Health TALK. It works! The flu shot keeps millions healthy. The Key to a good life is a great plan

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1 Voltee para español! FALL 2013 The Key to a good life is a great plan Health TALK In this issue Flu shots... Page 1 Benefit Credits... Page 2 Breast cancer... Page 2 Quit smoking... Page 3 Members Matter... Page 4 Heating assistance... Page 5 Postpartum depression... Page 6 It works! The flu shot keeps millions healthy. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently studied how well the flu shot works. They looked at flu data from the past six years. They found that the flu vaccine prevented: 13.6 million illnesses. 5.8 million doctor visits. 112,900 hospitalizations. Everyone over the age of 6 months should get a flu shot each year. New shots become available in the fall. They protect against the types of flu experts predict will be most common this year. Get yourself and your family vaccinated soon. PRSRT STD U.S. Postage PAID United Health Group UnitedHealthcare Community Plan 9200 Worthington Rd., 3rd floor Westerville, OH Get yours. Flu shots are available in many locations. Need to find one that accepts your health plan? Visit MyUHC.com/CommunityPlan or call (TTY 711). AMC-028-OH-CAID

2 Rewards for checkups Kickoff to Good Health As a member of the UnitedHealthcare Community Plan, the Kickoff to Good Health Program offers you a chance to earn up to $100 in Benefit Credits. Just see your doctor and dentist and have an eye exam. Benefit Credits can be used to order personal health care products from the Kickoff to Good Health catalog. Plus, each family member enrolled in the health plan can get up to $100 in Benefit Credits by having health checkups, too. Within the first 90 days of enrollment in your health plan, you must visit your primary care provider (PCP) for a checkup to earn $50 in Benefit Credits. Smile bright. After your checkup with your PCP, make appointments with your dentist and eye doctor. When you have these exams within 6 months of enrollment in your health plan, you can earn additional Benefit Credits. Saving lives There are more than 2 million breast cancer survivors in the U.S. Screenings can help find the disease before there are any symptoms. Breast cancer can be cured if it is found early. The American Cancer Society recommends: SELF-EXAM: Start doing monthly breast self-exams at age 20. A doctor or nurse can show you how. Tell your doctor right away if you notice any changes in the look or feel of your breasts. CLINICAL BREAST EXAM: Your doctor should check your breasts during a regular physical exam. Women ages 20 to 39 should get checked at least once every three years. Exams may be more frequent as you get older. MAMMOGRAM: Women should get their first mammogram, called a baseline mammogram, between years old. Women aged 40 and older should get this specialized breast X-ray every year. What s right for you? Women with a higher risk of breast cancer may need a special screening plan. Talk to your provider about your risk factors. Make a plan for regular screening. 2 HEALTH TALK

3 You can quit Join the Great American Smokeout. Health services report card UnitedHealthcare Community Plan s Quality Improvement program works to give our members better care and services. Each year we report how well we are providing health care services. Many of the things we report on are major public health issues. In 2012, more members received body mass index (BMI) screening for obesity, breast and cervical cancer screenings and vaccinations for HPV. Members also received more recommended prenatal and postpartum care and adolescent well child visits. More diabetic members had eye exams. Member surveys also show improved ratings for personal physicians and specialists and communication with doctors. UnitedHealthcare Community Plan is committed to continuing to improve our health services and member satisfaction. Tobacco use is the largest preventable cause of disease in the United States. It s also the No. 1 cause of premature death. Yet, one in five Americans still smokes cigarettes. Millions more people smoke cigars or pipes or chew tobacco. If you are one of more than 60 million tobacco users in the U.S., it s time to quit. The Great American Smokeout may be a good day for you to quit tobacco even if it s just for one day. This yearly event takes place this fall on Nov. 15. You can do it. Talk to your doctor about medications that can help. You can also increase your chances of success with support. Call the national Quitline at QUITNOW ( ). Driven to distraction All kids get antsy sometimes. They don t always pay attention. But some kids may have these problems most of the time. Their behavior can cause problems at home or school. If your child has at least five of these symptoms at home and at school, talk to his or her doctor about ADHD: gets distracted easily talks too much changes activities quickly forgets things often can t follow directions doesn t finish tasks loses things often can t sit still for long runs around a lot touches everything is very impatient can t control his or her feelings Get it all. If you would like to have more information about our Quality Improvement program and our progress toward meeting goals, please call (TTY 711). FALL

4 School breakfast A healthy start to the day Help your child start the day right with school breakfast! School breakfast offers nutritious meals that help your child stay alert in class. And with the help of Children s Hunger Alliance, breakfast at school is affordable. If your child qualifies for free and reduced price lunch, he or she also qualifies for free or reduced price breakfast. Children s Hunger Alliance is a statewide, nonprofit organization that ensures all children are fed regular, nutritious meals and develop lifelong healthy eating habits. Red Treehouse Raising a family can be tough. Discover answers, make connections and find hope through the Red Treehouse. The online resource has connections to resources and support networks. Plus, it can help you find fun events for your family in your community. Eat right. To learn more, call or visit childrens hungeralliance.org. Check it out. Visit redtree house.org to learn more. Members Matter L-R standing: Diana Schilling, Erin Moore, Jennifer Norz, Kevin Glenn, Myron (Kent) Wiseman, Eleia (Ellie) Abeille. L-R sitting: Christiane Bagent, Anna Parker, Michele Hanna, Ariel Jordan. UnitedHealthcare Community Plan provides its members with a Members Matter personal representative. Your Members Matter representative can explain things such as: information on participating providers. changing providers. ordering new ID cards. accessing specialty care. filing a grievance or appeal. It s personal. To contact your personal Members Matter representative, or speak with any of our dedicated Member Services team members, call (TTY 711). Select extension 6, 7 or 8. 4 HEALTH TALK

5 Going mobile Get dental benefit, provider and health information on the go. The new My DentaQuest Mobile app is a fast and convenient way to find a dentist and receive oral health information. It works on any Apple or Android phone or tablet. It is free of charge from your device s app store. The My DentaQuest Mobile app gives you instant access to a list of in-network dentists in your area. It also has a library of oral health education materials. Finding a dentist and maintaining good oral health has never been easier! Questions? If you have questions about your dental benefits or about a dentist, call UnitedHealthcare Community Plan toll-free at (TTY 711). Heating assistance programs in Ohio The Home Energy Assistance Program (HEAP) is a federally funded program administered by the Ohio Development Services Agency s Office of Community Assistance (OCA). It is designed to help eligible low-income Ohioans meet the high costs of home heating. HEAP provides a one-time assistance payment. Applications for the Regular HEAP program will be accepted through May 31, Stay warm. For more information or to apply, contact the local Community Action Agency or contact HEAP toll free at FALL

6 Resource corner Member Services Find a doctor, ask benefit questions or voice a complaint (TTY 711) NurseLine Get 24/7 health advice from a nurse (TTY 711) Healthy First Steps Get pregnancy and parenting support (TTY 711) Our website Use our provider directory or read your Member Handbook. MyUHC.com/CommunityPlan Text4Baby Get messages about pregnancy and your baby s first year. Text BABY to for messages in English. Text BEBE to for messages in Spanish. Or sign up at text4baby.org. National Domestic Violence Hotline Get free, confidential help for domestic abuse (TTY ) Smoking Quitline Get free help quitting smoking QUIT-NOW ( ) ) Beyond the baby blues Could you have postpartum depression? After your baby is born, your hormones go through big changes. This can make you feel very emotional. It s common to feel weepy, angry, worried or anxious beginning two to three days after delivery. These are normal feelings. If these feelings do not go away after a week or start to get worse, you could have postpartum depression. Other symptoms include trouble taking care of yourself or your baby or being unable to do daily tasks. You may feel anxious or have panic attacks. You may think you can t cope with the challenges of motherhood. You may even be afraid you might hurt yourself or your baby. If you think you may have postpartum depression, talk to your provider right away. It can get better with treatment. Try to take good care of yourself. Eat well and get as much rest as you can. Ask your partner, family and friends for help with the household and the baby. Talk with someone you trust. Get screened. Part of the postpartum visit is a screening for postpartum depression. See your provider four to six weeks after you give birth. If you had a C-section, also see your provider two weeks after delivery. 6 HEALTH TALK