The UWUA National Health & Welfare Fund is a multiemployer plan established under the authority of the federal Taft-Hartley Act and the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA). It is open to UWUA bargaining groups and to other bargaining groups that participate in joint bargaining with UWUA units. The Fund was established in 2003 to provide a way for bargaining groups to accumulate funding for health benefits in a trust that is jointly-controlled by labor and employer representatives. The Fund is governed by a Board of Trustees, which consists of an equal number of union and employer representatives. The Trustees have a legal responsibility to establish and maintain benefit plans, manage these plans, and prudently invest Fund assets.

Presently, the Fund has approximately 5,500 participants encompassing 23 bargaining units. The Funds participants can choose from a wide range of insurance products which include: Health, Vision, Dental, HRA, VEBA, AD&D, LTD and Life Insurance benefits.

The Fund employs a third party administrator that handles its day-to-day business, such as claims processing. The Fund also employs legal counsel, a consultant and actuary, a certified public accountant, and an investment management firm.

Upon joining, the employer is responsible for making contributions to the Fund, providing eligibility information, and assisting with the distribution of plan materials. All other administrative tasks are the responsibility of the Fund, including:

• Investment management
• Record keeping
• Claims processing
• Government filings
• Independent financial audits
• Regulatory compliance
• Development and printing of employee communications
• Legal services
• Actuarial and consulting services

Health Reimbursement Arrangement (HRA)

The Utility Workers Union of America National Health and Welfare Fund has established a plan as a supplemental health care benefit for employees that is both financially reasonable and advantageous to employers.

The HRA consists of account balances that can be used by employees for reimbursement of qualified medical expenses that are tax-deductible, but not covered by the company medical plan. Employees submit a claim to the UWUA Health and Welfare Fund HRA plan for reimbursement.

Under a HRA, the employer provides funds, not the employee. The funds are used to set up account balances for each eligible employee. All unused funds are carried over at the end of the year. Former employees, including retirees, can have continued access to unused reimbursement amounts.

Advantages of the UWUA Health Reimbursement Account Plan:

• There are no "use it or lose it" restrictions - unused balances can be carried over into future years.
• The Plan provides generous continuation provisions in the event of termination of employment, retirement, or death.
• The Plan does not require any particular plan design for the employer's base medical plan.
• Balances can be applied to a wide variety of medical expenses that are tax deductable, but not covered by the company medical plan, such as; deductable, copayments and co-insurance.
• The Plan offers transparent financial arrangements - net investment income, forfeitures and operating fees are all allocated to account balances.
• Advantages for employers include:
  • Contributions are deductible business expenses.
  • Future costs of this benefit are known in advance.
  • The Fund is responsible for administering the benefit.

VEBA

A voluntary employees' beneficiary association (VEBA) under Internal Revenue Code section 501 (c)(9) is an organization organized to pay life, sick, accident, and similar benefits to members or their dependents, or designated beneficiaries if no part of the net earnings of the association inures to the benefit of any private shareholder or individual.

The organization must meet the following requirements:

1. It must be a voluntary association of employees;

2. It must provide for payment of life, sick, accident, or other benefits to members or their dependents or designated beneficiaries and substantially all of its operations are for this purpose; and

3. Its earnings may not inure to the benefit of any private individual or shareholder other than through the payment of benefits described in (2) above.

Membership of a section 501 (c)(9) organization must consist of individuals who are employees who have an employment-related common bond. This common bond may be a common employer (or affiliated employers), coverage under one or more collective bargaining agreements, membership in a labor union, or membership in one or more locals of a national or international labor union.

Health & Welfare Benefits

The UWUA National Health & Welfare Trust currently offers a preferred provider organization (PPO) type of health insurance coverage to all of the Trust participants, spouses and eligible dependents. PPO's are managed-care networks of hospitals, doctors and health-care providers who have collectively reached an agreement with an insurance company to offer reduced rates to PPO members. PPO's also allow patients to visit specialists without referrals from a primary care physician.

Along with a comprehensive set of preventative care medical services, the UWUA National Health & Welfare Trust also includes the following health care benefits:

• Prescription drug coverage
• Mental Health and Substance Abuse Treatment
• Chiropractic benefits
• Well ness Programs
• Pre-natal, Well-Baby Care, and Childhood Immunizations
• Hospital Emergency Room and Ambulance Services (when medically necessary)
• Diabetes Management, Allergy Testing

For more information regarding the Trusts specific plan coverage's, co-pays, deductibles go to www.uwuabenefits.org.

This brochure provides a brief and general overview of the UWUA National Health and Welfare Fund (UWUA Fund). This overview is nol a substitute lor the UWUA Fund documents. II any statement in this brochure differs, in any way. from the language of the UWUA Fund documents. the UWUA Fund documents prevail.

UWUA HEALTH AND WELFARE TRUST PROFESSIONALS INCLUDE:

Rich Mata Trustee	Jim Kokolas Calibre Accounting
Marlene McDiarmid TIC, International	John Coyle Morgan Stanley Smith Barney
Karen Hubbard Morgan Stanlet Smith Barney	Lee Ellis Trustee
Kevin Booth Trustee	Jerry Powers Trustee
Michelle Flood BCBS MI	Tim Goins BCBS MI
Robert McKaege Trustee	Kevin Murphy Segal Co

Not Pictured: Charlie Rittenhouse Trustee