Has a 529 College Savings Plan account made a difference for you, your child/children, or your grandchildren attending or planning to attend college? We'd like to hear your story!

As we enter the new year it is time to recognize employees and departments that went above and beyond in their responsibilities last year.

Please take a moment to reflect back on 2016 and using the online form https://goo.gl/forms/ImvOYTnVjAsD5Rgl1 nominate a fellow employee (staff or student) and/or department that you feel is deserving of recognition for their outstanding performance in 2016.

Any current UA Statewide employee can make nominations and can submit more than one nominee for each category. Please note that executives are not eligible for this award and self-nominations are not allowed.

The nomination form will be open through Friday February 3, with an awards ceremony in April. Exact day, time and locations for the event will be provided at a later time.

The University of Alaska Board of Regents will host a two-hour public testimony session by telephone on February 21 from 4-6 pm, in advance of the full board meeting on March 2-3 in Anchorage.

Regardless of where you are in Alaska, you can participate in the Tuesday, Feb. 21 audio public testimony by calling 866-726-0757 between 4 and 6 p.m. to share your perspective on issues facing the university.

The public testimony will air on KUAC-FM HD2 and stream on KUAC2 at www.kuac.org. The direct link to the live streaming is http://kuacii.streamon.fm/. The audio will play on computers, laptops, mobile phones and most other hand-held devices with internet capability.

To learn more, go to www.alaska.edu/bor/ public-testimony.

Agendas for committee and full board meetings will be posted at least one week prior to meetings at: http://www.alaska.edu/bor/ agendas/

The FY17 wellness program is rapidly approaching the April 30^th deadline! Any employee, spouse, or FIP that is currently on the UA Choice Plan is eligible to participate and earn the FY18 wellness rebate. No enrollment necessary, you simply need to access your Healthyroads account and get started with the following requirements:

1. Complete a Personal Health Assessment (PHA)
2. Get a Biometric Screening
3. Earn 5 points

A link to log-in to your Healthyroads account is provided on the UA benefits/wellness page. Also provided on the same site are several helpful documents that will get you up-to-speed on the wellness program in-general AND learn how to complete everything needed to earn your $600 wellness rebate!

• FY17 Program Overview
• FY17 Program Overview Presentation
  • A detailed presentation that reviews all wellness resources, a demo of the Healthyroads site and everything you need to do about the requirements
• Biometric options based on campus
• Healthcare provider form
• And more!

Sara Rodewald, UAs on-site program manager from Healthyroads, will also be holding several program overview sessions over the next few months. Keep an eye on your email with those details, or feel free to contact her directly for anything wellness-related!
Email: sararo@ashn.com
Phone: (907)450-8203

Premera recently announced that it has contracted with OrthoAlaska – the largest Orthopedic Surgery group in Anchorage. This group combines both OPA – Orthopedic Physicians Anchorage and AFOC – Anchorage Fracture & Orthopedic. Their contract is effective January 1, 2017.

This means that UA Choice plan members will now receive the in-network level of benefits when using these providers. This means your claims will be covered at 80 percent of the allowed amount, and anything the provider charges over the allowed amount will be written off. You will owe your deductible and 20 percent coinsurance until the out-of-pocket limit is reached. The provider can't balance bill you for amounts over the allowed amount.

FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) issued an alert on employment scams targeting college students. Phony job opportunities are advertised via college employment websites or students’ university emails. Unfortunately, students who take the bait suffer financial losses.