Health First Colorado Member Newsletter Issue 2, December 2016

By Maggie Bedwell / December 16, 2016 / Newsletter

Happy Holidays!

Happy Holidays to you and your family from Health First Colorado.

Please visit HealthFirstColorado.com to learn about benefits, find a doctor and find answers to frequently asked questions.

New Member Video

In this interview, University of Colorado at Denver graduate and former Health First Colorado member Anna Nguyen describes how the program helped her maintain her health and allowed her to focus on her studies while she attended college.

In this newsletter:

How Health First Colorado Helps you Stay Healthy

Click an item to jump to article

Take the first step and choose a primary care provider
New pharmacy option for members
What is your New Year’s Resolution?
Health First Colorado en Español
Join a Member Experience Advisory Council
Directory
Glossary

Dear member,

Michelle Miller, Chief Nursing Officer

Happy Holidays! It’s the time of year when we begin working on New Year’s Resolutions. If one of your resolutions is to maintain or improve your health please see our article below on how to choose a primary care provider (PCP) or join a medical home through our Accountable Care Collaborative (ACC). You can work with your PCP and medical home to access preventive services available to help keep you healthy.

Maybe you have a resolution to stop smoking or stay at a healthy weight? Health First Colorado offers smoking cessation and healthy diet counseling as part of your benefit package. For a full list of your benefits and their co-pays visit our website or download your Member Handbook. You might be surprised at some of the benefits you and your family have through Health First Colorado.

I hope you find the information in this newsletter helpful and enjoy your holidays.

Sincerely,
Michelle Miller, Chief Nursing Officer

Take the first step and choose a primary care provider

Do you have a primary care provider? Your primary care provider, also called a PCP, is your main health care doctor, physician assistant or nurse practitioner. When you choose a PCP, you choose a person to help you with health care choices. This is important because when you build a relationship with a doctor, you might feel more comfortable asking questions and bringing up health concerns.

You can ask your PCP about how to use preventive services. Some of the preventive service benefits you have include screenings for blood pressure, breast cancer, cervical cancer, lung cancer, depression and diabetes. Screenings help you and your PCP find issues early and make a plan for treating or managing those issues.

Your PCP can help you understand your risk for things like diabetes, high blood pressure or obesity and give you advice on what you can do to prevent them (some screenings or counseling benefits are restricted to certain members, for example, women age 40 or younger women who are high risk may receive a screening mammography).

If you start to feel sick or become injured, you should set an appointment to see your PCP (unless you are having a medical emergency, then you should call 911). A co-pay is the amount of money you must pay at the time of the visit. Most adult Health

First Colorado members have a $2 co-pay for visits when sick or injured. Visits for children who are sick or injured do not have co-pays. Co-pays are different for different members, check your handbook for more information.

If you do not have a primary care provider yet, visit our Find a Doctor page to find a provider who accepts Health First Colorado.

New Pharmacy Option for Members

Health First Colorado members now have the option to receive maintenance medications through the mail without having to apply for mail delivery! If you are prescribed maintenance medications to treat a chronic condition, your doctor can prescribe up to a 100 day supply of your medication (new or refilled prescriptions).

All you need is a valid prescription for a maintenance medication. The prescription must be filled by a pharmacy that is enrolled with Health First Colorado and offers mail order delivery. Ask your pharmacy if you can get your maintenance medications through the mail.

If your pharmacy does not provide mail order medications for Health First Colorado members, you can find a different pharmacy on the Find a Doctor page. If you have questions, take a look at this FAQ sheet.

What is your New Year’s Resolution?

Do you have a personal goal for 2017? Here are some ways we might be able to help you achieve your resolution.

Do you need help taking control of your health? If you are enrolled in the Accountable Care Collaborative, you have a medical home where you can receive specialized support from a care coordinator to help focus on you and your needs. Click here to see which organization administers the Accountable Care Collaborative in your region, and reach out to learn how they can support you and your health. If you are not enrolled in the Accountable Care Collaborative and would like to join, contact Health First Colorado Enrollment.

Want to lose or keep weight off? Ask your primary care provider about healthy diet counseling and healthy exercise routines. For information about healthy eating, check out this website.

Ready to quit smoking? Health First Colorado can help you get support to kick the habit. Your coverage also provides Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved medications or products for two 90-day sessions each year to assist you. Get started now by calling the Colorado QuitLine at 1-800-784-8669. For more information and resources, visit our website.

Health First Colorado can also help you get substance abuse treatment, improve oral care and manage your mental health.

Download your Member Handbook (en Español) to take a closer look at your benefits and see how Health First Colorado can help you start 2017 on the right track!

Health First Colorado en Español

Health First Colorado has a new Spanish website! Please visit it at HealthFirstColorado.com/es. To help our Spanish speaking members better access and navigate their health care, we’ve also created a video that introduces the website and tells people how to use it to learn more about getting coverage from Health First Colorado. The video is featured on the Spanish home page and you can watch it below.

If you work with the Spanish speaking community, here are some social media posts you can use to promote Health First Colorado.

Join a Member Experience Advisory Council

We want to hear from you! Apply to join our Member Experience Advisory Council. Council members give us their feedback and suggestions to help us do a better job. Learn more about the Council on our website.

Glossary

Co-pay*
The amount you pay every time you get a health service. For example, if your co-pay for a visit to your family doctor is $2, you will pay that amount every time to visit the doctor.

Preventive service

Health care you receive to prevent illness and may include appropriate screenings or counseling to prevent health problems.

Primary Care Provider*
Your main health care doctor or nurse practitioner. This is usually who you see first for most health problems, screenings, and check-ups (preventive care). Sometimes you will have to see your Primary Care Provider to get a referral to see a specialist.

*Provided by CoveredU’s Health Literacy Glossary.

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