Vocabulary

ALEX uses this	Not this	Notes
(the specific company name) or “your employer”	“the company,” “the organization”	Whenever possible, using the specific company name gives ALEX a more personal touch. Otherwise, it’s best to write around this, or use “your employer” if you absolutely must (see “Words to avoid” below).
401(k), 403(b), 457(b)	401K, 401k, 403b, 403B, etc	No space in between, lowercase letter in parentheses. Per IRS.
ADA	ada	Acronym for Americans with Disabilities Act, which is uppercase when spelled out.
after-tax	After tax, post-tax	When discussing contributions made after taxes are taken out.
ALEX	Alex, alex	ALEX should appear in all caps, except for logos.
ALEX ID	ALEX account	An ALEX username and password, collectively, is referred to as an ALEX ID.
auto-enrollment, auto-escalation	auto enrollment, auto escalation
Biweekly, bimonthly	Bi-weekly, bi-monthly
caregiver	care giver
C-section, Cesarean section	c-section, c section, cesarean section	“C” is capitalized when in short form.
checkup	check-up, check up
childcare	child care
coinsurance	co-insurance, co insurance
copay	co-pay, co pay	Note: this is contrary to Merriam-Webster, but matches how most healthcare companies refer to it.
details page	Details Page	Always lowercase. The page title would be “Medical details,” and ALEX should usually refer to it as “your details page.” (“The Tax Savings details page…” “Check out your details page.”)
DCFSA, dependent care FSA, dependent care flexible spending account	Dependent Care FSA, Dependent Care Flexible Spending Account, dcfsa	Not a proper noun when written out.
email	E-mail, eMail
ER	E.R., er
EOI, evidence of insurability	E.O.I., Evidence of Insurability	Not a proper noun when written out.
FMLA, Family and Medical Leave Act	F.M.L.A., family and medical leave act
FSA, flexible spending account	F.S.A., fsa, Flexible Spending Account
full-time, part-time (employee)	fulltime, parttime	Typically hyphenated (ex. “Are you a full-time employee?”), unless saying ex. “Do you work full time?
health care (when using as a noun)	healthcare	When using as a noun, it’s two words.
healthcare (when using as an adjective)	health care	When using as an adjective, it’s one word.
HRA, health reimbursement arrangement, health reimbursement account	H.R.A., Health Reimbursement Account, etc	The IRS refers to it as an arrangement, but some customers use “account” instead, so keep an eye out. Also, it’s “an HRA” and not “a HRA.”
HSA, health savings account	Health Savings Account, health spending account	Not a proper noun when written out. Also, it’s “an HSA” and not “a HSA.”
in-network	In network	Hyphenate unless you’re saying “in the network” or “in your network.”
inpatient	in-patient
IRA, individual retirement account	Individual Retirement Account	Note that it’s not a proper noun when written out.
LASIK	Lasik, lasik
LOA, leave of absence	Leave of Absence, leave-of-absence
log in (verb)	Sign in, login	Two words when used as a verb (i.e. “Log in to the website.”). Also, we use log in vs. sign in for consistency.
login (noun)	Sign-in, log in	One word when used as a noun or adjective (i.e. “Go to your login page.”)
long-term disability	long term disability, longterm disability	Unless saying “your disability is long term.”
okay	OK
online	On-line, on line	One word.
out-of-network	out of network	Hyphenate unless you’re saying “out of the network” or “out of your network.”
out-of-pocket maximum	out of pocket maximum, maximum out of pocket	Hyphenate as an adjective. Not hyphenated as part of a phrase, ex. “What you pay out of your pocket.”
outpatient	out-patient
over-the-counter	over the counter	Hyphenate unless you’re saying “a drug you got over the counter.”
parental leave	maternity/paternity leave	Unless referring to a specific company policy with those names.
prescription	Rx
pre-tax	pre tax, pretax
preventive	preventative	Both are real words, but ALEX uses “preventive care.”
rollover (as a noun)	roll over	One word as noun or modifier (i.e. rollover healthfund). See below for verb usage.
roll over (as a verb)	rollover	See above for noun usage.
Roth IRA	roth IRA
short-term disability	short term disability, shortterm disability	Unless saying “your disability is short term.”
target date fund	Target Date Fund	Roth usually appears in the context of “Roth or traditional IRA/401(k).” Note that “traditional” isn’t capitalized.
toward	towards
US	U.S.
walkthrough	walk through	Note: we break with Merriam-Webster here.
website	web-site, web site
well-being, well-woman, well-man, well-baby, well-child	Wellbeing, well-male, well-female	Always hyphenated.
workers’ compensation	worker’s compensation, workers compensation, worker compensation	“Workers’” is both plural and possessive so the apostrophe goes after the final s.
worst-case scenario	worst case scenario

Frequently confused terms:

Healthcare vs. health care: one word when referring to the industry or system (ex. healthcare plans). Two words when referring to medical care or treatment (ex. preventive health care).
Login vs. log in: Login when used as a noun or adjective (ex. the login page). Two words when used as a verb (ex. log in to your account). Do not use log-in.
Rollover vs. roll over: one word as a noun (ex: FSA rollover) or modifier (ex: rollover healthfund). Two words as a verb (ex: “the annual coverage maximum rolls over at the end of the plan year”).

Words to avoid:

For a summary of problematic language that should never appear in ALEX’s vocabulary, see “Off-the-table Words & Phrases” under the ALEX Voice tab. The list here covers health and insurance terminology that should be avoided and some potential alternatives.

Healthfund: This is sometimes used internally to refer to the umbrella of HSA, HRA, FSA, but is not a standard term and should not be used in any external copy.
Mammography: Use “mammograms.”
Maternity: This term should be phased out in favor of pregnancy care, gestational leave, parental leave, etc. as appropriate.
Mat/pat: short for maternity/paternity. This term should be phased out of usage, since it is not inclusive of all parental identities. Instead, use “parental leave” when referring to taking a leave to have a kid, regardless of reason. An exception can be made if it is used in the official name of a customer policy.
Opposite-sex (as in “opposite-sex partner”): not gender inclusive. Write around this as much as possible.

Be conscientious about using the following words.

Client: The people who buy and use our products are our customers.
Company: as in, “your company provides…” If in text, use the customer’s name. If audio is required, write around using this word. Ex. “The kind souls where you work offer you a 401k,” “You have access to…” “XYZ benefit is available to you…”
Employee: Many customers have different euphemisms for this. Also, some people who use ALEX are not employees.
Employer: Likewise, some customers are not employers, or do not wish to be referred to as such. See guidance for “company.”
Insurance: use sparingly. “Coverage” or “the plan” often do the trick.
Premium: Many self-insured customers use the term “contribution,” so it’s best to minimize usage. Ex. “Here’s what you pay to be on the plan.”

Disease Names

Unless named for a person or region (aka a proper noun), disease names should not be capitalized. Only the proper noun should be capitalized.

Ex: Hodgkin lymphoma, Ebola virus vs. diabetes, influenza, multiple sclerosis

Non-possessive disease names are preferred. When a disease is named after a person, the possessive apostrophe (’s) is not required. The possessive may be used for consistency or by request, but this style guide prefers the non-possessive in accordance with the World Health Organization and American Medical Association Manual of Style.

Ex. Alzheimer disease, Down syndrome, Crohn disease

Insurers

Below is a list of our most-used insurers and the correct spelling and style treatment for each.

Aetna
Anthem
Blue Cross Blue Shield
Cigna
Coventry Health Care
Health Net
HMSA
Humana
Kaiser Permanente
Premera
Security Administrative Services (SAS)
UnitedHealthcare
WellCare
WellPoint