Glossary of Acronyms:
ACA: Affordable Care Act (“Obamacare”)
CDH: Consumer Driven Health (also called Consumer Directed Health) plans – these have lower premiums and higher deductibles than traditional health insurance plans, and also include a Health Savings Account (see below); CDH plans are intended to engage health consumers more actively in managing their own care and encourage them to seek the most cost-effective care, since they are paying for it themselves up to the deductible ceiling.
ETF: (Wisconsin) Employee Trust Fund – manages the state’s insurance system and retirement funds
GIB: (Wisconsin) Group Insurance Board – provides oversight for the ETF’s insurance management
HSA: Health Savings Account – a pre-tax account to which both employee and employer may contribute, and which the employee can use for co-payments and most other healthcare expenses (including medical costs that fall within the deductible); funds remaining in an HSA at the end of the calendar year are rolled over to the next year
OOP: out-of-pocket limits – the maximum amount of medical expenses to be paid by an insured
individual or family, before the health insurance plan begins to cover at least some of those costs
THM: Total Health Management – an approach that identifies a particular group’s greatest health risks by analyzing large data sets; it then engages all parties (patients, insurers, healthcare providers and employers) to use available resources proactively for preventive care and treatment
WRS: Wisconsin Retirement System