Archive: July 2007

Your Benefits, VEBA and Best Doctors
By Steve Kaplan, UniServe Field Organizer

SDEA and the District are committed to providing "quality benefits"
to our members (Appendix K). One way this is done is through our
joint membership in the Southern California Schools VEBA (Article 9,
Section 9.2.1). This trust has the ability to provide analysis and
benefits beyond the capabilities of SDEA and the District on their
own. One such benefit is Best Doctors.

According to the New England Journal of Medicine (2003), 45% of
clinical diagnosis and treatment are incorrect. Best Doctors, a
confidential and free program available to all eligible Southern
California Schools VEBA members and their dependents, was started by
doctors from Harvard Medical School in 1989 to help patients be sure
about their diagnoses and treatment for serious medical conditions.

In the first year that VEBA offered Best Doctors, the program saved
or improved the lives of 42 VEBA members who took advantage of this
benefit. Additionally, over $600,000 was saved in unnecessary medical
expenses related to misdiagnosis or mistreatment.

Based on an analysis of data from VEBA's medical insurance company,
VEBA believes that there are still 4,000 or more eligible members who
may benefit from using the Best Doctors program. Awareness about Best
Doctors is key in saving and improving the lives of your colleagues,
family and friends, as well as helping to control the quality and
cost of health care for all VEBA members.

You can access information about Best Doctors by going to VEBA's
website www.vebaonline.com. You will, also, find a personal testimony regarding how a Best Doctors second review of one person's medical condition became a life-changing event.

Best Doctors is available to Kaiser and PacifiCare members at no
charge. Go to www.vebaonline.com or call 1-888-362-8677.