In Brief

Health Care Legislation and You
Many in the Scripps Research community have closely watched the health care debate take form over the last year and are aware that the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) and the companion bill, the Health Care and Education Affordability and Reconciliation Act of 2010 (HCEARA) were signed into law on March 23, 2010, and March 30, 2010, respectively. These two pieces of legislation will have both an immediate and long-term impact on the way health care is accessed and provided in the United States.

Scripps Research Human Resources has begun the process of analyzing both short- and long-term changes that must be made to the health care plans provided to staff. At this time, there are no changes to your 2010 benefits.

Changes that will go into effect on January 1, 2011, include:

• Health Care Spending Account. Over-the-counter (OTC) medications and supplies will no longer qualify as reimbursable health care expenses. It is important to note all claims related to these types of expenses must be incurred and SUBMITTED by January 1. Therefore, if you purchase OTC medications on December 31 and submit the claim in January, the claim will be denied even if you have 2010 plan year dollars left to claim in your Healthcare Spending Account. Please plan accordingly for your health care spending account reimbursement purchases of over the counter medications and supplies. All claims for OTC medication and supplies submitted after January 1 will be denied.
  
  
• Extension of Dependent Coverage. Adult children may stay on their parents' health plan until age 26 regardless of student status, marital status, IRS dependent qualification or place of residence. Children who have exhausted their current dependent eligibility (age 19 up to age 25 if a full time student) may be added back to coverage during Open Enrollment with coverage effective January 1, 2011.

Please be sure to review the Open Enrollment information that will be sent out mid-October for complete information regarding these and other revisions that will go into effect January 1, 2011. Due to the Health Care Reform Acts, other changes will be phased in through 2018. The law is complex and many questions are outstanding regarding some of the regulatory changes. Scripps Research will continue to monitor developments and evaluate the plans for further action as federal guidance becomes available. Announcements will be sent as needed to keep you informed of any impact upon Scripps Research coverage.

For more information regarding Health Care Reform, visit http://www.healthreform.gov/.

Fireside Alumni Chat: Thomas Greenwell of the NIH
Thomas Greenwell, program director at the National Eye Institute, National Institutes of Health, will participate in the new "Fireside Alumni Chat Series" on Friday, June 25, from 2 to 3 PM, in the Faculty Club on the California campus. This new series is designed to give graduate students and postdoctoral fellows an opportunity to converse with former Scripps Research scholars in a casual setting and to learn about specific career options. In his position at the NIH, Greenwell (Ph.D., Tulane University; postdoctoral fellowship, Scripps Research) manages a portfolio of more than 100 grants in retinal neuroscience. To RSVP for this event, which is sponsored by the Career and Postdoctoral Services Office and the Network for Women in Science, go to http://hris.scripps.edu/training/.

Career Seminar Series: "Grant Writing 101"
The Career and Postdoctoral Services Office and the Society of Fellows presents "Grant Writing 101" on Monday, June 28 from 1 to 3 PM. Speakers will be: Scripps Research Associate Professor Ashok Deniz; Scripps Research Associate Professor Bruce Torbett; and Fred Heaton, manager of pre-award administration in the Scripps Research Office of Sponsored Programs.

Topics will include:

• Finding grants, identifying online resources, and targeting your search based on your research area
• Animal protocols and human subjects, budgets, non-scientific sections, RACO, deadlines
• Tips for writing grant sections and common mistakes
• The review process

The event will be held in the Keck Amphitheater, Beckman Building, La Jolla, California campus. No RSVP required. Refreshments will be provided.

Upcoming Onsite Clinics
On Monday, June 28, Wednesday, June 30, and Friday, July 2, personnel from Sharp Rees-Stealy Medical Group will be onsite on the California campus to conduct TB screenings, hepatitis B immunizations, serum draws, and tetanus immunizations.

The clinics will be conducted in the 3366 Building, in Room 325, on the third floor, from 11 AM to 2 PM on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.

No appointments are necessary. TB screening requires a 48 to 72 hour follow-up. Individuals receiving the TB screen on Monday will need to return on Wednesday, and individuals screened on Wednesday, will need to return on Friday. Initiation of the TB screening process will not be available on Friday, but hepatitis B immunization, serum draws, and tetanus immunizations will be. To learn more about these programs, see the Environmental Health & Safety Occupational Medicine web page.

Send comments to: mikaono[at]scripps.edu