It seems that there are always new rules, regulations and changes in the realm of health care. From health care reform, industry changes and pressures to control costs while maintaining a valuable benefit, we are working hard to keep the health plan effective and affordable. There have been some changes to the health plan this year that you should know about.

• 90 days of Generic Medications from Retail Pharmacy
• Prior Authorization Requirement
• Services from Non-Network Providers

Read about these plan changes HERE.

The Records and Information Management Office is pleased to announce the completion of the coordinated system-wide effort to establish a unified process to streamline and automate the management of Performance Evaluation documents in the OnBase system. In association with UAA, UAF, UAS and SW HR the Performance Evaluation Document type is now available in OnBase for the HR functions.�
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Campus HR departments committed valuable resources in developing the necessary configuration infrastructure to create and manage the Performance Evaluation documents in OnBase. Key advantages of this effort are centralized management, easy access to the information and reduction in cost of maintaining the physical records.� Future envisioned improvements include electronic forms that can be filled, reviewed, signed and archived in one single step that would eliminate multiple versions of the same document. We thank UAA, UAF, UAS and SW HR personnel for providing valuable inputs, testing, feedback and validation during the development process and appreciate their continued support.

In concert with Statewide Office of Human Resources, SAA will lead a discussion on being change agents within the work place. Change is not always a bad thing and can be a positive experience. Being receptive to change, along with envisioning a better future, brings rewards, but requires hard work. Our performance appraisal form defines change agent as: accepts the need for change in the continuous improvement process. Helps facilitate change; seeks out opportunities to be involved with change; discusses and communicates about change in a positive tone; helps others understand the big picture .

To help start the discussion on change in the work place, SAA bought a few copies of Who Moved My Cheese? by Spencer Johnson. Statewide employees are welcome to check out the books through the System Governance Office. Look for more discussion points to come in the future.

Sadly, incidents of gun violence in American schools is a contemporary issue that all universities and colleges across the United States must contemplate. The University of Alaska has purchased a license agreement that allows students, faculty and staff to view an online training video about surviving an active shooter situation. The video is designed to empower students, faculty and staff with knowledge and strategies for preventing and surviving these types of situations.�

The University of Alaska takes the safety and security of all UA faculty,staff and students across the state very seriously. That's why we're askingyou to take just 20 minutes out of your day, today, to watch the "ShotsFired" video:

�https://docs.google.com/a/alaska.edu/file/d/0B7o5QCJQDN0MLWdPTUNiUnhkbFE/edit

If you have any questions regarding this training video, or if you'd likemore information, please call your campus University Police Department (at UAS, Health & Safety).

UAA (907) 786-1149 UAF (907) 474-7721, UAS (907) 796-6077

Dear Statewide employee,

We have a fundamental commitment to making Travel Expense Management (TEM) successful. After a realistic assessment, we have granted the universities an extension in the implementation of TEM in order to provide additional time for training and concurrently address some concerns on functionality raised by them.

Since substantially all SW employees have received training, SW travel requests and reimbursements should be processed via TEM. This will enable a quick turnaround on your travel reimbursement if you have direct deposit. As a reminder, direct deposit can be established via UAOnline through the Finance tab.

Please note, we want to know if you desire some additional training or have not received training. We want you to be comfortable using TEM. Note that training on TEM is always available.

As always, we are interested in your feedback on any aspect of TEM or the travel process and any desired improvements.

In this direction, please feel free to contact Laura Katucki or Anna-Mariah Kelly or call 450-8050 for assistance.

Dr. Ashok K. Roy
Vice President for Finance & Administration/ CFO