Western Health Advantage

Programs: Public benefit health coverage the organization promotes the common good and general welfare of the community by offering health benefit coverage to the public through multiple, easily accessible channels. The organization serves individuals, families and small employer groups, and some large employer groups, the majority of whom are the employees and dependents of its two members, dignity health and northbay healthcare group (collectively "member health systems") and governmental entities, including the university of california, several school districts and cities, water districts, fire districts, conservation districts and other such governmental entities. Employees and dependents of the organization's two member health systems, which engage in tax-exempt and charitable purposes, comprise 21% of all of the organization's enrollees. Governmental entities' employees and dependents comprise an additional 28% of all of the organization's enrollees. All enrollees are entitled to receive the full range of benefits defined by the state and federal government as "basic health care services"essential health benefits". The organization provides coverage of preexisting conditions and high-risk individuals without a price differential and without regard to age (for individuals younger than 65), income, or employment status. The organization's premiums are kept low in order to make its coverage more affordable for members of the public, individuals enrolled through covered california and through employer groups. The organization does not decline coverage to any individual of the public based on health condition, nor does the organization discriminate on the basis of race, ethnicity, country of origin, sex, gender, or gender identity or expression. All members of the public may purchase health coverage from the organization, which benefits the community as a whole. More specifically, the organization benefits the community and promotes social welfare by reason of (1) enrollment that is open to individuals and small groups, (2) serving low income, high risk, medically underserved, or elderly persons, and (3) having hmo premiums on a community-rated basis coverage to individuals. The organization's commitment to ensuring that health coverage is available to the entire community is shown by its marketing/community relations budget and marketing materials. The organization heavily focuses on expanding its health care offerings in the individual market. Substantially all of the organization's marketing budget and marketing personnel are devoted to promoting coverage through covered california and other offerings of individual coverage. The organization communicates with its members and providers through quarterly printed publications. Advantage magazine is a quarterly magazine aimed at promoting healthy lifestyles and assisting members to take advantage of their health benefits coverage. Provider insider is an informational magazine for providers also sent every three months. The organization's service area includes a number of counties that have a significant number of uninsured individuals. The social welfare purpose of the organization is demonstrated by the fact that it operates in a service area that includes medically underserved, low income, rural and high risk persons. The organization's service area includes both medically underserved populations ("mups") and medically underserved areas ("muas"). Muas and mups are areas or populations designated by the federal health resources and services administration ("hrsa") as having too few primary care providers, high infant mortality, high poverty and/or a high elderly population. Wha wellness programs. Wha provides wellness resources and support for individual and employer/broker-driven wellness initiatives, whose overall goal is to reduce healthcare costs for society. Wha's wellness manager works closely with large employer groups, particularly municipalities and school districts, to help develop wellness programs designed to improve the health of wha's members. Wha's wellness manager also works with small companies upon request. Wellness presentations programs are tailored to each employer groups' needs, with an emphasis on modifying health behavior, preventing illness, and facilitating access to health resources. This is done by conducting educational seminars, getting involved in employer-sponsored wellness campaigns and challenges, promoting online wellness resources, and participating in health fairs wellness programs for individuals. Our online wellness program reaches individuals by offering health assessments and tracking tools. The main purpose of our wellness program is to educate our members on healthy living and put them in touch with tools and resources that will help them to improve their health. Members can access health resources through the western health advantage website wellness programs for the community. Wha's wellness initiatives reach beyond wha's base of approximately 135,000 members. Educational seminars and programs at the employer-group level are offered to all employees regardless of health plan affiliation. Health resources and information are freely given at health events, and wha's wellness manager appears regularly in media driven campaigns, including giving interviews on local television news programs seen throughout northern california, promoting healthy eating and activity. Thus, wha's wellness initiatives reach potentially millions of people in the northern california region. Whafit whafit is wha's own health and wellness program, formed in 2013, to promote the health and well-being of wha's approximately 240 employees. Promoting positive behavior changes among wha's employees benefits the community, as these employees are members of the community that wha serves. Wha stands for not only western health advantage, but in this context, wellness, health and action. Wha and the american heart association additionally, wha's wellness manager leads a coordinated "workplace achievement index" wellness program with the american heart association (aha), which brings the aha's vast resources on heart-healthy living to many worksites in the region. Through this program the aha and wha help create healthy work environments, which increases productivity, reduces absenteeism (due to fewer health problems experienced by employees), and lowers turnover.

community outreach and support. The organization supports member health systems' missions through charitable grants. The organization provides benefits to the community beyond health care benefits through funding programs for the promotion of health and other charitable purposes, including support for the charitable activities of the member health systems. For fiscal year 2016-2017, the organization budgeted over $1,000,000 to support charitable programs which benefit the community served by the organization, including (1) a $100,000 grant to the american heart association for a community health awareness program, (2) a $100,000 grant to the crocker art museum for outreach and education programs, and (3) sponsorship of healthy kids day, which is intended to increase awareness of healthy lifestyles for children and offers free health, dental and vision screening for children, and free flu shots for members of all ages. Wha supports local communities. Benefiting the community is at the core of wha's being and so we support the communities where we live and work. Wha has been connecting our services with the needs of area residents for many years and for one reason - to keep them, their family, and their neighbors healthy. It is our singular mission, and by working together, we can continue to make our community a healthier place to live, now and into the future. Wha strives to strengthen the fabric of neighborhoods and improve and enrich the lives of community members by supporting worthy local organizations. As a local organization, almost all of our economic impact is felt in the greater sacramento area, from salaries to purchasing to charitable giving, wha supports programs or activities that provide treatment and/or promote health and healing as a response to identified community needs by supporting local organizations. In particular, wha is committed to the following activities: health, and wellness nutrition, healthy families and well-being are all central to our mission; arts, a healthy community nourishes the body, mind and soul; local safety net, support for the most vulnerable, at-risk members of our community reinforces our commitment to improving the region; civic leadership, as a local company, we have a vested interest in building the capacity of our community relations. Wha is a partner to the communities we serve, community relations develops and implements outreach programs, including social and community awareness incentives. Each year, wha provides financial assistance for a variety of cultural and community events, as well as health and human services organizations events. Contribution of wha employees to wha's community. Wha employees exemplify our organization's objectives and philosophy of "giving back" to those we serve each year, they donate more than 2,000 volunteer hours serving on boards, working in schools and supporting local non-profit organizations in a wide variety of ways. Wha's mission is to improve and enrich the lives of community members by supporting local organizations. Throughout the year wha announces giving opportunities that have a positive impact on the health and wellbeing of the community. In support of this mission, wha encourages employee participation, whether through financial donations, volunteer efforts or community activities like weekend fun runs and an annual bike trek with supervisor approval, employees can also attend events that may occur during regular work hours. Dollars for do-ers. Western health advantages dollars for do-ers program will donate up to $100 per year to a selected charity on behalf of the employees who have confirmed their volunteerism of 20 or more hours with the organization. Wha employee matching charitable contributions. Wha matches employee charitable donations dollar for-dollar, up to $250 per fiscal year per employee. Employees can give via payroll deductions or one-time cash donations. Donations must be made to qualified nonprofit organizations. Wha offers employees 8 hours of paid time-off each year to volunteer at the organization of their choice. In addition, employees are given the opportunity to participate in 8 hours of volunteer activities at western health advantage sponsored events. Wha ceo involvement in the community. The president and ceo of wha, garry maisel, supports various community charities and causes, in addition to improving healthcare for the community as an active board member of wha.