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Basic Plan Features
Q. What are the POS II option's basic features?
A. The Plan's basic features are:
- The Plan generally covers only
medically necessary care and services.
- Inpatient hospital stays must be pre-certified
for maximum benefit allowed by the Plan.
- The Medical POS II network of participating providers offers you savings in both time and money.
- Preventive care provisions help you stay healthy.
- The Plan offers you the opportunity to have your benefits determined before a procedure is performed.
The POS II option includes the features listed below.
Medically Necessary
Expenses are covered under this option only if they are medically necessary.
Care is medically necessary if it is a therapeutic procedure, service or supply
used in the medical treatment of an injury, disease, or pregnancy, which is
generally recognized by the United States medical community as appropriate. Claims
are reviewed as submitted, and some or all of any claim or series of services could
be denied as not being medically necessary. It also means
that experimental or investigational
procedures, drugs, devices or biological
products not proven by long-term clinical studies are generally not covered. See
page 40 for limited exceptions.
When determining medical necessity, the Administrator-Benefits may
consider the Clinical Policy Bulletins (CPBs) published by Aetna, the claims
administrator. CPBs are based on established, nationally accepted governmental
and/or professional society recommendations, as well as other recognized sources.
These CPBs may be found on the Aetna
Web site at www.aetna.com or the Aetna NavigatorTM Web site at
www.aetnanavigator.com.
Pre-Certification and Pre-Admission Review
Generally, a hospital stay must be pre-certified before you are admitted.
See the Information Sources section at the front of this SPD for the
telephone numbers. However, there are other services that require
pre-certification as listed below.
| If you do not pre-certify a non-POS II hospital stay, you
will be responsible for the first $500 of eligible expenses. In addition,
if a hospitalization does not meet the requirements for benefit coverage,
the Plan will not reimburse you for room and board charges related to the
stay and/or for any services not covered or medically necessary.
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For Non-Emergency Medical Care:
- Hospitalization
- If you are using a POS II network provider, your provider
will handle the pre-certification process for you.
- Before you are admitted to a hospital that does not
participate in the POS II network, you must call Aetna for a medical pre-admission review.
This is required for most inpatient admissions, including extended-care
facilities.
- You are not required to call to pre-certify:
- Hospitalization outside the United States; or
- Outpatient surgery, even if performed in a hospital.
- Durable medical equipment
- In order to receive plan benefits, you
should obtain a pre-determination for the purchase or repair of durable medical equipment
such as wheelchairs, hospital beds, and equipment for administering
oxygen.
- Hospice care.
- Extended care facility.
- Skilled nursing care.
- Home health care.
- Private duty nursing.
For Emergency Medical Care:
Certification must be made within 48 hours following an emergency
inpatient admission. If the admission is on a weekend or holiday,
notification must be made within 72 hours.
- If you are using a POS II network provider, your provider will obtain certification for you.
- You or someone acting on your behalf must call to certify care if you are in a
non-network
or out-of-network area
hospital.
For Mental Health or Chemical Dependency Care:
You must call Magellan Health Services for pre-certification of any mental
health or chemical dependency care. This applies whether you are inside or
outside the United States.
If mental health or chemical dependency care is not pre-certified, it is not covered, except for non-network inpatient treatment.
See special provisions for inpatient stays and emergency care on page
31.
The Aetna POS II network is not used for mental health or chemical dependency care. Contact
Magellan Health Services for network information and pre-certification of any mental
health or chemical dependency care. See the Information Sources section on
page 1.
If you require mental health or chemical dependency care in conjunction with a medical emergency, you
must notify Magellan within the appropriate time periods described on page
31.
About Pregnancy
Federal law mandates that benefit programs such as the Medical
Plan cover eligible participants for a minimum length of stay for delivery and
newborn hospitalizations. Those minimums are 48 hours for vaginal delivery and 96
hours for a Cesarean section. However, federal law generally does not prohibit the
mother's or newborn's attending provider, after consulting with the mother, from
discharging the mother or her newborn earlier than 48 hours (or 96 hours as
applicable). Any pregnancy-related hospital stay will be treated like any other
illness, and you must pre-certify.
Medical POS II Network
The network includes a group of physicians, hospitals, and
other providers who have met standards for licensing, academic background and
service. If you use network providers, the Plan pays a larger portion of
the covered expenses. Network providers have agreed to negotiated charges
which may save you and the plan money. Other advantages to using Medical
POS II network providers for medical care are:
- Most office visits and most related laboratory and x-ray work are
provided for a small, fixed
co-payment and you do not have to meet the annual
deductible.
- Other covered expenses from network providers are reimbursed at
80% of a negotiated rate after you meet the annual
deductible.
- Your annual out-of-pocket maximum is significantly lower.
- Medical POS II network providers file claims and handle the
hospital pre-admission review process for you.
- All negotiated charges are within reasonable and customary
limits (see definition on page 43).
Anyone in the POS II option may receive
network benefits by
using Aetna Choice® POS II
network providers.
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Network Locations
Medical POS II networks are located throughout the United States. As explained
on page 4, the Medical POS II is part of the Aetna Choice®
POS II network.
You are a network participant if you live in a Medical
POS II area.
These are some of the Medical POS II areas:
- Billings, Montana
- Beaumont, Texas
- Baton Rouge, Louisiana
- Dallas, Texas
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- Fairfax, Virginia
- Houston, Texas
- New Orleans, Louisiana
- Torrance, California
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To determine if you or an eligible dependent resides in a
network area, contact Aetna Member Services with the resident's ZIP code. If
you or an eligible dependent resides in a network area, you can use Aetna's
Internet DocFind®
(www.aetna.com/docfind) to locate providers in the area.
ExxonMobil Me, the HR Intranet site, has a ZIP code search tool that identifies
whether your home address ZIP code is located in an Aetna network area or
in an out-of-network area.
Benefits Based on the Network Status of the Provider
Generally, you will receive network benefits only if the provider is in
the Medical POS II network. This
applies whether or not the care is received in a network area or in an
out-of-network area.
To Find an Aetna Choice®
POS II Provider:
- Check DocFind®
(www.aetna.com/docfind) on Aetna's Web site for the most up-to-date list of Choice®
POS II providers.
The site is updated three times a week.
- Call Aetna Member Services for help with locating a
POS II network provider.
Before your appointment, confirm with Aetna Member Services
and/or the doctor's office whether the doctor participates in the network,
because network participation may change.
$20 Co-Payment for Office Visits/Lab Work when
provided by a primary care physician; $30 co-payment when provided by a
specialist.
When you use Medical POS II network providers for routine office visits, you are not subject
to the annual deductible.
You pay a co-payment for each routine office visit,
including most related lab work and radiology performed by a POS II network provider.
The co-payment does not apply to more extensive tests including:
- MRI
- Radiopharmaceutical stress test
- CAT scan
- Angiography
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- PET/SPECT
- Myelography
- MUGA scan
- Sleep studies
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If an injection (other than an injection into a vein or artery) is
received in a network doctor's office without an office visit, the co-payment
will be the actual cost of the injection or the office visit co-payment,
whichever is less. The co-payment does not apply to injections associated
with infusion therapy and chemotherapy.
These co-payments do not apply to your deductible but do
apply to your annual out-of-pocket limit. See the explanation beginning on
page 42 for more information about deductibles and co-payments.
Is Your Doctor a Network Provider?
Call your doctor's office to confirm his or her participation in the Aetna Choice®
POS II network. If your doctor is not participating, ask him or
her to consider applying to participate. Your doctor can obtain information
about becoming a network participant from Aetna's Web site
(www.aetna.com/provider/medical_plan.html) or
by calling Aetna Credentialing Customer Service at 1-800-353-1232.
Show Your ID Card
When you visit a physician or other health care provider, present your
Medical Plan identification card. This helps the provider confirm your eligibility and understand your
benefits coverage.
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If you show your ID card to a network provider, the office staff should only ask you
for your co-payment and any deductible amounts, not for full payment.
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If You Live in a Medical POS II Network Area and Do Not Use Medical
POS II Network Providers
When you use non-network providers:
- Your out-of-pocket costs will generally be higher. The Plan's reimbursement level is
60%
of reasonable and customary charges, after you satisfy the deductible.
- You must call Aetna to initiate the medical pre-admission review
process for inpatient treatment.
- If your provider's charges are above reasonable and customary limits,
you are responsible for paying any amounts above reasonable and customary limits.
- You are responsible for submitting claims.
Emergency Care
Go to the nearest hospital or urgent care facility for treatment.
Benefits for emergency care (as a result of emergency outpatient
treatment or an emergency admission to a hospital following emergency
outpatient treatment received at the same hospital) are paid at the 80%
level for both network and non-network providers. However, the 80% level
for emergency care by non-network providers is only payable until the
patient is determined able to be safely transferred to a network
facility.
Emergency services from non-network providers are
limited to reasonable and customary amounts, except those for radiology,
pathology, anesthesiology, ambulance or emergency room physician
services.
When you go to the emergency room, you are subject to a
$75 deductible. If you are admitted as an inpatient to the hospital
following emergency outpatient hospital treatment, the $75 will apply to
your separate hospital deductible.
Care While Traveling
For non-emergency care, call Aetna Member Services to identify a nearby
POS II network provider or check DocFind on Aetna 's Web site
(www.aetna.com/docfind).
If You Live Outside a Medical POS II Network Area
If you live outside a Medical POS II network area, you are considered to be in an out-of-network area and you will be reimbursed at
80% of reasonable and customary charges when you use a non-network
provider for services other than those listed under Emergency Care. In
addition, you must satisfy the deductible for all covered services other than
preventive care. You are responsible for initiating the medical pre-admission
review process for inpatient treatment unless you use a network provider.
Even though you may not live in a Medical POS II network area, you may
live in or near locations where there are Medical POS II providers. If you receive
care from an Aetna Choice®
POS II network provider — even while traveling —
you will receive network reimbursement and network co-payments will apply. If a Covered Family Member Lives Away from Home
If you live in a Medical POS II network area and you have a covered dependent who lives away
from home (for instance, you have a child away at school), your dependent's ZIP
code determines the level of benefits the Plan pays.
Call Aetna Member Services with your dependent's ZIP code
to find out if Aetna has a Choice®
POS II network in the area. If a network is
there, you can contact Aetna Member Services or use the Internet DocFind
to identify providers in the area. Here is how benefits are determined:
- If your dependent receives care from a network provider, benefits will be paid at the network level.
- If your dependent lives in a Medical POS II
network area but uses non-network providers, benefits are paid at the non-network level.
- If your dependent lives in an area where the
Medical POS II network is not available and receives care from a non-network
provider, benefits are paid at the out-of-network area level —
regardless of whether you live in a network or non-network area —
if you have notified Aetna of your dependent's address.
Upon request, Aetna Member Services will provide an identification card for your dependent.
Benefit Pre-Determinations
You can call Aetna Member Services to determine in advance whether a
particular treatment or service is covered under the POS II option and whether the proposed cost is within reasonable and customary
limits for out of network providers. See the Information Sources section
at the front of this SPD.
In many instances, you may receive an answer over the phone.
In other cases, information from your provider may be needed. You or your
doctor can also request a pre-determination of benefits, in writing, before the
service is performed.
This pre-determination may require review by one or more doctors. Be sure to allow time for
this review between the pre-determination request and the proposed date of the service. By
obtaining the written response, you will have more detailed information about the level of
reimbursement.
When you call for a benefit pre-determination, be ready to provide the
following information:
- Primary participant's name and Social Security number or ID number;
- Patient's name;
- Complete description of medical services or surgical
procedures. If possible, include five-digit Current Procedural
Terminology (CPT) codes, which
you can get from the provider;
- Provider's ZIP code; and
- Provider's proposed fee for each service.
Preventive Care
If you use a POS II network provider, you pay a single $20 or $30, depending on
what provider you use, co-payment for office
visits and most related lab and x-ray work performed in conjunction
with the visit.
If you live in a Medical POS II network area but do not use a POS
II network physician, you will be reimbursed 60% of reasonable and customary charges
for covered preventive care services after meeting your annual deductible.
If you live in a location where there is not a Medical
POS II network area, the Plan reimburses 80% of reasonable and customary charges for
covered preventive care services, and you do not have to meet your
annual deductible. The 20% you pay toward the cost of preventive
services does not apply toward your deductible but does apply toward
your annual out-of-pocket maximum. These preventive services include:
- An annual routine physical examination, not paid for by the
company.
- Routine laboratory screening tests.
- Well-baby care for children under age 7, as recommended
by the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and adopted by the Plan:
- limited to seven visits from birth to 12 months;
- two visits from 13 to 24 months;
- and one visit per year thereafter, including hearing examinations.
- Pap smears or similar diagnostic tests.
- Mammograms.
- Occult blood screenings.
- Sigmoidoscopies.
- Certain immunizations.
To receive out-of-network preventive care benefits,
the doctor's bill must indicate that the service is preventive in nature.
If you are found to have a condition requiring additional treatment, the
additional covered services will be paid after you meet any remaining
annual deductible.
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