September 27, 2005

ikaSystems Deploys ikaCDH - A Full-Service Consumer-Directed Health Care System - to Support HRA, HSA, and FSA Products

Southborough, Massachusetts. September 27, 2005 - ikaCDH is a total technology platform that empowers health plans to sell, enroll, and support HDHP (high deductible health plan) HSA (health savings account), HRA (health reimbursement account), and FSA (flexible spending account) products. The ikaCDH platform can be deployed as a standalone product or fully integrated with the ikaEnterprise System.

ikaCDH is totally integrated at the broker, member, and employer levels. “The ikaCDH System is the only truly integrated platform that offers complete transactional capability at every level in the sales and enrollment cycle, including integration with claims adjudication,” says Ravi Ika, Chief Executive Officer for ikaSystems.

ikaCDH is an enterprise-wide, intuitive platform that allows a carrier’s sales channels to present flexible benefits-enabled products to clients online. If an employer group opts for an HDHP, the ikaCDH System automatically triggers the available options in grid form to enable instant product comparison, education, and selection. The system notifies the employer if a census was submitted with the proposal. A savings calculator enables the broker and employer to calculate various plan savings online, including price breakdowns and social security tax savings.

In addition, the employer can setup and manage member portfolios and accounts; view collected funds and outstanding claims; set and manage account limits; and reimburse accounts electronically. Members can select flex plan type, authorize and deny claim payments, and view and manage account activity across their entire portfolio. A comprehensive education system describes the benefits of each account to facilitate plan selection for the broker, the employer group and its membership.

Payers can implement Section 125 flexible benefits-enabled products into their existing selection of products and automatically process flex claims through seamless integration between the health claim and flex claim systems. The integration eliminates paper-based claim forms, thus reducing claim processing time for everyone involved. Members and health plan administrators no longer deal with paperwork, and providers are paid directly from the flex portion.

“ikaCDH’s fully integrated flexible benefits-enabled system is a real market advantage for sales, employer groups, and their membership,” says James F. Marzano, Chief Information Officer for ikaSystems. The ikaCDH System is a “one-stop shop” for all of a health plans’ HDHP needs, he adds.

Flex products include HDHP HSA and HRA, used to reimburse employees for qualified medical expenses; FSA, used to reimburse employees for eligible medical, dependent care and individual health insurance expenses; and transportation flex (Section 132), used to reimburse employee public transportation and parking expenses.