Wellness Points Bank - FAQ

1. Do I need to participate in a biometric health screening before I take the wellness assessment?

No. The information you receive from biometric health screenings, such as your blood pressure and cholesterol level, is not required when you are taking the wellness assessment. You do, however, need to know your height and weight. What’s important to remember is that when your screening values are included in the questionnaire, the feedback you get from the assessment is more useful to you.

Regardless of the order in which you take the assessment and/or participate in biometric health screenings, you will still be able to earn 100 wellness points for each activity. This, provided that you meet the following deadlines:

• February 28, 2013: Deadline to complete the wellness assessment
• August 31, 2013: Deadline to participate in biometric health screenings

2. During the first year of the Wellness Points Bank initiative, why was August 31, 2012, the deadline to earn wellness points? (The second program year for Wellness Points Bank is: October 1, 2012 through August 31,  2013.)

Because the wellness points you earned by August 31, can reduce the rate you pay for UPlan Medical Program coverage (by $300 or $400), it was imperative that all of your wellness points be earned no later than August 31, 2012. This enabled StayWell Health Management, the University's independent third-party administrator of the Wellness Points Bank, to total the wellness points in your bank in time for Open Enrollment. Open Enrollment, the time in which UPlan members sign up for medical program benefits for 2013, begins November 1, 2012. By calculating every UPlan member's points by November 1, 2012, a person was able to know at the time of benefits enrollment if he or she had earned the total number of points needed to achieve a premium rate reduction of $300 or $400.

3. Once I have completed a points-earning wellness activity, when will the points be reflected in My Points Bank?

After completing an activity, the wellness points you earned may appear in your Wellness Points Bank (which is located on the StayWell Online website) at various times depending upon the activity in which you participated. The chart below can give you a better appreciation of the amount of time it will take to update your points bank.

4. How do I take the annual flu shot pledge to earn 25 wellness points?

To pledge that you have had a flu shot within the past 12 months follow these steps:

• Step 1: Visit StayWell Online, the website which hosts your wellness assessment results.
• Step 2: Click on My Points Bank tab.
• Step 3: Select the "Flu Shot Pledge" from the list of wellness points-earning activities.
• Step 4: Read the pledge and enter the current date, i.e., the day on which you are pledging that you have been vaccinated against influenza. You do not need to provide the date on which you were immunized.

5. How do I take the non-tobacco user pledge to earn 25 points?

If you have not used tobacco products for at least the past six months, or if you have never used tobacco, you may take the tobacco-free pledge and earn 25 points for your Wellness Points Bank.

To pledge that you are a non-tobacco user follow these steps:

• Step 1: Visit StayWell Online, the website which hosts your hosts your wellness assessment results.
• Step 2: Click on My Points Bank tab.
• Step 3: Select the "Non-tobacco User Pledge" from the list of wellness points-earning activities.
• Step 4: Read the pledge and enter the current date, i.e., the day on which you are pledging that you are, or have been tobacco-free for six months.

6. How can I earn 75 wellness points for participating in Fit Choices, a program in which a UPlan member can be reimbursed up to $20 per month for fitness center membership dues?

First, you will need to join or re-enroll in Fit Choices at a participating fitness center.* Then, when you work out eight times a month, your visits are automatically tracked and recorded by your fitness center. If, by July 31, 2013, you have earned six monthly dues reimbursements (of up to $20 per month), you will earn 75 points for your Wellness Points Bank.

*To join or re-enroll in Fit Choices you will need to bring your Medica ID card along when you sign up at your fitness center; if you belong to a University of Minnesota recreational center, registration takes place online.

7. When can I enroll in the Step It Up! program?

The Step It Up! program is one of the offerings you will find in the Wellness Points Bank. The program first became available in spring of  2012. To sign up, go to: www.wellness.umn.edu, and from here access and log in to StayWell Online, the same website which is used to complete the wellness assessment.

8. What if I enjoy getting my exercise by swimming, or bicycling, or some other type of physical activity? How can I earn wellness points for being physically active when these types of exercise are not specifically included in the Wellness Points Bank?

Check out the Step It Up! program. This online resource can be found at: www.wellness.umn.edu.

Step It Up! allows you to track all types of physical activity. Although the primary focus of the program is to track steps using a pedometer, there is a Conversion Calculator within Step It Up! that allows you to convert  the minutes or hours spent being physically active to steps. To earn 50 points for your Wellness Points Bank, you will need to exercise and record your activity one day per week for six consecutive weeks.

Starting October 1, 2012, when the new program years begins, it will also be feasible to earn 50 points for Wellness My Way, a self-directed approach to accomplish a personal health or wellness objective.

9. How can I be assured that I have received by reimbursement for the registration fees that I paid up front for weight management programs, or Group Strength Express or Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction?

Reimbursements for Weight Watchers at Work®, Create Your Weight, Group Strength Express, and Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction programs are all directly deposited into a personal checking or savings account that you specified upon registration. It can take up to 6-8 weeks after completing a program before you will be reimbursed for the fees you paid up front.

When you have not received payment of your wellness rewards, or the reimbursements that you have earned, please contact well@umn.edu.

10. Who do I contact with questions about the programs or about My Points Bank?
Telephone the StayWell HelpLine at: 866-341-1170.