Plan administrators can now add deposits to their plan members’ Health Care Spending Account (HSCA) or Taxable Spending Account (TSA) on the plan administrator website. This will save them time and effort as they no longer need to contact the Manulife Customer Service Centre or fax the information. This new feature is available for those plan sponsors who have a HCSA/TSA in their benefits plan.

What they need to do

Plan administrators will need to sign up to take advantage of this tool. They will have to complete the Plan Administrator Internet and Billing Registration form, checking the applicable boxes in section 4, and send it back to us. The form can be found in the “Forms and brochures” section of the Plan Administrator website.

Once set up, and deposits have been added, sponsors will receive an email within three business days, with a confirmation number and an Excel report showing completed deposits.

Adding deposits online means quicker transactions and a simplified new hire onboarding experience.

For more information, please contact GBRS_Digital_Solutions_Inquiries@manulife.com.

A new “ease of doing business” initiative is now underway in Group Benefits, and is focused on foundational upgrades to our customer experience. These small but meaningful improvements will help pave the way for happier customers.

One of these new foundational upgrades is the new “Send Files” tool on the plan administrator website which will help administrators have a more seamless, secure and better benefits experience.

Plan administrators will be able to send confidential secure files in any file format, through the plan administrator website (previously files had to be sent via fax or mail). This will help save them a considerable amount of time and provide faster service.

The “Send Files” tool provides a secure channel to send files such as:

• Eligibility Forms –containing personal information such as date of birth, salary, and dependents’ names. This saves 3-5 days of mailing time, which means the plan member can start using their benefits much sooner.
• Pre Authorized Debit Forms - these are authorizations given by the plan administrator to withdraw premium payments from their accounts. The “Send Files” secure channel protects banking information and speeds up the processing time.
• Self Admin Billing Statements – these statements contain personal information about plan members or sensitive information about the company. The “Send Files” tool allows plan administrators to securely transfer this information.

In the past, plan administrators may have been concerned about sending confidential information through email. The “Send Files” tool now allows plan administrators to send us any file type they wish (e.g. .doc, .jpg, .pdf, .xls) in a secure way for processing.

For more information, please contact sheila_austin@manulife.com.

• NEW Pharmacy Savings Search – an online tool that shows plan members where to get their prescriptions for less!
• Vision and paramedical coverage balances on the plan member secure site

Online claims enhancements including:

• Addition of Health Care Spending Account (HCSA), coordination of benefits and orthodontic claim types
• Disability claims

Prior Authorization, Specialty Drug Care and Manulife DrugWatch™ are just a few of Manulife’s programs that help plan sponsors manage rising drug costs associated with specialty drugs while still focusing on a positive experience and healthy outcomes for members.

Processes for each of these innovative programs are integrated and work together to provide the best experience and savings for sponsors and members.

Expected savings provided the next 12-18 months

• Prior Authorization: $61 million
• Specialty Drug Care: $12 million
• DrugWatch: $$57 million

Manulife’s team of expert pharmacists and dedicated product managers understand the complex world of pharmacy benefits, and use their knowledge to analyze industry datat and work with key stakeholders including pharmaceutical manufacturers, health care providers and plan sponsors to develop tools and adapt drug plans so they continue to be sustainable for the millions of plan members who rely on them.

• Plan sponsors and advisors will have access to standard reports with added customization available through online self-serve capabilities.
• Help plan sponsors manage their group savings program, and take action to help their members make the most of their plan.
• Includes both Group Benefit and Group Retirement, so both lines of business will enjoy a converged reporting experience.
• Launched in July 2016: The Asset package, consisting of seven group retirement reports
• Launched in November 2016: Five more group retirement reports

Contact: Laura Simon and Kim MacFarlane

Manulife recently partnered with some of Canada's best wellness providers to expand our range of services to provide employers and employees with convenient access to on-site wellness services. Worksite Wellness Services is a comprehensive suite of wellness activities that can be offered to help employees adopt and maintain a healthy lifestyle. Some of the services being offered include health screening clinics, flu-shot clinics, seminars, wellness challenges and executive medical assessments

Benefits:

• Best-in-class wellness services at a preferred price
  • In addition to our current wellness offerings, we now offer a wider range of best-in-class bilingual, national wellness services.
  • These expanded services will be provided through our partnership with three leading health and wellness service providers in Canada: Tri Fit, Lifemark and ProHealth.
  • These fee-per-service based activities will be offered at a preferred price by working through Manulife.
• Expert advice from our Health Management Services team
  • Clients will also have access to our experienced team of wellness consultants to help them strategically select the most relevant health and wellness services for their organization and make sure the services are adapted to meet their unique needs.
  • Comprehensive programs can be designed or individual services can be selected.

More details and communication materials available on Marketplace under Worksite Wellness

• Diabetes drugs are now included under prior authorization. Members with Type 2 diabetes are required to have tried and failed on a first line therapy before being reimbursed for the higher cost, second line alternative (can be hundreds or even thousands of dollars more expensive).
• This is in line with Canadian Diabetes Association Clinical Practice Guidelines which recommend that plan members should be started on the lowest cost alternatives.
• In order to support a positive experience for members, we've implemented an automated point of sale protocol that enables pharmacists to support the recommended switch to the lower cost alternative when a physician has not followed the prescribing guidelines.

Launched: August 2016

Contact: Cheryl Pillitteri and Kim MacFarlane

Plan administrators with online billing access can now view the monthly premium amounts for each of the benefits their members have. This information is displayed under the new column Monthly Premium on the Plan member coverage summary. To view Monthly Premium information, click here.

What’s new?

• October 2016 - Repatha® and the newest indication for Humira have completed the DrugWatch evaluation process. Repatha®, an injectable medication for high cholesterol, and a new indication for Humira to treat hidradenitis suppurativa (HS) – a chronic inflammatory skin disorder - are now listed on Manulife drug plans with corresponding patient focused delivery programs.
• June 2, 2016 - A pharmaceutical manufacturer approached Manulife to discuss pricing for a new high cost drug in advance of it coming to market and going through DrugWatch. We negotiated material savings on the cost of this drug for our plan sponsors and minimized its financial impact to the point that it fell below our DrugWatch threshold. The drug was available for all members the first day it was stocked on pharmacy shelves, at a much lower cost.

About DrugWatch

This rigorous oversight program was developed to ensure plan sponsors are getting value for the dollars they spend on costly new drugs that are entering the market.
These new drugs are introducing new risks to health benefits plans, which could endanger a plan’s financial viability and affect employees’ access to life altering medications.

Benefits:

• Provides a critical eye on emerging drugs.
• Offers a reliable, third-party review to determine the value of new drugs coming to market.
• Delivers a rigorous screening process to help ensure new drugs can be offered efficiently and at the right value for the money.
• Will be applied to plans of all sizes and segments, delivering a new standard in protection and value.

More details and communication materials available on Marketplace

HR Support Services is now available to Manulife group benefits clients with 2 to 399 employees – at no additional cost. The service is powered by HRdownloads™, one of Canada's most credible Human Resources providers. Clients receive access to live HR advice, an online resource centre, online employee training (e.g. WHMIS) and survey tools. We think HR Support Services could prove to be one of the most valuable aspects of your clients’ entire group benefits program – and a valuable tool for you to attract and retain business.

For more information

Manulife.ca/HR
Video for Advisors about HR Support Services

Specialty drug claims represent less than two per cent of total drug claims but almost 30 per cent of total drug spend. Manulife’s Specialty Drug Care (SDC) program helps deliver cost savings and improved health outcomes. It features a preferred pharmacy network, preferred pricing and case management services delivered by registered nurses with expertise in specialty drug patient care.

The savings per prescription is on average 8.5 per cent, with overall savings to drug plans expected to grow as specialty drug costs rise and usage increases.

More details and communication materials available on Marketplace.

Launched: October 2016

In the second phase of the Short-Term Absence Redesign project, our Short-Term Disability (STD) management offerings will be streamlined and redesigned in order to address issues raised by our clients, market sources and our Distribution team, including:

• Too many products with similar acronyms and product names that didn't always clearly represent the product
• Confusion between key features, making the offerings seem overly complicated

We will also introduce our Stay at Work Services, a suite of à la carte specialized services focused on prevention, that will be made available to both our STD and LTD clients. These services can better address some employees' unique needs to help prevent short-term disability, whenever possible.

New study results on mental health in the workplace

As part of Manulife’s overall goal of helping our clients improve their employees’ mental health, we’re very pleased to share the results of the Salveo Study, one of the most comprehensive research studies on mental health in the workplace ever conducted in Canada.

Conducted by the Université de Montréal, Université Laval and Concordia University, and in partnership with Manulife, the Salveo Study featured over 2,100 employees from 63 organizations and analyzed 63 management practices.

The study has helped identify organizational and personal risk factors that may trigger major mental health disorders: psychological distress, depression and burnout. It also provided answers on how employers can take action to help reduce the impact of mental illness in the workplace.

Take a look at our Salveo Study brochure, which provides a complete overview of the study.

We’re excited to announce that we’re taking the first step towards combining the GB and GRS sign in experience for desktop and mobile users. The new dual login feature will allow plan members to assess their group accounts from a single page. By combining the GB and GRS sign in experience we hope to increase usage, strengthen our convergence offering and support our health and wealth story.

NEW sign in page for GB and GRS will go live on March 27th. The page features dual login so plan members can access their group benefits and/or group retirement accounts from one page. It also has a new ad tile to promote pre-login GB or GRS (respectively) specific messaging to our members.

NEW Manulife Mobile App will be available for Apple and Android the week of March 27th. The app also features dual login so plan members can manage their group benefits and group retirement accounts from one app. It combines all the capability of both our existing apps in one.

Current GB and GRS app users will receive notification to download the new app and delete the old version(s) on their device. We will support all three apps during this transition as we work towards phasing out the old GB and GRS apps.

Account executives and advisors can use this email template to inform plan sponsors.

Knowing that an employee’s finances are often their biggest source of stress (from our Health and Wealth research), we’ve developed the Financial Wellness Assessment.. This tool will help employees alleviate this stress and take control of their financial situation. Originally developed for GRS clients, we will now be making it available to GB clients in order to promote the link between finances and health.

The Financial Wellness Assessment measures a member’s current level of financial wellness and – based on their answers and financial priorities – provides them with a score and a personalized action plan to improve their situation.

• Simple, quick online questionnaire (less than 5 minutes).
• Creates a customized action plan.
• Offers various tools and resources to help members take action.
• Members can compare their score with other Canadians from the results of the Manulife Financial Wellness Study – Benchmark 2016.
• Reporting will be available for plan sponsors to review the results for their workforce and identify areas of concern

• Launching in 2017: The first 10 group benefit reports, and five more group retirement reports

Contact: Laura Simon and Kim MacFarlane

Online claims enhancements including:

• Further expansion of allowed online “submittable” claim types to include virtually ALL types of claims
• Updated, simplified user interface

In 2017 we’ll be expanding our Specialty Drug Care program to allow plan sponsors to customize the program to realize more savings (e.g. ability to make the program mandatory)