June 1, 2020

To: Participating Employers / Human Resource Personnel / Union Partners

From: Lorne Shiplack Benefits Services Manager, Employee Benefits

Re: Spring Edition of the Employee Benefits Newsletter

3sHealth Employee Benefit Plans

We are pleased to share with you an electronic version of the spring edition of the Employee Benefits newsletter that was mailed on June 1, 2020 to all plan members.

This year the newsletter focuses on sharing information with our plan members about an enhancement to the psychology and social work coverage under the Extended Health Care plan. Effective June 1, 2020, the psychology/social work maximum increased from $1,000 to $2,000 per calendar year per insured person.

In addition, the spring newsletter provides an update on year 1 of our Path to Health disability claims management redesign, shares information around the amount of benefits paid in 2019, and update plan members on Great-West Life’s rebranding to Canada Life.

If you have additional questions about this bulletin, please call a Benefit Services Officer at

1.866.278.2301. You can also contact us by email at ebp@3shealth.ca.

3sHealth – Employee Benefits

700-2002 Victoria Ave Regina, SK S4P 0R7

T. 306-347-5519 F. 306-347-5910

Toll Free: 1-866-278-2301

Email: ebp@3sHealth.ca

Claim Closure Form Disability Income Plan Benefits

TO BE COMPLETED BY EMPLOYER

PLAN MEMBER INFORMATION

First Name

Last Name

Date of Birth

dd/mm/yy Benefit ID#

Position:

Employer #:

REASON FOR CLAIM CLOSURE

Maternity Leave

Retirement

Death

Return to Work

Please check scheduled days in the week of the return to work Sun Mon Tues Wed Thurs Fri Sat

If the employee has multiple positions please provide the return to work date and scheduled days for each position

Position

Return to Work date

dd/mm/yy

Please check scheduled days in the week of the return to work Sun Mon Tues Wed Thurs Fri Sat

Position

Return to Work date

dd/mm/yy

Please check scheduled days in the week of the return to work Sun Mon Tues Wed Thurs Fri Sat

Position

Return to Work date

dd/mm/yy

Please check scheduled days in the week of the return to work Sun Mon Tues Wed Thurs Fri Sat

Please provide any additional information about the return to work:

Signature of Payroll/Benefits Contact:

Date Signed:

dd/mm/yy

For 3sHealth use only

DISABILITY INCOME PLAN INFORMATION

Closure Type

Closure Date

dd/mm/yy

Notes:

2019.11.29

3sHealth – Employee Benefits

700-2002 Victoria Ave Regina, SK S4P 0R7

T. 306-347-5519 F. 306-347-5910

Toll Free: 1-866-278-2301

Email: ebp@3sHealth.ca

Employer’s Initial Application Disability Income Plan Benefits

TO BE COMPLETED BY EMPLOYER

PLAN MEMBER INFORMATION

First Name

Last Name

Date of Birth

dd/mm/yy Benefit ID#

Is the employee’s leave due to a work-related illness/injury? No Yes, provide the date you sent the application to WCB

PAYROLL INFORMATION

Position #1 Title:

Full-time Part-time Casual Rate of Pay:

Date employee last worked

dd/mm/yyWhat is the date the employee was/will be paid to?

dd/mm/yy

Please check the scheduled days in week of final payment Sun Mon Tues Wed Thurs Fri Sat No Scheduled Days

Has the employee returned to work? No Yes, provide the date the employee returned to work

dd/mm/yy

Please check the scheduled days in the week of return to work Sun Mon Tues Wed Thurs Fri Sat No Scheduled Days

Number of hours in regular work week

Average number of hours in regular workday

Please check the pension plan the employee belongs to: SHEPP PEPP PSSP CIVIC Contribution %

Provide the total number of regular paid hours in the 52 week period immediately preceding the employee’s last day of work

List all periods of approved unpaid

leave of absence or suspension greater

than 31 days in the 52 week period

immediately preceding the employee’s

last day of workPosition #2 Title:

Full-time Part-time Casual Rate of Pay:

Date employee last worked

dd/mm/yyWhat is the date the employee was/will be paid to?

dd/mm/yy

Please check the scheduled days in week of final payment Sun Mon Tues Wed Thurs Fri Sat No Scheduled Days

Has the employee returned to work? No Yes, provide the date the employee returned to work

dd/mm/yy

Please check the scheduled days in the week of return to work Sun Mon Tues Wed Thurs Fri Sat No Scheduled Days

Number of hours in regular work week

Average number of hours in regular workday

Please check the pension plan the employee belongs to: SHEPP PEPP PSSP CIVIC Contribution %

Provide the total number of regular paid hours in the 52 week period immediately preceding the employee’s last day of work

List all periods of approved unpaid

leave of absence or suspension greater

than 31 days in the 52 week period

immediately preceding the employee’s

last day of work

20191210

Page 1 of 2

3sHealth – Employee Benefits

700-2002 Victoria Ave Regina, SK S4P 0R7

T. 306-347-5519 F. 306-347-5910

Toll Free: 1-866-278-2301

Email: ebp@3sHealth.ca

Attending Physician’s Initial Statement Disability Income Plan Benefits

TO BE COMPLETED BY EMPLOYEE

PLAN MEMBER INFORMATION

First Name

Last Name

Date of Birth dd/mm/yy

Benefit ID#

PATIENT AUTHORIZATION

I authorize all physicians and medical practitioners involved in the assessment, investigation and treatment of the medical condition(s) affecting my absence from

work to provide 3sHealth with the information required for my Disability Income Plan benefits application.

Plan Member Signature

Date Signed

dd/mm/yy

TO BE COMPLETED BY THE PHYSICIAN

DIAGNOSIS Primary

Date of diagnosis

dd/mm/yy

Secondary

Date of diagnosis

dd/mm/yy

If the condition is related to pregnancy indicate the expected or actual delivery date

dd/mm/yy

Is this condition work related? No Yes, provide the date of injury

dd/mm/yy

Is this condition due to a motor vehicle accident? No Yes, provide the date of accident

dd/mm/yy

TREATMENT/CARE PLAN

Describe the current treatment program or care plan including the following (if applicable). Provide copies of all consultation reports and test results.

Names and dosages of medications

and any reported side effects. If you

require more room please attach a list

Medication list attached

Medication & dosage

Medication & dosage

Side effects

Side effects

Details regarding concurrent

treatments (e.g. physiotherapy,

counselling etc.)Hospital admission date

dd/mm/yyHospital discharge date

dd/mm/yy

Future plans for treatment

2020.03.30

Page 1 of 2

Spring 2020

newsletterEmployee Benefit Plans

We take care of the caregivers

Caring for the caregivers in their time of needAs our plan members across the province fight the COVID-19 pandemic, the 3sHealth Employee Benefits team is here to serve you. We strive every day to take care of the caregivers – that is truer now than ever before.

All of our services that you count on are still fully operational. We have adapted our office environment to safely adhere to the Government’s public health orders. We are still accepting your calls during office hours, responding to your email enquiries, and processing your mailed requests.

In this newsletter, you’ll find updates about our work and information about how we are continuously improving to serve you better. Contact us if you have any questions about your benefits. Also, make sure to fill out the survey found at 3sHealth.ca to tell us how we can do better.

We are working hard to care for our heroic caregivers. Thank you for everything that you do for our province.

We’d love to hear from youWe invite you to visit our website (www.3sHealth.ca) to complete a brief survey on the quality of services we provide to you, our valued customers. Plan members like you offer us insight into how we can continuously improve to serve you better. The survey will run from June 1 until July 31. It only takes a couple of minutes to complete. Thank you!

Designating a beneficiaryOne of the most important rights a person insured under the Group Life insurance plan has is the right to designate a beneficiary. Naming someone to receive the proceeds of your life insurance ensures you take care of your loved ones after your death.

The primary beneficiary is the person or persons who will receive the proceeds when you pass away. The contingent beneficiary is the person or persons who will receive the proceeds if the primary beneficiary(ies) should pass away before you.

Helpful hint:We recommend that the trustee named for your minor beneficiary be the same person you appoint as the legal guardian of your child. In the event of your death, the guardian of your child will have the life insurance proceeds available to ensure your child is financially supported.

If you name a child under the age of 18 as a beneficiary, you must appoint a trustee. The trustee will receive the policy proceeds upon your death. Your trustee has a legal duty to use those proceeds for the benefit of your named beneficiary. You will want to appoint someone who is capable of managing the policy proceeds wisely for the minor child’s benefit.

Some important things to remember when you are completing the “Beneficiary Designation Form” are:

• This form is a legal document; • You must complete the form in ink and send the

original copy to 3sHealth Employee Benefits. We cannot accept a photocopy or scanned copy. Also, do not use white out to make changes. Cross out any errors and write your initials beside the change;

• The allocation to your primary beneficiary(ies) must total 100 per cent; and

• The allocation to your contingent beneficiary(ies) must total 100 per cent.

It is important to regularly review who you have named as your beneficiary. Did you recently go through a separation or divorce? Did you have another child? Did your daughter get married and change her family name? Each time you have a life event, verify that your beneficiary information is correct.

When 3sHealth Employee Benefits learns of your death, we will automatically review your file for your most recent beneficiary designation. Check your member’s annual statement included with this newsletter to see who you’ve designated as your beneficiary. If you want to change your beneficiary, please call 1.866.278.2301.

Update: Path to Health disability claims management redesignTo better serve our plan members, 3sHealth’s Employee Benefits team has designed a new approach to disability claims management. We call it the “Path to Health.” The team has worked hard this year to implement the following improvements:

• Building our team Three new adjudicators and four new advisors are in place. The advisors are improving the daily work for the claims services team. See the story “Adding physical and mental health resources to support disability adjudicators” in this newsletter for more information.

• Making forms easier to use We developed a new brand standard for our forms. Work is in progress to update and simplify the forms and to make them electronically fillable. In addition to the forms, we are updating the disability income plan booklets. See the story “You asked. We listened” in this newsletter for more information.

• Getting in touch with plan members right away We are now using an “initial expectations call” to serve plan members better. When we receive the first notification of a claim, the Benefit Services team calls the applicant to explain the disability claim process and to answer any questions the plan member may have.

• Developing the case management plan Together with our stakeholders, we designed a case management checklist based on one that the World Health Organization uses. The checklist will ensure a consistent experience with every claim.

• Getting a better understanding of plan members’ claims Since September, the adjudicators call all long-term disability applicants to better understand their current situation. The target is to complete a C.A.R.E. (collaboration, assessment, relationship-building, and expectation-setting) call on 100 per cent of long-term disability claims within three business days.

• Promptly advising of the decision The adjudicators call every plan member to advise them of the claim decision and to answer any questions they may have.

• Building bonds 3sHealth hosted two well-attended Physician Education Sessions in December 2019.

Work has already started for year two of Path to Health.

3sHealth welcomes your feedback. We want to hear your experience applying for and receiving disability benefits. Please submit feedback by emailing EBP@3sHealth.ca or by filling out the customer survey online at 3sHealth.ca

You asked. We listened.During our Path to Health work, you asked us for forms that are simple to complete and only ask for the information we need. We heard you!

We have redesigned the disability application forms. The new “Employee’s Initial Application Form” has merged three former documents into a single two-page form. The “Employer’s Initial Application Form” now combines multiple positions on the same form. The “Attending Physician’s Initial Statement Form” is short and concise, asking for only what we need to start

the review of your application for disability benefits. We have also rewritten the plan booklets in easy-to-understand language. These booklets contain all the information you need to know about your disability income plan.

If you have copies of the old forms and booklets printed, please recycle them and use the new ones. You can find the new forms and the plan commentary booklets on our website at www.3sHealth.ca.

Adding physical and mental health resources to support disability adjudicatorsIn the first year of our Path to Health project, 3sHealth created four new advisor positions. These new positions support the adjudicators responsible for disability claim management.

The four new advisors joined the Claims Services team in fall 2019. Two of the positions are Rehabilitation Advisors. They focus on physical illnesses or injuries. The other two are Mental Health Advisors. They focus on mental illnesses. Their primary role is to support collaborative decision-making through the review of applicants’ medical information and treatment plans.

Having both physical and mental health clinical expertise embedded in the 3sHealth team is a positive change. 3sHealth’s adjudicators can review medical information with our advisors in real-time, reducing delays.

Alana Shearer-Kleefeld, the 3sHealth Director of Employee Benefits, adds, “disability benefits provide income replacement when people are too sick or injured to work. We know that our plan members are

anxiously waiting to find out if their disability claim is approved. Our new advisors allow us to review medical information with more precision and to reach claim decisions sooner. We know that our plan members are depending on us to take care of them as quickly as possible.”

In addition to supporting claim decisions, the advisors also make recommendations for proactive treatment funding on approved claims. The Disability Income Plans provide treatment funding to plan members on an approved disability claim to aid their recovery and return to work. Treatment funding includes supports such as additional physiotherapy treatments, psychology visits, or functional assessments.

“In 2019, the amount of treatment funding provided to our plan members tripled over the prior year,” says Shearer-Kleefeld. “We have only just started to tap into the potential that our advisors bring to our team. I can’t wait for more of their ideas to improve the lives of our plan members.”

In 2019, the Employee Benefit Plan Trusts paid $130,184,908 in Group Life insurance, disability income plan benefits, and health and dental claim reimbursements to eligible plan members. 3sHealth administers the Employee Benefit Plans on behalf of health-care employers in Saskatchewan.

Group Life insurance

The Group Life insurance plan paid $9,397,362 in 2019. This total includes $8,672,362 that was paid to loved ones when a plan member passed away.

The number of Dependent Life insurance claims increased to 79 from 16. That represents $725,000 paid to plan members when their spouse or child passed away. The increase in Dependent Life claims paid is a direct result of the September 1, 2018 plan enhancement to include Dependent Life with Basic Life insurance for all eligible plan members at no additional cost.

Disability Income Plans

3sHealth issued $40,779,662 in payments to plan members on approved disability claims in 2019. This figure represents 3,112 claims. The number of claims paid increased 12 per cent last year.

Dental Plans

The Core and Enhanced Dental Plans paid a combined total of $37,910,587 in reimbursements for plan members and their families in 2019.

Extended Health Care Plans

Plan members and their families received $42,097,297 in health claim reimbursements in 2019. This figure represents 1,087,300 claims.

The Extended Health Care Plan includes:• Prescription drugs; • Vision benefits;• Medical supplies, such as diabetic supplies; and • Paramedical services, such as massage,

psychology, and chiropractic services.

On June 1, 2020, the annual maximum for psychology/social work increased to $2,000 from $1,000 per insured person per year. On June 1, 2019, the annual maximum for massage therapy increased to $500 from $400 per insured person per year.

For more information on the benefits available to you under the Employee Benefit Plans, visit our website www.3sHealth.ca/our-work/benefits-at-a-glance

Coverage for mental health services doublesPlan members will receive more coverage for mental health services. The annual maximum reimbursement amount for psychology/social work is increasing.

Effective June 1, 2020, the psychology/social work coverage is increasing to a combined maximum of $2,000 per insured person per calendar year. This is an enhancement to the current $1,000 annual maximum.

The enhancement applies to all plan members and their eligible dependents.

In January of 2019, the Employee Benefit Plans Board of Trustees approved an increase to $1,000 from $400. At the time, they committed to review the impact after one year.

In 2019, the number of plan members accessing mental health support went up by 47 per cent. The amount reimbursed to plan members increased by over 100 per cent.

“For the Board of Trustees, the large increase in usage in 2019 validated that they made the right decision to increase the coverage available for psychology/social work,” said Lorne Shiplack, Benefit Services Manager at 3sHealth. “The Board of Trustees has taken action to go a step further in supporting the mental health needs of all health-care employees with this additional increase.”

As a result, plan members and their eligible dependents have more financial support to seek and sustain mental health treatment. Additional mental health supports may be available to you through community-based or employer-sponsored programs, such as the Employee and Family Assistance Program (EFAP). We encourage you to utilize all resources available to support mental wellness.

Benefits paid in 2019

$130.2 millionpaid to plan members and their families

for these benefit plans

$80.0 millionhealth and dental claims paid in 2019

$9.4 millionlife insurance claims paid to beneficiaries

$40.8 milliondisability income payments paid to plan members

Great-West Life has rebranded to Canada LifePlan members will notice some branding changes when accessing benefit services and information as Great-West Life became Canada Life on January 1, 2020.

Plan members who use GroupNet for Plan Members to submit claims electronically or check coverage balances will still be able to do so. GroupNet now has Canada Life’s branding. Your login information and the website address will not change.

3sHealth will be updating its website, claim forms, and plan booklets with the new name and logo in the coming months. There will be no changes to the existing benefit plans.

New plan members will begin to receive pay-direct drug cards with Canada Life’s name and logo. Current plan members will not receive new cards. Pay-direct drug cards with the Great-West Life name and logo will still work.

What is the role of a clinical counsellor?How can clinical counsellors help plan members? Clinical counsellors use best practices and evidence-based techniques to help individuals, couples, and families navigate challenges. Learning new skills encourages self-empowerment, which improves emotional and mental well-being.

A clinical counsellor opens the door to new perspectives, strategies, and coping skills that provide people with

choices, insight, and positive change. These counsellors help people recognize their own strengths. Counselling can provide relief from depression, anxiety, and other mental health conditions.

Registered clinical counsellors are covered under the psychology/social work benefit in the Extended Health Care Plan. Plan members can use a yearly maximum of up to $2,000 per insured person per year.

3sHealth Employee BenefitsWe take care of the caregivers