NGA Healthy Benefit Card Toolkit
What Are Healthy Benefit and Over-the-Counter Cards?
Common Names for HBC/OTC Cards:
- Healthy Benefit Card
- Food Is Medicine Card
- OTC Card
- Grocery Benefit Card
- Medicaid Grocery Card
Each health plan partners with one of the many major card processors and has a unique Approved Product List (APL), making acceptance complex for independent grocers. Each processor generally falls into one of two categories, Closed Loop or Open Loop. APL adjudication is completed by each processor and then Closed Loop also settle directly with retailers; Open Loop is settled separately. Historically, Closed Loop processors include Solutran and Incomm and Open Loop includes FIS, Nations Benefit, and Soda Health. There is an increasing trend toward Dual Network or more Open Loop cards.
Why NGA Partnered with Fincretive
Our partnership provides a unified solution that integrates multiple card processors with your point-of-sale (POS) system via one connection, simplifying the acceptance of OTC/HBC cards and streamlining future changes implemented by different processor plans.
Data Sharing and Adjudication
To accept HBC/OTC cards, grocers must share product data with processors for adjudication. Each health plan has its own Approved Product List (APL), which dictates eligible purchases.
During a transaction, the system screens the basket against the APL to ensure compliance.
Independent grocers face challenges due to differences in product taxonomies. Our gateway approach works with all processors to minimize declines and optimize approvals.
Integration: Gateway vs. Individual
There are several ways to bring HBC/OTC benefits to your customers:
- Gateway Integration: Working with one gateway to accept multiple types of HBC/OTC cards.
- Individual or Semi-Integration: Working with one card processor to accept one type of HBC/OTC card.
- Separate Terminals: Adding a separate terminal to accept one or more types of HBC/OTC cards.
Depending on the individual needs of your business, choose the integration approach that works best for your store.
| Integration Approach | Gateway | Individual or Semi-Integrated | Separate Terminals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Health Plans | Most | Some | Limited Access |
| Processors | All Major | Usually 1+ | One Per Terminal |
| POS Integration | Common with POS | Varies Widely | None |
| Approved Product Lists (Adjudication) | APL Analysis Reduces Declines | Medium to High Rate of Declines | High Rate of Declines |
