information shown below. Use a separate claim form for
each
family member. For long or continuing hospital stays, or other
long-term care,
you should submit claims at least every 30 days. Bills and
receipts should be
itemized and show:
Name of patient and relationship to enrollee;
Plan identification number
of enrollee;
Name and address of person or firm providing the service or
supply;
Dates that services or supplies were furnished;
Diagnosis;
Type of each service or supply; and
The charge for each service or
supply.
Note: Canceled checks, cash register receipts, balance
due statements, or bills
you prepare yourself are not acceptable substitutes
for itemized bills.
In addition:
You must send a copy of the explanation of benefits (EOB) form from any
primary payer [such as the Medicare Summary Notice (MSN)] with your
claim.
Bills for home nursing care must show that the nurse is a
registered or licensed practical nurse.
Claims for rental or purchase of durable medical equipment, private duty
nursing, and physical, occupational, and speech therapy, require a written
statement from the physician specifying the medical necessity for the
service
or supply and the length of time needed.
Claims for prescription drugs and supplies that are not received from the
Retail Pharmacy Program, through a Preferred internet pharmacy, or through the
Mail
Service Prescription Drug Program must include receipts that include the
prescription number, name of drug or supply, prescribing physician's name,
date, and charge. (See below for information on how to obtain benefits from
the Retail Pharmacy Program, a Preferred internet pharmacy, and the Mail
Service Prescription Drug Program.)
We will provide translation and currency conversion services for claims for
overseas (foreign) services. 94
94 Page 95 96
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 95 Section
7
Prescription drug claims Preferred Retail/ Internet Pharmacies – When
you use Preferred retail pharmacies, show your Service Benefit Plan ID card.
Preferred retail pharmacies
will file your claims for you. To use Preferred
internet pharmacies, go to our
special website, www. fepblue. org, click on "Pharmacy
Programs," and follow the
FEP Retail Pharmacy Providers link to fill
your prescriptions and receive home
delivery. Be sure to have your Service
Benefit Plan ID card ready to complete
your purchase. We reimburse the
Preferred retail or internet pharmacy for your
covered drugs and supplies.
You pay the applicable coinsurance or copayment.
Note: Even if you use Preferred pharmacies, you will have to
file a paper claim
form to obtain reimbursement if:
you do not have a valid Service Benefit Plan ID card;
you do not use your
valid Service Benefit Plan ID card at the time of purchase; or
you failed to obtain prior approval when required (see page
14).
See the following paragraph for claim filing instructions.
Non-Preferred Retail/ Internet Pharmacies
Standard Option: You
must file a paper claim for any covered drugs or supplies
you purchase at
Non-preferred retail or internet pharmacies. Contact your Local
Plan or call
1-800-624-5060 to request a retail prescription drug claim form to
claim
benefits. Hearing-impaired members with TDD equipment may call
1-800-624-5077. Follow the instructions on the prescription drug claim form
and
submit the completed form to: Blue Cross and Blue Shield Service Benefit
Plan
Retail Pharmacy Program, P. O. Box 52057, Phoenix, AZ 85072-2057.
Basic Option: There are no benefits for drugs or supplies
purchased at Non-preferred
retail or internet pharmacies.
Mail Service Prescription Drug Program
Standard Option: We will
send you information on our Mail Service
Prescription Drug Program,
including an initial mail order form. To use this
program:
. 1) Complete the initial mail order form;
2) Enclose your prescription
and copayment;
3) Mail your order to Merck-Medco Rx Services, P. O. Box
30492, Tampa, FL
33633-0144; and
4) Allow approximately two weeks for delivery.
Alternatively, your physician may call in your initial prescription at
1-800-262-7890 (TDD: 1-800-446-7292). You will be billed later for the
copayment.
After that, to order refills either call the same number or access our
website at
www. fepblue. org and either
charge your copayment to your credit card or have it
billed to you later.
Allow approximately one week for delivery on refills.
Basic Option: The Mail Service Prescription Drug Program is not
available
under Basic Option. 95
95 Page 96 97
2002 Blue Cross
and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 96 Section 7
Records Keep a separate record of the medical expenses of each covered
family member, because deductibles (under Standard Option) and benefit maximums
(such as
those for outpatient physical therapy or preventive dental care),
apply separately
to each person. Save copies of all medical bills, including
those you accumulate
to satisfy a deductible under Standard Option. In most
instances they will serve
as evidence of your claim. We will not provide
duplicate or year-end statements.
Deadline for filing your claim Send us your claim and appropriate
documentation as soon as possible. You must submit the claim by December 31 of
the year after the year you received
the service, unless timely filing was prevented by administrative operations
of
Government or legal incapacity, provided you submitted the claim as soon
as
reasonably possible. If we return a claim or part of a claim for
additional
information, you must resubmit it within 90 days, or before the
timely filing
period expires, whichever is later.
Note: Once we pay benefits, there is a three-year limitation on
the reissuance of
uncashed checks.
Overseas claims For covered services you receive in hospitals outside
the United States and Puerto Rico and performed by physicians outside the United
States and Puerto
Rico, send a completed Overseas Claim Form and the itemized bills to: FEP
Overseas Claims Section, CareFirst Blue Cross and Blue Shield, 550 12 th
Street,
SW, Washington, DC 20065-8473. Send any written inquiries concerning
the
processing of overseas claims to this address or call us at
1-888-999-9862. You
may also obtain Overseas Claim Forms from this address,
or from your Local
Plan.
When we need more information Please reply promptly when we ask for
additional information. We may delay processing or deny your claim if you do not
respond. 96
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Service Benefit Plan 97 Section 8
Section 8. The disputed claims process
Follow this Federal
Employees Health Benefits Program disputed claims process if you disagree with
our decision on your claim or
request for services, drugs, or supplies –
including a request for precertification or prior approval:
Step Description
Ask us in writing to reconsider our initial decision. Write to us at
the address shown on your explanation of benefits (EOB) form. You must:
(a)
Write to us within 6 months from the date of our decision; and
(b) Send your
request to us at the address shown on your explanation of benefits (EOB) form
for the Local Plan that
processed the claim (or, for Prescription drug
benefits, our Retail Pharmacy Program or Mail Service Prescription
Drug
Program); and
(c) Include a statement about why you believe our initial decision was wrong,
based on specific benefit provisions in
this brochure; and
(d) Include copies of documents that support your claim, such as physicians'
letters, operative reports, bills, medical
records, and explanation of
benefits (EOB) forms.
We have 30 days from the date we receive your request to: (a) Pay
the claim (or, if applicable, precertify your hospital stay or grant your
request for prior approval for a service,
drug, or supply); or
(b) Write
to you and maintain our denial – go to step 4; or
(c) Ask you or your
provider for more information. If we ask your provider, we will send you a copy
of our request –
go to step 3.
You or your provider must send the information so that we receive it
within 60 days of our request. We will then decide within 30 more days.
If
we do not receive the information within 60 days, we will decide within 30 days
of the date the information was due. We
will base our decision on the
information we already have.
We will write to you with our decision.
If you do not agree with our decision, you may ask OPM to review it.
You must write to OPM within:
90 days after the date of our letter upholding
our initial decision; or
120 days after you first wrote to us – if we did
not answer that request in some way within 30 days; or
120 days after we
asked for additional information – if we did not send you a decision within 30
days after we received the additional information.
Write to OPM at: Office of Personnel Management, Office of Insurance
Programs, Contracts Division I, 1900 E Street, NW,
Washington, DC
20415-3610. 97
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2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 98 Section 8
The disputed claims process (continued)
Send OPM the
following information:
A statement about why you believe our decision was
wrong, based on specific benefit provisions in this brochure;
Copies of
documents that support your claim, such as physicians' letters, operative
reports, bills, medical records, and explanation of benefits (EOB) forms;
Copies of all letters you sent to us about the claim;
Copies of all
letters we sent to you about the claim; and
Your daytime phone number and
the best time to call.
Note: If you want OPM to review
different claims, you must clearly identify which documents apply to which
claim.
Note: You are the only person who has a right to file a
disputed claim with OPM. Parties acting as your representative, such
as
medical providers, must include a copy of your specific written consent with the
review request.
Note: The above deadlines may be extended if you show that you
were unable to meet the deadline because of reasons
beyond your control.
OPM will review your disputed claim request and will use the
information it collects from you and us to decide whether our decision is
correct. OPM will determine if we correctly applied the terms of our contract
when we denied your claim or request for service. OPM will send you a final
decision within 60 days. There are no other administrative appeals.
If you do not agree with OPM's decision, your only recourse is to
sue. If you decide to sue, you must file the suit against OPM in Federal court
by December 31 of the third year after the year in which you received the
disputed services, drugs, or supplies or from the year in which you were denied
precertification or prior approval. This is the only deadline that may not
be extended.
OPM may disclose the information it collects during the
review process to support their disputed claims decision. This
information
will become part of the court record.
You may not sue until you have completed the disputed claims process.
Further, Federal law governs your lawsuit, benefits,
and payment of
benefits. The Federal court will base its review on the record that was before
OPM when OPM decided to
uphold or overturn our decision. You may recover
only the amount of benefits in dispute.
NOTE: If you have a serious or life-threatening condition
(one that may cause permanent loss of bodily functions or death if
not
treated as soon as possible), and
(a) We have not responded yet to your initial claim or request for
precertification/ prior approval, then call us at the telephone
number on
the back of your Service Benefit Plan ID card and we will expedite our review;
or
(b) We denied your initial claim or request for precertification/ prior
approval, then:
If we expedite our review and maintain our denial, we will inform OPM so that
they can give your claim expedited treatment too; or
You can call OPM's Health Benefits Contracts Division I at 1-202-606-0727
between 8 a. m. and 5 p. m., eastern time. 98
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Service Benefit Plan 99 Section
9
Section 9. Coordinating benefits with other coverage
When you have
other health coverage You must tell us if you are covered or a family member
is covered under another group health plan or has automobile insurance that pays
health care expenses without regard to
fault. This is called "double
coverage."
When you have double coverage, one plan normally pays its benefits in full as
the
primary payer and the other plan pays a reduced benefit as the secondary
payer. We,
like other insurers, determine which coverage is primary
according to the National
Association of Insurance Commissioners'
guidelines. For example:
If you are an annuitant under our Plan and also are actively employed, any
group health insurance you have from your employer will pay primary and
we
will pay secondary.
When you are entitled to the payment of health care
expenses under automobile insurance, including no-fault insurance and other
insurance that
pays without regard to fault, your automobile insurance is the primary
payer and we are the secondary payer.
When we are the primary payer, we will pay the benefits described in this
brochure.
When we are the secondary payer, we will determine our allowance.
After the primary
plan pays, we will pay what is left of our allowance, up
to our regular benefit. We will
not pay more than our allowance. For
example, we will generally only make up the
difference between the primary
payer's benefits payment and 100% of the Plan
allowance, subject to our
applicable deductible (under Standard Option) and
coinsurance or copayment amounts, except when Medicare is the
primary payer (see
Section 4). Thus, it is possible that the combined
payments from both plans may not
equal the entire amount billed by the
provider.
Note: When we pay secondary to primary coverage you have from a
prepaid plan
(HMO), we base our benefits on your out-of-pocket liability
under the prepaid plan
(generally, the prepaid plan's copayments), subject
to our deductible (under Standard
Option) and coinsurance or copayment
amounts.
In certain circumstances when we are secondary and there is no adverse effect
on you
(that is, you do not pay any more), we may also take advantage of any
provider
discount arrangements your primary plan may have and only make up
the difference
between the primary plan's payment and the amount the
provider has agreed to accept
as payment in full from the primary plan.
Remember: Even if you do not file a claim with your other plan, you must
still tell us
that you have double coverage, and you must also send us
documents about your other
coverage if we ask for them.
What is Medicare? Medicare is a health insurance program for:
People 65 years of age and older
Some people with disabilities, under 65
years of age
People with End Stage Renal Disease (permanent kidney failure
requiring dialysis or a transplant) 99
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Service Benefit Plan 100
Section 9
Medicare has two parts:
Part A (Hospital Insurance). Most people do not
have to pay for Part A. If you or your spouse worked for at least 10 years in
Medicare-covered employment, you
should be able to qualify for premium-free Part A insurance. (Someone who was
a
Federal employee on January 1, 1983 or since automatically qualifies.)
Otherwise, if
you are age 65 or older, you may be able to buy it. Contact
1-800-MEDICARE for
more information.
Part B (Medical Insurance). Most people pay monthly for Part B. Generally,
Part B premiums are withheld from your monthly Social Security check or your
retirement
check.
If you are eligible for Medicare, you may have choices in how you
get your health care.
Medicare+ Choice is the term used to describe the
various health plan choices available
to Medicare beneficiaries. The
information in the next few pages shows how we
coordinate benefits with
Medicare, depending on the type of Medicare+ Choice plan you
have.
The Original Medicare Plan (Part A or Part B) The Original Medicare
Plan (Original Medicare) is available everywhere in the United States. It is the
way everyone used to get Medicare benefits and is the way most people
get
their Medicare Part A and Part B benefits now. You may go to any doctor,
specialist, or hospital that accepts Medicare. The Original Medicare Plan
pays its share
and you pay your share. Some things are not covered under the
Original Medicare
Plan, such as most prescription drugs.
When you are enrolled in Original Medicare along with this Plan, you still
need to
follow the rules in this brochure for us to cover your care. For
example, you must
continue to obtain prior approval for some prescription
drugs and organ/ tissue
transplants before we will pay benefits. However,
you do not have to precertify
inpatient hospital stays when Medicare Part A
is primary (see page 13 for exception).
Claims process when you have the Original Medicare Plan – You probably
will
never have to file a claim form when you have both our Plan and the
Original Medicare
Plan.
When we are the primary payer, we process the claim first.
When the
Original Medicare Plan is the primary payer, Medicare processes your claim
first. In most cases, your claims will be coordinated automatically and we will
then provide secondary benefits for the covered charges. You will not need to
do
anything. To find out if you need to do something about filing your
claims, call us at
the customer service number on the back of your Service
Benefit Plan ID card or visit
our website at www. fepblue. org. 100
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Service
Benefit Plan 101 Section 9
We waive some costs when you have the Original Medicare Plan – When
Original
Medicare is the primary payer, we will waive some out-of-pocket
costs, as follows:
When Medicare Part A is primary –
Under Standard Option, we
will waive our: Inpatient hospital per-admission copayments;
Inpatient Non-member hospital coinsurance; and Non-Preferred inpatient
per-day copayments for mental conditions/ substance
abuse care.
Under
Basic Option, we will waive our: Inpatient hospital per-day copayments.
Note: Once you have exhausted your Medicare Part A benefits, we
become primary.
Under Standard Option, you must then pay any
difference between our allowance and the billed amount at Non-member hospitals.
Under Basic Option, you must then pay the inpatient hospital per-day
copayments.
When Medicare Part B is primary –
Under Standard Option, we
will waive our: Calendar year deductible;
Coinsurance for services and supplies provided by physicians and other
covered health care professionals (inpatient and outpatient, including mental
conditions
and substance abuse care);
Copayments for office visits to
Preferred physicians and other health care professionals;
Copayments for routine physical examinations and preventive (screening)
services performed by Preferred physicians, other health care professionals, and
facilities; and
Outpatient facility coinsurance for medical, surgical,
preventive, and mental conditions and substance abuse care.
Under Basic Option, we will waive our: Copayments and coinsurance for
care received from covered professional and
facility providers.
Note: We do not waive benefit limitations, such as the
25-visit limit for home nursing
visits. In addition, we do not waive any
coinsurance or copayments for prescription
drugs.
You must tell us about your or your covered family members' Medicare
coverage, and
let us obtain information about services denied or paid under
Medicare if we ask. You
must also tell us about other coverage you or your
covered family members may have,
as this coverage may affect the primary/
secondary status of this Plan and Medicare. 101
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2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 102
Section 9
The following chart illustrates whether the Original Medicare Plan or this
Plan should be the primary payer for you according to
your employment status
and other factors determined by Medicare. It is critical that you tell us if you
or a covered family member
has Medicare coverage so we can administer these
requirements correctly.
Primary Payer Chart
Then the primary payer is… A. When either you – or
your covered spouse – are age 65 or over and …
Original Medicare This Plan
1) Are an active employee with the
Federal government (including when you or a
family member are eligible for
Medicare solely because of a disability)
2) Are an annuitant
3) Are a re-employed annuitant with the Federal government when…
a) The
position is excluded from FEHB, or
b) The position is not excluded from
FEHB
(Ask your employing office which of these applies to you.)
4) Are a Federal judge who retired under title 28, U. S. C., or a Tax Court
judge
who retired under Section 7447 of title 26, U. S. C. (or if your
covered spouse is
this type of judge)
5) Are enrolled in Part B only, regardless of your employment status (for
Part B services) (for other
services)
6) Are a former Federal employee receiving Workers'
Compensation and the
Office of Workers' Compensation Programs has determined
that you are unable
to return to duty
(except for claims
related to Workers'
Compensation.)
B. When you – or a covered family member – have Medicare based on End
Stage Renal Disease (ESRD) and…
1) Are within the first 30 months of eligibility to receive Part A benefits
solely
because of ESRD
2) Have completed the 30-month ESRD coordination period and are still
eligible
for Medicare due to ESRD
3) Become eligible for Medicare due to ESRD after Medicare became primary for
you under another provision
C. When you – or a covered family member – have FEHB and…
1) Are
eligible for Medicare based on disability, and
a) Are an annuitant, or
b) Are an active employee, or
c) Are a former spouse of an annuitant, or
d) Are a former spouse of an
active employee 102
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Service Benefit Plan 103
Section 9
Medicare managed care plan If you are eligible for Medicare, you may
choose to enroll in and get your Medicare benefits from a Medicare managed care
plan. These are health care choices (like
HMOs) in some areas of the
country. In most Medicare managed care plans, you can
only go to doctors,
specialists, or hospitals that are part of the plan. Medicare managed
care
plans provide all the benefits that Original Medicare covers. Some cover extras,
like prescription drugs. To learn more about enrolling in a Medicare managed
care
plan, contact Medicare at 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227) or at
www. medicare. gov.
If you enroll in a Medicare managed care plan, the following options are
available to
you:
This Plan and another plan's Medicare managed care plan: You may
enroll in
another plan's Medicare managed care plan and also remain enrolled
in our FEHB Plan.
If you enroll in a Medicare managed care plan, tell us. We
will need to know whether
you are in the Original Medicare Plan or in a
Medicare managed care plan so we can
correctly coordinate benefits with
Medicare.
Under Standard Option, we will still provide benefits when your Medicare
managed
care plan is primary, even out of the managed care plan's network
and/ or service area,
but we will not waive any of our copayments,
coinsurance, or deductibles, if you
receive services from providers who do
not participate in the Medicare managed care
plan.
Under Basic Option, we provide benefits for care received from Preferred
providers
when your Medicare managed care plan is primary, even out of the
managed care
plan's network and/ or service area. However, we will not waive
any of our copayments
or coinsurance for services you receive from Preferred
providers who do not participate
in the Medicare managed care plan. Please
remember that you must receive care from
Preferred providers in order to
receive Basic Option benefits. See page 11 for the
exceptions to this requirement.
Suspended FEHB coverage to enroll in a Medicare managed care plan: If
you are
an annuitant or former spouse, you can suspend your FEHB coverage
and enroll in a
Medicare managed care plan, eliminating your FEHB premium
(OPM does not
contribute to your Medicare managed care plan premium). For
information on
suspending your FEHB enrollment, contact your retirement
office. If you later want to
re-enroll in the FEHB Program, generally you
may do so only at the next Open Season
unless you involuntarily lose
coverage or move out of the Medicare managed care
plan's service area.
Private contract with your physician A physician may ask you to sign a
private contract agreeing that you can be billed directly for services
ordinarily covered by the Original Medicare Plan. Should you sign
an
agreement, Medicare will not pay any portion of the charges, and we will not
increase our payment. We will still limit our payment to the amount we would
have
paid after the Original Medicare Plan's payment.
If you do not enroll in Medicare If you do not have one or both Parts
of Medicare, you can still be covered under Part A or Part B the FEHB
Program. We will not require you to enroll in Medicare Part B and, if you
can't get premium-free Part A, we will not ask you to enroll in it. 103
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Service
Benefit Plan 104 Section 9
TRICARE TRICARE is the health care program for eligible dependents of
military persons and retirees of the military. TRICARE includes the CHAMPUS
program. If both
TRICARE and this Plan cover you, we pay first. See your
TRICARE Health Benefits
Advisor if you have questions about TRICARE
coverage.
Workers' Compensation We do not cover services that:
You need
because of a workplace-related illness or injury that the Office of
Workers'
Compensation Programs (OWCP) or a similar Federal or State agency
determines
they must provide; or
OWCP or a similar agency pays for through a third party injury settlement or
other
similar proceeding that is based on a claim you filed under OWCP or
similar laws.
Once OWCP or a similar agency pays its maximum benefits for your treatment,
we will
cover your care.
Medicaid When you have this Plan and Medicaid, we pay first.
When other Government agencies are responsible for your care We do
not cover services and supplies when a local, State, or Federal Government
agency directly or indirectly pays for them. 104
104
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2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 105
Section 9
When others are responsible for injuries If another person or entity,
through an act or omission, causes you to suffer an injury or illness, and if we
pay benefits for that injury or illness, you must agree to the following:
All recoveries you obtain (whether by lawsuit, settlement, or otherwise), no
matter how described or designated, must be used to reimburse us in full for
benefits we
paid. Our share of any recovery extends only to the amount of
benefits we have paid
or will pay to you or, if applicable, to your heirs,
administrators, successors, or
assignees.
We will not reduce our share of any recovery unless we agree in writing to a
reduction, (1) because you do not receive the full amount of damages that you
claimed or (2) because you had to pay attorneys' fees. This is our right of
recovery.
If you do not seek damages for your illness or injury, you must
permit us to initiate recovery on your behalf (including the right to bring suit
in your name). This is
called subrogation.
If we pursue a recovery of the benefits we have paid,
you must cooperate in doing what is reasonably necessary to assist us. You must
not take any action that may
prejudice our rights to recover.
You must tell us promptly if you have a
claim against another party for a condition that
we have paid or may pay
benefits for, and you must tell us about any recoveries you
obtain, whether
in or out of court. We may seek a lien on the proceeds of your claim in
order to reimburse ourselves to the full amount of benefits we have paid or
will pay.
We may request that you assign to us (1) your right to bring an action or (2)
your right
to the proceeds of a claim for your illness or injury. We may
delay processing of your
claims until you provide the assignment.
Note: We will pay the costs of any covered services you receive
that are in excess of
any recoveries made.
The following are examples of circumstances in which we may subrogate or
assert a
right of recovery:
When you or your dependent are injured on premises owned by a third party; or
When you or your dependent are injured and benefits are available to you or your
dependent, under any law or under any type of insurance, including, but not
limited
to:
Personal injury protection benefits Uninsured and underinsured motorist
coverage (does not include no-fault
automobile insurance)
Workers' compensation benefits Medical
reimbursement coverage
Contact us if you need more information about subrogation. 105
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Service Benefit Plan 106
Section 10
Section 10. Definitions of terms we use in this brochure
Accidental
injury An injury caused by an external force or element such as a blow or
fall that requires immediate medical attention, including animal bites and
poisonings. Note: Injuries to
the teeth while eating are
not considered accidental injuries. Dental care for accidental
injury
is limited to dental treatment necessary to repair sound natural teeth.
Admission The period from entry (admission) as an inpatient into a
hospital (or other covered facility) until discharge. In counting days of
inpatient care, the date of entry and the
date of discharge count as the
same day.
Assignment An authorization by the enrollee or spouse for us to issue
payment of benefits directly to the provider. We reserve the right to pay you,
the enrollee, directly for all covered
services.
Calendar year January 1 through December 31 of the same year. For new
enrollees, the calendar year begins on the effective date of their enrollment
and ends on December 31 of the same
year.
Carrier The Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association, on behalf of the
local Blue Cross and Blue Shield Plans.
Coinsurance Coinsurance is the percentage of our allowance that you
must pay for your care. You may also be responsible for additional amounts. See
page 15.
Copayment A copayment is a fixed amount of money you pay when you receive
covered services. See page 15.
Cosmetic surgery Any surgical
procedure or any portion of a procedure performed primarily to improve physical
appearance through change in bodily form, except for repair of accidental
injury, or to restore or correct a part of the body that has been altered as
a result of
disease or surgery or to correct a congenital anomaly.
Covered services Services we provide benefits for, as described in
this brochure.
Custodial care Treatment or services, regardless of
who recommends them or where they are provided, that a person not medically
skilled could perform safely and reasonably, or that mainly
assist the
patient with daily living activities, such as:
1. Personal care including
help in walking, getting in and out of bed, bathing, eating
(by spoon, tube,
or gastrostomy), exercising, or dressing;
2. Homemaking, such as preparing
meals or special diets;
3. Moving the patient;
4. Acting as companion or
sitter;
5. Supervising medication that can usually be self-administered; or
6. Treatment or services that any person can perform with minimal
instruction, such
as recording pulse, temperature, and respiration; or
administration and monitoring
of feeding systems.
The Carrier, its medical staff, and/ or an independent medical review
determines which
services are custodial care.
Deductible A deductible is a fixed amount of covered expenses you must
incur for certain covered services and supplies in a
calendar year before we start paying benefits for those
services. See page
15. 106
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2002 Blue Cross and Blue
Shield
Service Benefit Plan 107 Section 10
Durable medical equipment Equipment and supplies that: 1. Are
prescribed by your physician (i. e., the physician who is treating your illness
or
injury);
2. Are medically necessary;
3. Are primarily and
customarily used only for a medical purpose;
4. Are generally useful only to
a person with an illness or injury;
5. Are designed for prolonged use; and
6. Serve a specific therapeutic purpose in the treatment of an illness or
injury.
Experimental or investigational services A drug, device, or biological
product is experimental or investigational if the drug, device, or biological
product cannot be lawfully marketed without approval of the U. S.
Food and
Drug Administration (FDA); and, approval for marketing has not been given
at
the time it is furnished. Note: Approval means all forms of
acceptance by the FDA.
A medical treatment or procedure, or a drug, device, or biological product,
is
experimental or investigational if:
1. Reliable evidence shows that it is the subject of ongoing phase I, II, or
III clinical
trials or under study to determine its maximum tolerated dose,
its toxicity, its
safety, its efficacy, or its efficacy as compared with the
standard means of
treatment or diagnosis; or
2. Reliable evidence shows that the consensus of opinion among experts
regarding the
drug, device, or biological product or medical treatment or
procedure, is that
further studies or clinical trials are necessary to
determine its maximum tolerated
dose, its toxicity, its safety, its
efficacy, or its efficacy as compared with the
standard means of treatment
or diagnosis.
Reliable evidence shall mean only:
published reports and articles in the authoritative medical and scientific
literature;
the written protocol or protocols used by the treating facility or the
protocol( s) of another facility studying substantially the same drug, device,
or biological
product or medical treatment or procedure; or
the written
informed consent used by the treating facility or by another facility studying
substantially the same drug, device, or medical treatment or procedure.
Each Local Plan has a Medical Review department that determines whether a
claimed
service is experimental or investigational after consulting with
internal or external
experts or nationally recognized guidelines in a
particular field or specialty.
For more detailed information, contact your Local Plan at the customer
service
telephone number located on the back of your Service Benefit Plan ID
card.
Group health coverage Health care coverage that you are eligible for
based on your employment, or your membership in or connection with a particular
organization or group, that provides
payment for medical services or
supplies, or that pays a specific amount of more than
$200 per day for
hospitalization (including extension of any of these benefits through
COBRA).
Intensive outpatient care A comprehensive, structured outpatient
treatment program that includes extended periods of individual or group therapy
sessions designed to assist members with mental
health and/ or substance
abuse conditions. It is an intermediate setting between
traditional
outpatient therapy and partial hospitalization, typically performed in an
outpatient facility or outpatient professional office setting. Program
sessions may occur
more than one day per week. Timeframes and frequency will
vary based upon
diagnosis and severity of illness. 107
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Section 10
Lifetime maximum The maximum amount the Plan will pay on your behalf
for covered services you receive while you are enrolled in your option. Benefit
amounts accrued are
accumulated in a permanent record
regardless of the number of enrollment changes. Please see page 76.
Local Plan A Blue Cross and/ or Blue Shield Plan that serves a
specific geographic area.
Medical necessity We determine whether
services, drugs, supplies, or equipment provided by a hospital or other covered
provider are:
1. Appropriate to prevent, diagnose, or treat your condition, illness, or
injury;
2. Consistent with standards of good medical practice in the United
States;
3. Not primarily for the personal comfort or convenience of the
patient, the family, or
the provider;
4. Not part of or associated with
scholastic education or vocational training of the
patient; and
5. In
the case of inpatient care, cannot be provided safely on an outpatient basis.
The fact that one of our covered providers has prescribed, recommended, or
approved a
service or supply does not, in itself, make it medically
necessary or covered under this
Plan.
Mental conditions/ substance abuse Conditions and diseases listed in
the most recent edition of the International Classification of Diseases (ICD) as
psychoses, neurotic disorders, or personality
disorders; other nonpsychotic
mental disorders listed in the ICD; or disorders listed in
the ICD requiring
treatment for abuse of, or dependence upon, substances such as
alcohol,
narcotics, or hallucinogens.
Partial hospitalization An intensive facility-based treatment program
during which an interdisciplinary team provides care related to mental health
and/ or substance abuse conditions. Program
sessions may occur more than one
day per week and may be full or half days, evenings,
and/ or weekends. The
duration of care per session is less than 24 hours. Timeframes
and frequency
will vary based upon diagnosis and severity of illness.
Plan allowance Our Plan allowance is the amount we use to determine
our payment and your coinsurance for covered services. Fee-for-service plans
determine their allowances in
different ways. If the amount your provider
bills for covered services is less than our
allowance, we base our payment,
and your share (coinsurance, deductible, and/ or
copayments), on the billed
amount. We determine our allowance as follows:
PPO providers – Our allowance (which we may refer to as the "PPA" for
"Preferred Provider Allowance") is the negotiated amount that most Preferred
providers (hospitals and other facilities, physicians, and other covered
health care
professionals that contract with each local Blue Cross and Blue
Shield Plan, and
retail and internet pharmacies that contract with
AdvancePCS) have agreed to
accept as payment in full, when we pay primary
benefits (see page 7 for
exceptions).
Our PPO allowance includes any known discounts that can be accurately
calculated
at the time your claim is processed. For PPO facilities, we
sometimes refer to our
allowance as the "Preferred rate." The Preferred rate
may be subject to a periodic
adjustment after your claim is processed that
may decrease or increase the amount
of our payment that is due to the
facility. However, your cost sharing (if any) does
not change. If our
payment amount is decreased, we credit the amount of the
decrease to the
reserves of this Plan. If our payment amount is increased, we pay
that cost
on your behalf. (See page 87 for special information about
limits on the
amounts Preferred dentists can charge you under Standard
Option.) 108
108 Page
109 110
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 109
Section 10
Participating providers – Our allowance (which we may refer to as the
"PAR" for "Participating Provider Allowance") is the negotiated amount that
these providers
(hospitals and other facilities, physicians, and other
covered health care
professionals that contract with some local Blue Cross
and Blue Shield Plans) have
agreed to accept as payment in full, when we pay
primary benefits (see page 7 for
exceptions). For
facilities, we sometimes refer to our allowance as the "Member
rate."
The member rate includes any known discounts that can be accurately
calculated at the time your claim is processed, and may be subject to a
periodic
adjustment after your claim is processed that may decrease or
increase the amount
of our payment that is due to the facility. However,
your cost sharing (if any) does
not change. If our payment amount is
decreased, we credit the amount of the
decrease to the reserves of this
Plan. If our payment amount is increased, we pay
that cost on your behalf.
Non-participating providers – Since we have no agreements with these
providers, we use:
For inpatient services by hospitals and other facilities that do not contract
with your local Blue Cross and Blue Shield Plan, our allowance is the average
semiprivate room rate charged for inpatient care by similar institutions in
the
same area, as determined by your Local Plan;
For outpatient services by hospitals and other facilities that do not
contract with your local Blue Cross and Blue Shield Plan, our allowance is the
billed
amount (minus any amounts for non-covered services);
For physicians and
other covered health care professionals that do not contract with your local
Blue Cross and Blue Shield Plan, our allowance is equal to the
greater of 1) the Medicare participating fee schedule amount for the service
or
supply in the geographic area in which it was performed or obtained (or
60%
of the billed charge if there is no equivalent Medicare fee schedule
amount) or
2) 80% of the 2002 Usual, Customary, and Reasonable (UCR) amount
for the
service or supply in the geographic area in which it was performed
or
obtained. Local Plans determine the UCR amount in different ways. Contact
your Local Plan if you need more information. We may refer to our allowance
for Non-participating providers as the "NPA" (for "Non-participating
Provider
Allowance");
For prescription drugs furnished by retail and internet pharmacies that do
not contract with AdvancePCS, our allowance is the average wholesale price
(" AWP") of a drug on the date it is dispensed, as set forth in the most
current
version of First DataBank's National Drug Data File;
For services you receive outside of the United States and Puerto Rico from
providers that do not contract with us or with World Access, Inc., our
allowance is an Overseas Fee Schedule that is based on amounts comparable
to what Participating providers in the Washington, DC, area have agreed to
accept.
Non-participating providers are under no obligation to accept our allowance
as payment in full. If you use Non-participating providers, you will be
responsible for
any difference between our payment and the billed amount,
including any applicable copayments, coinsurance, or deductibles.
For more information, see Section 4, Your costs for
covered services. For more
information about how we pay providers
overseas, see page 17. 109
109
Page 110 111
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 110
Section 10
Precertification The requirement to contact the local Blue Cross and
Blue Shield Plan serving the area where the services will be performed before
being admitted to the hospital for inpatient
care, or within two business
days following an emergency admission.
Preferred provider organization (PPO) arrangement An arrangement
between Local Plans and physicians, hospitals, health care institutions, and
other covered health care professionals (or for retail and internet pharmacies,
between pharmacies and AdvancePCS) to provide services to you at a reduced
cost.
The PPO provides you with an opportunity to reduce your out-of-pocket
expenses for
care by selecting your facilities and providers from among a
specific group. PPO
providers are available in most locations; using them
whenever possible helps contain
health care costs and reduces your
out-of-pocket costs. The selection of PPO providers
is solely the Local
Plan's (or for pharmacies, AdvancePCS's) responsibility. We cannot
guarantee
that any specific provider will continue to participate in these PPO
arrangements.
Prior approval Written assurance that benefits will be provided by:
1. The Local Plan where the services will be performed;
2. The Retail
Pharmacy Program (for prescription drugs and supplies purchased
through
Preferred retail and internet pharmacies) or the Mail Service Prescription
Drug Program; or
3. The Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association Clinical
Trials Information Unit for
certain organ/ tissue
transplants we cover only in clinical trials. See Section 5( b).
For more information, see the benefit descriptions in
Section 5 and How to get approval
for… other
services on pages 13 and 14. See Section 5( e) for special authorization
requirements for mental health and substance abuse
benefits.
Routine services Services that are not related to a specific illness,
injury, set of symptoms, or maternity care.
Sound natural tooth A tooth that is whole or properly restored
(restoration with amalgams only); is without impairment, periodontal or other
conditions; and is not in need of the
treatment provided for any reason
other than an accidental injury. For purposes of
this Plan, a tooth
previously restored with a crown, inlay, onlay, or porcelain
restoration, or
treated by endodontics, is not considered a sound natural tooth.
Us/ We/ Our "Us," "we," and "our" refer to the Blue Cross and Blue
Shield Service Benefit Plan, and the local Blue Cross and Blue Shield Plans that
administer it.
You/ Your "You" and "your" refer to the enrollee (the contract holder
eligible for enrollment and coverage under the Federal Employees Health Benefits
Program and enrolled in the
Plan) and each covered family member. 110
110 Page 111 112
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 111
Section 11
Section 11. FEHB facts
No pre-existing condition We will not
refuse to cover the treatment of a condition that you had before you
limitation enrolled in this Plan solely because you had the condition
before you enrolled.
Where you can get information See www. opm. gov/ insure. Also, your employing
or retirement office can answer about enrolling in the your questions, and
give you a Guide to Federal Employees Health Benefits Plans,
FEHB Program brochures for other plans, and other materials you
need to make an informed decision about:
When you may change your enrollment;
How you can cover your family
members;
What happens when you transfer to another Federal agency, go on
leave without pay, enter military service, or retire;
When your enrollment ends; and
When the next Open Season for enrollment
begins.
We don't determine who is eligible for coverage and, in most cases, cannot
change your
enrollment status without information from your employing or
retirement office.
Types of coverage available Self Only coverage is for you alone. Self
and Family coverage is for you, your for you and your family spouse, and
your unmarried dependent children under age 22, including any foster
children or stepchildren your employing or retirement office authorizes
coverage for. Under certain circumstances, you may also continue coverage for a
disabled child 22
years of age or older who is incapable of self-support.
If you have a Self Only enrollment, you may change to a Self and Family
enrollment if
you marry, give birth, or add a child to your family. You may
change your enrollment
31 days before to 60 days after that event. The Self
and Family enrollment begins on
the first day of the pay period in which the
child is born or becomes an eligible family
member. When you change to Self
and Family because you marry, the change is
effective on the first day of
the pay period that begins after your employing office
receives your
enrollment form; benefits will not be available to your spouse until you
marry.
Your employing or retirement office will not notify you when a family
member is no
longer eligible to receive health benefits, nor will we. Please
tell us immediately when
you add or remove family members from your coverage
for any reason, including
divorce, or when your child under age 22 marries
or turns 22.
If you or one of your family members are enrolled in one FEHB plan, that
person may
not be enrolled in or covered as a family member by another FEHB
plan.
When benefits and The benefits in this brochure are effective on
January 1. If you joined this Plan during premiums start Open Season,
your coverage begins on the first day of your first pay period that starts
on or after January 1. Annuitants' coverage and premiums begin on January 1.
If you join at any other time during the year, your employing office will tell
you the effective
date of coverage. 111
111
Page 112 113
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 112
Section 11
Your medical and claims records are confidential We will keep your
medical and claims information confidential. Only the following will have access
to it:
OPM, this Plan, and subcontractors when they administer this
contract;
This Plan and appropriate third parties, such as other insurance
plans and the Office of Workers' Compensation Programs (OWCP), when coordinating
benefit payments
and subrogating claims;
Law enforcement officials when investigating and/
or prosecuting alleged civil or criminal actions;
OPM and the General Accounting Office when conducting audits;
Individuals
involved in bona fide medical research or education that does not disclose your
identity; or
OPM, when reviewing a disputed claim or defending litigation about a claim.
Note: As part of our administration of this contract, we may
disclose your medical and
claims information (including your prescription
drug utilization) to any treating
physicians or dispensing pharmacies.
When you retire When you retire, you can usually stay in the FEHB
Program. Generally, you must have been enrolled in the FEHB Program for the last
five years of your Federal service. If
you do not meet this requirement, you
may be eligible for other forms of coverage, such
as Temporary Continuation
of Coverage (TCC).
When you lose benefits
When FEHB coverage ends You will
receive an additional 31 days of coverage, for no additional premium, when:
Your enrollment ends, unless you cancel your enrollment, or
You are a
family member no longer eligible for coverage.
You may be eligible for
spouse equity coverage or Temporary Continuation of
Coverage.
Spouse equity coverage If you are divorced from a Federal employee or
annuitant, you may not continue to get benefits under your former spouse's
enrollment. But, you may be eligible for your own
FEHB coverage under the
spouse equity law. If you are recently divorced or are
anticipating a
divorce, contact your ex-spouse's employing or retirement office to get
RI
70-5, the Guide to Federal Employees Health Benefits Plans for Temporary
Continuation of Coverage and Former Spouse Enrollees, or other
information about
your coverage choices.
Temporary Continuation If you leave Federal service, or if you lose
coverage because you no longer qualify of Coverage (TCC) as a family
member, you may be eligible for Temporary Continuation of Coverage
(TCC).
For example, you can receive TCC if you are not able to continue your FEHB
enrollment after you retire, if you lose your Federal job, if you are a
covered dependent
child and you turn 22 or marry, etc.
You may not elect TCC if you are fired from your Federal job due to gross
misconduct. 112
112 Page
113 114
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 113
Section 11
Enrolling in TCC. Get the RI 79-27, which describes TCC, and the RI
70-5, the Guide
to Federal Employees Health Benefits Plans for Temporary
Continuation of Coverage
and Former Spouse Enrollees, from your
employing or retirement office or from
www. opm. gov/ insure. It explains what you
have to do to enroll.
Converting to You may convert to a non-FEHB individual policy if:
individual coverage
Your coverage under TCC or the spouse equity law
ends (if you canceled your coverage or did not pay your premium, you cannot
convert);
You decided not to receive coverage under TCC or the spouse equity law; or
You are not eligible for coverage under TCC or the spouse equity law.
If you leave Federal service, your employing office will notify you of your
right to
convert. You must apply in writing to us within 31 days after you
receive this notice.
However, if you are a family member who is losing
coverage, the employing or
retirement office will not notify you. You
must apply in writing to us within 31 days
after you are no longer eligible
for coverage.
Your benefits and rates will differ from those under the FEHB Program;
however, you
will not have to answer questions about your health, and we
will not impose a waiting
period or limit your coverage due to pre-existing
conditions.
Getting a Certificate of Group Health Plan Coverage The Health
Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) is a Federal law
that offers limited Federal protections for health coverage availability and
continuity to people who lose employer group coverage. If you leave the FEHB
Program, we will give you a Certificate of Group Health Plan Coverage that
indicates
how long you have been enrolled with us. You can use this
certificate when getting
health insurance or other health care coverage.
Your new Plan must reduce or eliminate
waiting periods, limitations, or
exclusions for health-related conditions based on the
information in the
certificate, as long as you enroll within 63 days of losing coverage
under
this Plan. If you have been enrolled with us for less than 12 months, but were
previously enrolled in other FEHB plans, you may also request a certificate
from those
plans.
For more information, get OPM pamphlet RI 79-27, Temporary Continuation of
Coverage (TCC) under the FEHB Program. See also the FEHB website,
(www. opm. gov/ insure/ health) and
refer to the "TCC and HIPAA" frequently asked
questions. These highlight
HIPAA rules, such as the requirement that Federal
employees must exhaust
any TCC eligibility as one condition for guaranteed access to
individual
health coverage under HIPAA, and have information about Federal and State
agencies you can contact for more information. 113
113 Page 114 115
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 114 Long
Term Care Insurance
Long Term Care Insurance Is Coming Later in 2002!
The Office of
Personnel Management (OPM) will sponsor a high-quality long term care insurance
program effective in October
2002. As part of its educational effort, OPM
asks you to consider these questions:
It's insurance to help pay for long term care services you may need if you
can't take care of yourself because of an extended illness or injury, or an
age-related disease such as
Alzheimer's.
LTC insurance can provide
broad, flexible benefits for nursing home care, care in an assisted living
facility, care in your home, adult day care, hospice care, and more. LTC
insurance can
supplement care provided by family members, reducing the burden you place
on them.
Welcome to the club! 76% of Americans believe they will never need long term
care, but the facts are that about half
of them will. And it's not just the
old folks. About 40% of people needing long term care are
under age 65. They
may need chronic care due to a serious accident, a stroke, or developing
multiple sclerosis, etc.
We hope you will never need long term care, but everyone should have a plan
just in case. Many people now consider long term care insurance to be vital
to their financial and
retirement planning.
Yes, it can be very expensive. A year in a nursing home can exceed $50,000.
Home care for only three 8-hour shifts a week can exceed $20,000 a year. And
that's before inflation!
Long term care can easily exhaust your savings.
Long term care insurance can protect your savings.
Not FEHB. Look at the "Not covered" blocks in sections 5( a) and 5( c) of your FEHB
brochure. Health plans don't cover custodial care or a stay in
an assisted living facility or a
continuing need
for a home health aide to help you get in and out of bed and with other
activities of daily living. Limited stays in skilled nursing facilities can
be covered in some
circumstances.
Medicare only covers skilled nursing home care (the highest level of nursing
care) after a hospitalization for those who are blind, age 65 or older, or fully
disabled. It also has a 100 day
limit.
Medicaid covers long term care for those who meet their state's
poverty guidelines, but has restrictions on covered services and where they can
be received. Long term care insurance
can provide choices of care and preserve your independence.
Employees will get more information from their agencies during the LTC open
enrollment period in the late summer/ early fall of 2002.
Retirees will
receive information at home.
OPM's toll-free teleservice center will begin
in mid-2002. In the meantime, you can learn more about the program on OPM's
website at www. opm. gov/ insure/ ltc.
Many FEHB enrollees think that their health plan and/ or Medicare will cover
their long term care needs. Unfortunately, they are WRONG!
How are
YOU planning to pay for the future custodial or chronic care you may need? You
should consider buying long term care insurance.
What is long term care
(LTC) insurance?
I'm healthy. I won't need
long term care. Or, will I?
Is long term care expensive?
But won't my FEHB plan,
Medicare, or
Medicaid cover
my long term care?
When will I get more information
on how to apply for this new
insurance coverage?
How can I find out more about
the program NOW? 114
114 Page 115 116
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 115 DoD/
FEHB Demonstration Project
Department of Defense/ FEHB Demonstration Project
What is it? The
Department of Defense/ FEHB Demonstration Project allows some active and retired
uniformed service members and their dependents to enroll in the FEHB Program.
The
demonstration will last for three years and began with the 1999 Open
Season for the year 2000.
The 2001 Open Season enrollments will be effective
January 1, 2002. DoD and OPM have set
up some special procedures to
implement the Demonstration Project, noted below. Otherwise,
the provisions
described in this brochure apply.
Who is eligible DoD determines who is eligible to enroll in the FEHB
Program. Generally, you may enroll if:
You are an active or retired
uniformed service member and are eligible for Medicare;
You are a dependent
of an active or retired uniformed service member and are eligible for Medicare;
You are a qualified former spouse of an active or retired uniformed service
member and you have not remarried; or
You are a survivor dependent of a
deceased active or retired uniformed service member; and
You live in one of
the geographic demonstration areas.
If you are eligible to enroll in a plan
under the regular Federal Employees Health Benefits Program, you are not
eligible to enroll under the DoD/ FEHB Demonstration Project.
The demonstration areas Dover AFB, DE Commonwealth of Puerto Rico Fort
Knox, KY Greensboro/ Winston Salem/ High Point, NC
Dallas, TX Humboldt
County, CA area New Orleans, LA Naval Hospital, Camp Pendleton, CA
Adair
County, IA area Coffee County, GA area
When you can join You may
enroll under the DoD/ FEHB Demonstration Project during the 2001 Open Season,
November 12, 2001 through December 10, 2001. Your coverage will begin January 1,
2002.
DoD has set up an Information Processing Center (IPC) in Iowa to
provide you with information
about how to enroll. IPC staff will verify your
eligibility and provide you with FEHB Program
information, plan brochures,
enrollment instructions, and forms. The toll-free phone number for
the IPC
is 1-877/ DOD-FEHB (1-877/ 363-3342).
You may select coverage for yourself (Self Only) or for you and your family
(Self and Family)
during Open Season. Your coverage will begin January 1,
2002. If you become eligible for the
DoD/ FEHB Demonstration Project outside
of Open Season, contact the IPC to find out how to
enroll and when your
coverage will begin.
DoD has a website devoted to the Demonstration Project. You can view
information such as
their Marketing/ Beneficiary Education Plan, Frequently
Asked Questions, demonstration area
locations, and zip code lists at www. tricare. osd. mil/ fehbp. You
can also view information about
the demonstration project, including "The
2002 Guide to Federal Employees Health Benefits
Plans Participating in
the DoD/ FEHB Demonstration Project," on the OPM website at
www. opm. gov. 115
115
Page 116 117
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 116
DoD/ FEHB Demonstration Project
Temporary Continuation of Coverage
(TCC) eligibility
See Section 11, FEHB Facts; it explains Temporary
Continuation of Coverage (TCC). Under
this DoD/ FEHB Demonstration
Project the only individual eligible for TCC is one who ceases to
be
eligible as a "member of family" under your Self and Family enrollment. This
occurs when a
child turns 22, for example, or if you divorce and your spouse
does not qualify to enroll as an
unremarried former spouse under title 10,
United States Code. For these individuals, TCC
begins the day after their
enrollment in the DoD/ FEHB Demonstration Project ends. TCC
enrollment
terminates after 36 months or the end of the Demonstration Project, whichever
occurs
first. You, your child, or another person must notify the IPC when a
family member loses
eligibility for coverage under the DoD/ FEHB
Demonstration Project.
TCC is not available if you move out of a DoD/ FEHB Demonstration Project
area, you cancel
your coverage, or your coverage is terminated for any
reason. TCC is not available when the
Demonstration Project ends.
Other features The 31-day extension of coverage and right to convert
do not apply to the DoD/ FEHB Demonstration Project. 116
116 Page 117 118
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service
Benefit Plan 117 Index
Index
Do not rely on this page; it is for your convenience and may
not show all pages where the terms appear. This Index is not an official
statement of benefits.
Accidental injury 65-67, 69, 106
Allergy tests 33
Allogeneic
(donor) bone marrow
transplant 49-53
Alternative treatments 42
Ambulance 64, 69
Anesthesia 54
Autologous bone marrow transplant
49-53
Average wholesale price (AWP) 81,
109
Biopsies 44
Birthing centers 11, 31
Blood and blood plasma 41
Breast cancer
screening 28-29
Cardiac rehabilitation 34, 59
Case management 85
Casts 44, 57, 61
Catastrophic protection 18-19
Certificate of Group
Health Plan
Coverage 113
Changes for 2002 8
Chemotherapy 34
Childbirth 31
Chiropractic 42
Cholesterol tests 27
Circumcision
31
Claims and claim filing 94-96
Coinsurance 15, 106
Colorectal
cancer screening 28
Confidentiality 112
Congenital anomalies 46
Contraceptive devices and drugs 32,
45, 79
Coordination of benefits
99-105
Copayments 15, 106
Covered providers 9-11
Deductible
15, 106
Definitions 106-110
Dental care 47, 86-91
Department of
Defense facilities
(MTFs) 19
Diagnostic services 23-25
Disputed
claims process 97-98
Donor expenses (transplants) 51, 53
Dressings 57,
61
Durable medical equipment 40
Educational classes and programs
43
Emergency 65-69, 86
Enrollment questions 9, 111-113
Exclusions 93
Experimental or investigational 107
Eyeglasses 37, 92
Family
planning 32
Fecal occult blood test 26, 28, 29
Flexible benefits option 85
Foot
care 38
Freestanding ambulatory facilities 10-11,
59-61
Hearing
services 37
Home nursing care 41
Hospice care 63
Hospital 10,
55-61
Immunizations 30
Independent laboratories 9
Infertility
32-33
Inpatient hospital benefits 55-58
Inpatient physician benefits
44-54
Insulin 79
Internet pharmacies 77-82, 94-95
Laboratory
and pathology services 26,
27, 30, 57, 59, 60
Lifetime maximum 76,
108
Machine diagnostic tests 26, 57, 59, 60, 66, 68
Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRIs)
26, 57, 59, 60, 66, 68
Mail Service
Prescription Drugs 77-78, 81,
95
Mammograms 28, 29
Maternity
benefits 31, 57
Medicaid 104
Medically necessary 12-13, 108
Medically underserved areas 10, 42
Medicare 20-21, 99-103
Member/
Non-member facilities 6
Mental conditions/ substance abuse
benefits
70-76
Neurological testing 24
Newborn care 24, 30, 31
Non-FEHB benefits 92
Nurse 9, 41, 62, 71
Nurse help line (Blue
Health
Connection) 85
Obstetrical care 31
Occupational
therapy 36
Office visits 23-25
Oral and maxillofacial surgery 47
Oral statements 4
Orthopedic devices 39
Ostomy and catheter supplies
41
Other covered health care professionals
9-10
Out-of-pocket
expenses 15-19
Outpatient facility benefits 59-61
Overpayments 19
Overseas claims 17, 85, 94, 96
Oxygen 40, 41, 57, 61
Pap test 26, 28, 29
Participating/ Non-participating
providers
6-7, 109
Patient Safety and Quality Monitoring
Program 83
Patients'
Bill of Rights 7
Pharmacotherapy 24, 34, 71, 74
Physical examination 27,
30
Physical therapy 35
Physician 9
Plan allowance 16-17, 108-109
Pre-admission testing 57
Precertification 12-13, 110
Preferred
Provider Organization (PPO)
6-7
Preferred providers 6-7, 108
Prescription drugs 77-84
Preventive care, adult 27-30
Preventive
care, children 30
Primary care providers 9
Prior approval 13-14, 110
Prostate cancer screening 28, 29
Prosthetic devices 39
Psychologist
9
Psychotherapy 70-76
Radiation therapy 34 Renal dialysis 34, 59
Room and board 56, 72, 75
Second surgical opinion 24
Skilled
nursing facility care 62
Smoking cessation 43, 71, 74, 79
Social Worker
9
Speech therapy 36
Stem cell transplant support 49-52
Sterilization
procedures 32, 45
Subrogation 105
Substance abuse 70-76
Surgery
44-47
Assistant surgeon 45 Multiple procedures 45
Outpatient 44-46, 59 Reconstructive 46
Syringes 79
Temporary
Continuation of Coverage
(TCC) 112-113
Transplants 48-53
Treatment therapies 34
VA facilities 19 Vision services 37-38
Weight control 45, 84
Well child care 30, 31
Wheelchairs 40
Workers' compensation 104
X-rays 26, 42, 57, 59, 60, 66, 68 117
117 Page 118 119
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 118
Standard Option Summary
Summary of benefits for the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Service Benefit
Plan
Standard Option – 2002
Do not rely on this chart alone. All benefits are subject to the
definitions, limitations, and exclusions in this brochure. On this page we
summarize specific expenses we cover; for more detail, look inside.
If you want to enroll or change your enrollment in this Plan, be sure to put
the correct enrollment code from the cover on your enrollment form.
Below,
an asterisk (*) means the item is subject to the $250 per person ($ 500 per
family) calendar year deductible. If you use a Non-PPO physician or other health
care professional, you generally pay any difference between our
allowance
and the billed amount, in addition to any share of our allowance shown below.
Benefits You Pay Page
Medical services provided by physicians:
Diagnostic and treatment services provided in the
office...................................................
PPO: 10%* of our
allowance; $15 per office visit
Non-PPO: 25%* of our allowance 23-24
Services provided by a hospital:
Inpatient........................................................
Outpatient .....................................................
PPO: $100 per admission
Non-PPO: $300 per admission
PPO: 10%* of our allowance (no deductible for surgery)
Non-PPO: 25%* of
our allowance (no deductible for surgery)
55-58
59-61
Emergency
benefits:
Accidental injury ..........................................
Medical emergency.......................................
PPO: Nothing for outpatient hospital and physician services within 72
hours; regular benefits thereafter
Non-PPO: Any difference between our payment and the billed amount
within
72 hours; regular benefits thereafter
Regular benefits
65-67
68
Mental health
and substance abuse treatment...... In-Network (PPO): Regular cost sharing, such
as $15 office visit
copay; $100 per inpatient admission
Out-of-Network (Non-PPO): Benefits are limited
Prescription drugs ................................................ Retail
Pharmacy Program:
PPO: 25% of our allowance; up to a 90-day supply Non-PPO:
45% of our allowance (AWP); up to a 90-day supply
Mail Service Prescription Drug Program:
$10 generic/$ 35 brand-name per
prescription; up to a 90-day supply
Dental care...........................................................
Scheduled allowances for diagnostic and preventive services, fillings,
and
extractions; regular benefits for dental services required due to
accidental
injury and covered oral and maxillofacial surgery
Special features: Flexible benefits option; 24-hour nurse line; services for
deaf and hearing impaired; travel
benefit/ services overseas; and health
support programs
85
Protection against catastrophic costs
(your out-of-pocket maximum)
...........................
Nothing after $4,000 (PPO) or $6, 000 (PPO/
Non-PPO) per contract
per year; some costs do not count toward this
protection
18-19 118
118
Page 119 120
2002 Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Service Benefit Plan 119
Basic Option Summary
Summary of benefits for the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Service Benefit
Plan
Basic Option – 2002
Do not rely on this chart alone. All benefits are subject to the
definitions, limitations, and exclusions in this brochure. On this page we
summarize specific expenses we cover; for more detail, look inside.
If you want to enroll or change your enrollment in this Plan, be sure to put
the correct enrollment code from the cover on your enrollment form.
Basic
Option does not provide benefits when you use Non-preferred providers. For a
list of the exceptions to this requirement, see page 11. There is no deductible
for Basic Option.
Benefits You Pay Page
Medical services provided by physicians:
Diagnostic and treatment services provided in the
office...................................................
PPO: $20 per
office visit for primary care physicians and other health
care
professionals; $30 per office visit for specialists
Non-PPO: You pay all charges 23-24
Services provided by a hospital:
Inpatient........................................................
Outpatient .....................................................
PPO: $100 per day up to $500 per admission
Non-PPO: You pay all charges
PPO: $30 per day per facility
Non-PPO: You pay all charges
55-58
59-61
Emergency
benefits:
Accidental injury ..........................................
Medical emergency.......................................
PPO: $50 copayment for emergency room care; $30 copayment for
urgent care
Non-PPO: $50 copayment for emergency room care
Same as for accidental injury
65-67
68
Mental health
and substance abuse treatment...... In-Network (PPO): Regular cost sharing, such
as $20 office visit
copayment (prior approval required); $100 per day up to
$500 per
inpatient admission
Out-of-Network (Non-PPO): You pay all charges
Prescription drugs ................................................ Retail
Pharmacy Program:
PPO: $10 generic/$ 25 formulary brand-name per
prescription/ 50% coinsurance ($ 35 minimum) for non-formulary brand-name
drugs. 34-day maximum supply on initial prescription; up to 90
days for
refills with 3 copayments
Non-PPO: You pay all charges
Dental care........................................................... PPO:
$20 copayment per evaluation (exam, cleaning, and x-rays);
most services
limited to 2 per year; sealants for children up to age 16;
$20 copayment for
dental services required due to accidental injury;
regular benefits for
covered oral and maxillofacial surgery
Non-PPO: You pay all charges
Special features: Flexible benefits option; 24-hour nurse line; services for
deaf and hearing impaired; travel
benefit/ services overseas; and health
support programs
85
Protection against catastrophic costs (your out-of-pocket maximum)
........................... Nothing after $5,000 (PPO) per contract per year;
some costs do not
count toward this protection 18-19 119
119 Page 120
2002 Rate Information for
Blue Cross and Blue Shield Service
Benefit Plan
Non-Postal rates apply to most non-Postal enrollees. If you are in a
special enrollment category, refer to the FEHB Guide for that category or
contact the agency that maintains your
health benefits enrollment.
Postal rates apply to career Postal Service employees. Most employees
should refer to the FEHB Guide for United States Postal Service Employees, RI
70-2. Different postal rates apply
and special FEHB guides are published for
Postal Service Nurses, RI 70-2B; and for Postal
Service Inspectors and
Office of Inspector General (OIG) employees (see RI 70-2IN).
Postal rates do not apply to non-career postal employees, postal retirees, or
associate members of
any postal employee organization who are not career
postal employees. Refer to the applicable
FEHB Guide.
Non-Postal Premium Postal Premium
Biweekly Monthly Biweekly
Type
of Enrollment Code Gov't Share Your Share Gov't Share Your Share USPS Share Your
Share
Standard Option
Self Only 104 $97. 86 $41.12 $212.03 $89. 09 $115.52
$23.46
Standard Option
Self and Family 105 $223. 41 $94.83 $484.06 $205. 46
$263.75 $54.49
Basic Option
Self Only 111 $94. 85 $31.61 $205.50 $68. 50 $112.23
$14.23
Basic Option
Self and Family 112 $223. 41 $75.74 $484.06 $164. 10
$263.75 $35.40 120