Employees who use Benny enjoy the benefit of paying for out-of-pocket medical and dental services, vision care, hospital charges and prescriptions with a swipe of the card, instead of having to pay cash at the point of service and submit a claim to get reimbursed. Benny is pre-loaded with the employee's annual election amount and each eligible health benefits charge automatically reduces the available account balance on the card. The Council is anticipating 23,000 fewer paper claim submissions for the first year, representing a 40 percent reduction over 2005, due to the introduction of the Card.
According to Mitch Parsons, executive director of Oklahoma's Employees Benefits Council, "Benny integrates with the Council's claims administration software, so information on each participant's Benny transactions and manual claim account status can be viewed through their own Web site on a 24/7 basis. The Benny debit card clearly builds convenience into claims processing. It has allowed our agency to take a giant step forward in fulfilling our mission to provide superior administration and promote healthy lifestyles. It takes teamwork to do this, and Evolution Benefits is a valued partner for the State of Oklahoma."
