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Health
Newsletter
Brought to you by Risk Mciiitigement
greeting
Welcome to the first edition of Pathway To Health, a quarterly
newsletter brought to you by Financial Risk Management. As a
department of the Finance Division, it is the mission of the Risk
Management Department is to protect the assets of the Tribe its
people, property, and financial resources : so that the Tribe can
continue to meet its obligations to its members. In that regard, FRM
supports the mission of CTGR by administering a variety of insurance
programs, including the self-insured medical payment plan offered
to all tribal members and eligible elder spouses. This newsletter will
focus on the Tribe's Medical Payment Plan with the goal of providing
you with useful information associated to the plan and general health
information. We're excited about spreading the word on new services,
contacts, plan changes, fun health information and upcoming events.
This newsletter was designed with you in mind and it is our goal to
continue to be responsive to all members and families of our Tribe. So,
please don't hesitate to contact us at 503-879-2487 with comments,
kudos, ideas or questions. We'd love to hear from you!
Sincerely,
Debby Larsen
FRM Manager
tions PPO network, UMR will notify you by letter. Tribal members
will have a 6 months grace period ending December 31, 2007 to tran
sition care to in-network providers. For any services received from
providers that are in network currently, but not an in-network UHC
provider will be paid at the in-network benefit level until December
31. For any services to a non-participating provider received after
December 31, benefits will be paid at the out-of-network benefit level.
For out-of-network services, members may be responsible for charges
over the Usual, Customary and Reasonable (UCR) in addition to
deductibles and co-insurance.
If your provider is not participating in the United Healthcare Op
tions PPO Network, please have your provider call 1-877-812-3210
to initiate the contracting process. .
If you have any questions, please contact United
Medical Resources at 1-888-284-7236.
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The Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde (CTGR) Health Plan
is actively reviewed by the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde
Financial Risk Management (FRM) Department to ensure that the
plan is providing quality care and access for our Tribal members.
The Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde are pleased to announce a
new provider network to the Tribal Member Health Plan (Medical
Payment Plan) effective June 1, 2007. The new Preferred Provider
Network, United Healthcare (UHC) Options PPO network (PPO) will
provide for greater access for all Tribal members as well as a higher
quality of care and financial savings to the Tribe.
United Healthcare has the largest national network. Today, UHC
provides access to high quality care from more than 470,000 physi
cians and 4,500 hospitals across all 50 states and in four international
markets.
Currently, the CTGR Tribal member health plan uses several
regional provider networks across the country. Utilizing the UHC
Options PPO network will consolidate the provider networks and be
more convenient for members. Effective June 1, regardless of what
state you reside in, CTGR will utilize the United Healthcare Options
PPO Network. The dental network is not affected and will remain
PPOUSA.
How do I know if my Provider is in the UHC Network?
To verify that your current providers participate in the United
Healthcare Options PPO network you can visit www.myumr.com.
Look under My Menu, at PPO Links. Find a provider then choose
United Healthcare Options PPO Network. You can also call UMR
at 1-888-284-7236 to speak to a representative in the Provider Rela
tions department.
What if my current providers are not in the UHC Network?
If any of your current preferred providers are not in the UHC Op-
The Native American
Medicine Wheel
a sacred symbol representing
the wholeness of life.
East Mental
South Spiritual
West Emotional
North Physical
If heart disease, cancer or diabetes runs in your family, learning
how to tailor your diet can increase your longevity.
Everyone can benefit from eating a health-promoting diet that's
rich in fruits, vegetables, whole grains, low-fat milk, lean meats and
fish, and low in saturated and trans fats, cholesterol, salt and added
sugars.
"In fact, it's estimated that following that core diet, combined with
exercising moderately for 30 to 60 minutes daily and avoiding harm
ful substances such as tobacco, could prevent 80 percent of all heart
disease, up to 90 percent of all diabetes and as much as 60 percent of
all cancers," says David L. Katz, M.D., director and co-founder of the
Prevention Research Center at the Yale University School of Medicine
in Derby, Conn., and author of Dr. David Katz's Flavor-Full Diet.
However, if you have a family history of a chronic condition, you can
gain added protective benefits by personalizing your diet to prevent
specific diseases.
To simplify that task, here are three major health concerns and key
food tactics to help stack the dietary deck in your favor.
Halt Heart Disease
What you eat and how you prepare food can strongly affect your
heart disease risk. The following food prescriptions can help reduce
your risk. -
Use olive or canola oil. These plant oils contain heart-healthy
monounsaturated fat, which can reduce blood cholesterol when used
instead of saturated and trans
fats, such as butter, vegetable
shortening, lard and partially
hydrogenated oil. Both satu
rated fat and trans fat, which
mimics saturated fat in the
body, raise "bad" LDL choles
terol more than anything else
in your diet.
Use heart-smart bread
spreads. If you already have
high LDL cholesterol, Katz suggests using spreads such as Take
Control, Smart Balance or Benecol instead of butter or margarine.
These spreads contain ingredients that help reduce LDL (bad) cho
lesterol levels.
Eat fish twice a week. Fish, especially cold-water fish such as
salmon, albacore tuna, mackerel and herring, are rich sources of
omega-3 fatty acids, which help reduce the rate for plaque buildup,
decrease triglycerides and reduce blood pressure.