Since July 1, 2015 members on UA Choice health plans have had 24-hour access to inexpensive virtual care through Teladoc. Teladoc doctors can diagnose many medical problems, recommend treatment and can even prescribe medication via a phone or online video consultation. Teladoc costs less than a regular office visit or an urgent care or emergency room visit. You don’t have to leave your home or office to be seen, and no sitting in waiting rooms with other sick people! Plus, you can use Teladoc from anywhere. We wanted to spread the word about this benefit since few have taken advantage of this service despite clear advantages to members and savings for the plan.

Virtual care doesn’t replace your primary care provider, but can provide real-time access to an in-network provider when you have a minor illness that doesn’t need a trip to the doctor’s office, you’re traveling, your regular doctor is unavailable or you have no in-network provider options. For example, a member can call for a prescription renewal for $40 instead of the cost of a full office visit. Registration for the service is available on the Premera.com website.

It is it easy to talk to a doctor anytime* and anywhere. Simply log in to your account or call (855) 332-4059 for conditions like:

• Cold and flu symptoms
• Respiratory infection
• Ear infection
• Urinary tract infection
• Allergies
• and more!

The quality of care is not reduced, just the price. All Teladoc doctors:

• Are U.S. board-certified in internal medicine, family practice, emergency medicine or pediatrics.
• Are U.S. residents and licensed in your state.
• Average 15 years of practice experience.

Employees are encouraged to sign up via the Premera member portal to take advantage of this convenient and cost-saving service: https://member.teladoc.com/premeraak

* Teladoc makes available access to consultations to its doctors for phone consultations 24 hours, 7 days a week while video consultations are available during the hours of 7 a.m. to 9 p.m., 7 days a week.

There is a new computer backup solution called Code42 CrashPlan that OIT will deploy on UA Statewide Windows and Mac computers on Thursday, September 15, at 10:00 am .

How will this benefit me?
CrashPlan runs silently in the background and continuously backs up your computer, complete with file versioning and encryption security, allowing you to quickly and easily restore files on your own.�

What action do I have to take?
OIT will be automatically deploying CrashPlan to all UA Statewide Mac and Windows computers on Thursday, September 15, at 10 a.m. During the automatic install, you may notice a pop-up announcing that CrashPlan is being installed - you can ignore the informational message and keep working. The install takes about 5-7 minutes and afterward CrashPlan prompts you to log in with your UAusername and password. Once you log in, that’s it! CrashPlan will be running in the background keeping your files backed up and secure. From then on, you’ll only need to interact with CrashPlan when you want to restore files.

Is it easy to restore files?
Yes, restoring files is easy to do on your own or you may call the OIT Service Desk for assistance. There are two ways to restore files on your own, through the CrashPlan application installed on your computer, or by going to https://crashplan.alaska.edu/login/ and log in with your UA credentials.

Want to know more?

Code42 provides thorough documentation for CrashPlan - topics include:

• Getting Started Guide:
  https://support.code42.com/CrashPlan/5/Getting_Started
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• Restoring Your Data:
  https://support.code42.com/CrashPlan/5/Restoring

If you have questions or concerns please contact the OIT Service Desk, http://www.alaska.edu/oit/get-help

For the upcoming holiday and winter break, the University of Alaska will close from December 26, 2016 through January 4, 2017.� In addition, soft closure days may be observed from December 19-23, 2016 and from January 4-6, 2017.� The dates and detailed information are outlined below:

• Monday, December 19 through Friday, December 23- Regular work days, soft closure permitted (see definition below). Use of annual leave or leave without pay (LWOP) required if not working.
• Monday, December 26- Christmas holiday, all offices closed. Regular, benefitted non-exempt employees claim holiday leave on time sheet.
• Tuesday, December 27 - Christmas holiday, all offices closed. Regular, benefitted non-exempt employees claim holiday leave on time sheet.
• Wed-Fri, December 28, 29, 30 - Hard closure, all offices closed. Use of annual leave or LWOP required if not working.
• Monday, January 2 - �New Year’s holiday, all offices closed. Regular, benefitted non-exempt employees claim holiday leave on time sheet.
• Tuesday, January 3� - New Year’s holiday, all offices closed. Regular, benefitted non-exempt employees claim holiday leave on time sheet.
• Wednesday, January 4 through January 6 - Regular work days, soft closure permitted (see definition below). Use of annual leave or leave without pay (LWOP) required if not working. �

NOTE:

Soft closure, or ‘discretionary’ work days: Departments may reduce business hours or service level provided and/or allow multiple staff time off. All time used will need to be claimed as annual leave or LWOP.

During all dates above, individuals whose services are deemed by their supervisor as ‘essential’ must work as directed unless appropriate backup is designated. Employees requesting to work will need supervisor approval.

Employees in PERS retirement (Tiers I, II, or III) should contact HR if taking LWOP because your retirement credit for 2016 and/or 2017 (“soft closure” or “hard closure”) may be affected.

During all dates above, individuals may use annual leave or LWOP unless the absence is due to an illness per sick leave regulations.

If you have any questions please contact Human Resources at 450-8215. Have a happy holiday season.

September is College Savings Month and the UA College Savings Plan would like to remind UA employees that NOW is a good time to start, review, or increase college savings for a loved one through employee payroll deduction or automatic monthly contributions from your bank account. As the nation’s only 529 plan located within the walls of a university, we have a unique perspective and ability to support students and employees in paying for post-secondary education.

Students requesting distributions to pay for their educational expenses are always grateful to have had money saved on their behalf. UA employees with college aged children, or with a desire to attain their own degree, are equally thankful that they are able to supplement the Employee Tuition Waiver with money saved in a college savings plan account. As the benefits of savings come to fruition for the beneficiary, we celebrate. We are happy to make saving for college easy for UA employees and Alaska families.

Here’s how you can celebrate the rest of the month:

• Attend one of the College Savings Month Webinars offered by our Program Manager, T. Rowe Price on September 29th at 8 am, 11 am, or 5 pm. For details visit: http://rpstrowepricereg35.fugent.com/home/events.asp
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• Grow your accounts through systematic monthly contributions. Payroll deduction is convenient way for UA employees to fund their college savings accounts. To participate in payroll deduction, first set up an account in the UA College Savings Plan. Register online at www.uacollegesavings.com�or by calling 1-800-478-0003. Then, fill out Payroll Deduction Request form (FORM) and return it to the UA College Savings Plan�office. Alternatively, you can enroll in Automatic Monthly Contributions.
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• Follow the UA College Savings Plan (www.facebook.com/ak529) on Facebook and watch for updates about upcoming events and tips during the month of September.
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• Get to know the UA College Savings Plan staff. Drop into Suite 207 of the Butrovich Building (Fairbanks) or Suite 209 of the Bragaw Office Building (Anchorage); or reach us at 474-5671 and collegesavings@alaska.edu.� We’re here to answer your 529 questions.