Health & Welfare

Local 399 H&W Plan Expands
to a VSP Ancillary Network

Effective February 1, 2013, Costco and Visionworks were added on
to Local 399's Health & Welfare Plan as Affiliate Providers.

COSTCO: You must have a COSTCO membership to take advantage of
the low-cost frames and lenses at the Costco locations. You do not need
a Costco membership to have an eye exam - but please call VSP
Customer Service to be sure the Costco you wish to visit has a participating optometrist on site. VSP's customer service number is 800-877-7195.

Visionworks: This retail chain has been added to Local 399's H&W Plan
as an Affiliate Provider. They have several locations in the Chicagoland area. Please visit vsp.com or call VSP's Customer Service for more details on
how to use your benefits at Visionworks.

Remember: You get the maximum benefit by using a VSP preferred provider: $10 exam copay; $20 materials copay with a $130 retail frame allowance
(your frame allowance at Costco is $70) and single vision and lined bifocal/trifocal lenses covered in full. (You can also use a vision provider
that is out of network and get up to $150 yearly benefit.)

Click here to view/download VSP flyer for addtiional details

Call the H&W Fund Office or VSP's Customer Service with questions.

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2013 Dates Set for Health Fair

Building Bridges to Health

For the 4th year, Local 399 is joining other labor unions in the area in hosting and participating in a health fair. Local 399's Health & Welfare trustees have once again authorized a 100% benefit for a comprehensive laboratory screening test for members, their spouses and their adult children over the
age of 19. Flu shots will also be offered to adult plan participants at no cost
to the member. Keep this in mind when you are scheduling your physician
visit(s) this year. All lab results are sent directly to your physician.

These "Saturday Health Fairs" have been well received by members who
have attended in the last few years. You can attend at any of the following
locations. Watch your mail this summer for full information on this opportunity.

September 21, 2013 - Volo

September 28, 2013 - Elmhurst

October 5, 2013 - Chicago - Local 399 Union Hall

October 12, 2013 - Burr Ridge

October 26, 2013 - Tinley Park

November 2, 2013 - Merrillville

November 9, 2013 - Aurora

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Would you prefer to pick up your 90-day maintenance medications
at the retail pharmacy or use the mail order option?

Effective this May, you will be able to fill your long-term maintenance medication at CVS pharmacies if you prefer that option over using the Caremark mail-order facility. This applies to medications you take every day and for which your physician writes long-term prescriptions.
This program is called Maintenance Choice.

Watch your mail this spring for more information.

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KEEP YOUR INFORMATION CURRENT
IN OUR LOCAL 399'S FILES!

Do we have your Correct Beneficiary in our Files?

The H&W Plan has a $10,000 death benefit. Active members of Local 399
have a $1,000 death benefit. If you want to be certain we have a correct
and current beneficiary on our files, please call the Fund Office and inquire.
If there is a change, we will have you complete a beneficiary change form and
change both the H&W and union beneficiary designation accordingly.

Have you moved, changed phone numbers
or home email address?

Dont overlook notifying the union and H&W of a change of address or phone number when you make these changes. An expired post office forwarding order can mean you do not receive H&W Plan information, Local 399 Newsletters, Explanation of Benefit statements and other mailings.

Please be sure to keep us informed!

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ARTICLES OF INTEREST:

Dietary supplements for mind and memory: what works,
what doesn't, from the Harvard Men's Health Watch

Can taking a pill improve memory or boost brain function? That's an important question to ask about the long list of supplements that allegedly "support" or "help" the brain. These include three B vitamins (folic acid, vitamin B6, and vitamin B12) and antioxidants such as vitamin C, vitamin E, and coenzyme Q10. But wait, there's more: the herbal supplements huperzine A and ginkgo biloba, along with nutraceuticals like fish oil (containing omega-3 fatty acids), curcumin, and coconut oil.

Cross off most of these products for lack of solid scientific evidence, reports the December 2012 Harvard Men's Health Watch. "There are a lot of things out there for which we have no data on whether they are safe or do anything to help," says Dr. Gad Marshall, an assistant professor of neurology at Harvard Medical School. Click here to read entire article

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Eat your way to a healthy heart, from the
January 2013 Harvard Heart Letter

For everyone planning to make 2013 the year of heart-healthy eating, the January 2013 issue of the Harvard Heart Letter offers month-by-month suggestions for achieving this goal. Changing old habits isn't easy, especially when switching from the average American diet to one that's better for the heart and the rest of the body. It may take several adjustments to cut back on saturated fat, sodium, and added sugar and add more soluble fiber and nutrients.

That's why the Heart Letter asked certified chef and nutrition educator Dr. Michelle Hauser, an internal medicine fellow at Harvard-associated Cambridge Health Alliance, to come up with one change to make each month on the way to adopting a heart-healthy diet. Click here to read entire article