news&views Spring 2022 | Page 10

Health Benefits

Gary Sawatzky | Chief Operating Officer , ARTA

Annual Premiums and Claims Statement

Each year , ARTA provides an account of the premiums you paid into the ARTA Retiree Benefit Plans over the past calendar year and a detailed list of the claims that were submitted for each person ( you and your eligible dependants ) covered under your plan membership during the same time period . This Premiums and Claims Statement is provided to you so that you can include eligible Medical Expense Tax Credit ( METC ) amounts that you paid out-of-pocket over the past year in your annual income tax return .
As part of the transition to self-administration , this marks the first year that ARTA itself has been able to provide the data for your annual Premiums and Claims Statement . By retaining control of the statement , ARTA can provide the statements in a timelier manner and in a format that better suits our members ( such as being able to provide the claims listing in order by date incurred , which was not possible with the 2020 statements ).
The Premiums and Claims Statement includes pertinent information for each claim made under your coverage , including :
Check each claim line carefully in case there are multiple instances of a claim . In many instances , there may be a claim submitted by a provider to determine if a product or service is eligible for coverage under the ARTA Retiree Benefit Plans , and then a subsequent reversal of the claim . We are not able to remove these redundant claims from the claim records , so it is up to you to ensure each claim is correct .
When you are reviewing each claim , you should also confirm that each medical expense you are including in your income taxes qualifies as an
● the date the claim was submitted
● a description of the product or service claimed
● the amount charged by the provider of the product or service
● the amount paid by any other benefit plan from which you receive coverage ( such as the Alberta Health Care Plan for Seniors or the British Columbia Fair PharmaCare Plan )
● the amount paid by the ARTA Retiree Benefit Plan , and
● the difference between the charged amount and the amounts covered by the plans ; this is the amount that you would have paid out-ofpocket for the product or service you received .
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