Medical Plans

The University offers two medical plans through Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Alabama – High Deductible Health Plan (HDHP) and the Preferred Provider Organization Plan (PPO). Both plans allow the participants the freedom to seek care from any licensed medical provider, but they will have lower out-of-pocket costs if in-network Blue Cross and Blue Shield Preferred medical providers are used. In-network providers are hospitals, physicians, and other health care providers who have agreed to accept negotiated fees as payment in-full for services provided to plan participants.

	HDHP with HSA	PPO
Premiums:	Lower	Higher
Deductibles:	Higher	Lower
Member Cost Share:*	Coinsurance (20%)	Copayments
Tax-Favored Accounts:	Health Savings Account	Healthcare FSA

The HDHP combined with a health savings account (HSA) helps employees pay for certain qualified medical expenses with tax-free money. Per IRS regulations, any non-single HDHP contract is considered a family contract for purposes of deductibles, out-of-pocket maximums, and contributions.

Employee Cost Share

The following shows employee cost share comparisons between both medical plans. The information only applies to in-network services utilized during the current plan year, Jan. 1 thru Dec. 31, 2025:

First-Dollar Deductible	HDHP with HSA	PPO
Employee:	$1,700	$500
Family without a Spouse:	$3,400 per contract	$500 per person
Family with a Spouse:	$3,400 per contract	$500 per person

Out-of-Pocket Maximum	HDHP with HSA	PPO
Employee:	$4,500	$6,000
Family without a Spouse:	$9,500 per contract	$17,160 per contract*
Family with a Spouse:	$9,500 per contract	$17,160 per contract*

* For PPO out-of-pocket maximum, no one family member will exceed $5,000 in medical and/or pharmacy costs per year.

Other Covered Services and Preferred Providers and Facilities are the same for both plans. Preventive care and routine screenings are covered at 100% for both plans (not subject to any deductibles). For a comprehensive list of services, visit www.AlabamaBlue.com/preventiveservices.

Network Information: To locate an in-network provider, use the Find a Doctor tool provided by Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Alabama.

Which plan is right for me?

The Benefits Office cannot recommend a plan choice because there’s no “right” plan — it depends on your individual situation. How much coverage do you think you or your family will need in the coming year? Can you afford the deductible or out-of-pocket maximum for each plan? Consider the following factors in the table below. Once you have an idea of numbers, sit down and do the math to determine which plan makes financial sense for you and your family.

The PPO may appeal to those who:	The HDHP may appeal to those who:
Are 65 or over (Medicare-eligible)	Are young and generally healthy
Are planning on becoming pregnant and seeing their doctor regularly in the coming year	Are not planning on becoming pregnant in the coming year
Anticipate needing more prescriptions or frequent doctor visits due to a chronic medical condition	Rarely visit the doctor or buy prescription drugs
Have multiple dependents on their plan	Don’t have dependents on their plan
Have scheduled or anticipate upcoming expenses (such as a planned procedure or surgery)	Can cover higher out-of-pocket costs in an unexpected or emergency medical situation

Setup Your myBlueCross Account

All Blue Cross medical and/or dental plan participants receive complimentary access to myBlueCross at www.AlabamaBlue.com or the Alabama Blue mobile app. With myBlueCross, you can access digital ID cards, view claim statements and prescription history (i.e., Explanation of Benefits), track your deductible and out-of-pocket spending, communicate with Customer Service, find an in-network doctor or facility, view a list of preventive services, find covered prescription drug lists, complete a free health assessment and more. Beginning April 28, 2022, Blue Cross will introduce two factor authentication (2FA) to myBlueCross. 2FA provides an added level of security for your myBlueCross account by requiring an extra security code along with your username and password.

Teladoc

Teladoc is a telemedicine company that uses telephone and videoconferencing technology to provide 24/7 on-demand remote medical care for adults and children with acute, non-emergency illnesses like cold and flu, sinus infections, allergies, pink eye, stomachache and more. Teladoc providers are all U.S. board-certified & state-licensed doctors. Download the Teladoc mobile app in the Apple App Store or Google Play for quick and easy access to request a visit, or Teladoc.com.

Teladoc is available to benefit-eligible employees enrolled in both UA’s PPO and HDHP medical plan. The cost per Teladoc visit is $55 compared to a regular, primary care office visit of approx. $70-$100 or an emergency room visit of $1,000+.

Your Deductible Status	PPO Visit Cost	HDHP Visit Cost
Cost before deductible is met	$55	$55
Cost after deductible is met	$20 copay	$9 coinsurance (20%)

Visit Teladoc.com/Alabama or call 1-855-477-4549 for additional information.

Baby Yourself

Baby Yourself Maternity Program is a prenatal program for wellness that is provided through BlueCross BlueShield of Alabama. The program helps ensure expectant mothers and their babies receive the best possible healthcare during pregnancy. This program is available to expectant mothers, regardless of whether or not their pregnancy is normal or high risk, but enrollment must be completed during the first trimester of pregnancy for financial incentives to apply, including waiver of the hospital admission copayment for the PPO medical plan. Baby Yourself is a qualifying program towards WellBAMA Rewards. Learn more and enroll online.

Plan Documents

Click on the links below to find information on UA’s medical plans.

PPO Medical Plan Documents:

HDHP Medical Plan Documents

Transparency in Coverage Rule: The link below leads to the machine-readable files that are made available in response to the federal Transparency in Coverage Rule and includes negotiated service rates and out-of-network allowed amounts between health plans and healthcare providers. The machine-readable files are formatted to allow researchers, regulators, and application developers to more easily access and analyze data.

Healthcare Plan Name: Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Alabama
Plan Sponsor: The University of Alabama – Main Campus
EIN: 63-6001138

https://www.bcbsal.org/web/tcr