Open Enrollment is Approaching!
It is that exciting time of year again; the sun is shining, school is ending, and Benefit Open Enrollment is coming! This year, Open Enrollment will start on Monday, June 5th and will last through Friday, June 16th. If you are benefit eligible, you will be required to complete Open Enrollment through your employee portal in order to have benefit coverage for the upcoming plan year starting on September 1st, 2023.
Here are 5 points to consider while reviewing your current plan and deciding on your upcoming benefit elections:
1) Take into consideration the cost of premiums along with the cost of deductibles and coinsurances that are associated with each plan. Decide if you would rather pay more up-front in premium costs and pay less when you receive care, or if you would rather pay less now and more in the event you need medical care.
2) If you select a Blue Care Network PCP Focus plan, you will be required to have a Primary Care Doctor that participates in the plan. Your Primary Care Doctor (PCP) will be the coordinator of your care and you will need to have referrals from your PCP to visit specialists. Your PCP can stop participating in the plan at ANY time without giving you an explanation or warning. You will NOT be able to select a new plan if your PCP no longer participates unless you have a qualifying life event.
3) The High Deductible Health Plan PPO through BCBSM does not cover anything towards cost share until you have satisfied the full deductible (aside from preventive visits). This means that you will have to pay the full allowed amount for all doctors’ appointments, medications, specialist visits, urgent care visits, etc. until you have met that deductible. Remember unused funds from your Health Savings Account will rollover to the next year.
4) Don't forget Partner Solutions has teamed with the Benefit Resource Center (BRC). They are able to help you with multiple situations including which plan might be best for you. Review this flier for more information and reach out to the BRC with any questions.
5) Regarding Life Insurance, it is important to know just how much coverage you need to protect your family in the event of the unexpected. Make sure to utilize Lincoln Financial Group’s Life Insurance Calculator.
HSA & FSA - What are They?
Let’s break down some of these abbreviations that may appear complicated when reviewing benefit information. As you are considering what benefit plans are right for you and your family, you will come across information on Health Savings Accounts (HSA) and Flexible Savings Accounts (FSA).
What is the difference between these accounts? How do they apply to your situation? What can they be used for? Find a brief overview of each below:
Health Savings Account (HSA): this account is automatically opened for you when you choose a high deductible health care plan. In this case, the HSA applies to the PPO 3500 HSA medical plan.
When you select this plan, you opt to pay lower per-pay premiums in exchange for paying a high deductible in the event you need medical care. To help offset the high deductible costs, the HSA is an account where you and your employer can contribute tax-exempt funds that you can use to pay health expenses. These funds do not expire and the HSA is yours to keep even if you change employers or medical plans in the future. The funds can be used via an HSA card (similar to a debit card), or submit receipts to your HSA provider for reimbursement. For a list of qualified HSA expenses, check out the online HSA Store at www.hsastore.com.
See your Benefit Guide in your employee portal for specific contribution limits and eligibility requirements.
Flexible Spending Account - Health Care (FSA): Unlike a Health Savings Account, an FSA is optional and not automatically opened with a benefit plan selection. An FSA allows you to set aside pre-tax dollars to cover qualified health expenses. You determine the amount of money that you would like taken from each paycheck to be deposited into your FSA to use by the end of the year. Unlike an HSA, your funds in an FSA do NOT rollover to the next calendar year. For a list of qualified FSA expenses, check out the online FSA Store at www.fsastore.com.
See your Benefit Guide in your employee portal for specific contribution limits and FSA rules.
Flexible Spending Account - Dependent Care (FSA): Another type of FSA is a Dependent Care FSA. This account follows the same guidelines as the Health Care FSA in which the funds do not rollover to the next year. These pre-tax funds are for dependent care situations such as preschool, summer day camp, before or after school care, and child or adult daycare. You determine the amount of money that you would like taken from each paycheck to be deposited into your FSA to use by the end of the year for dependent care expenses. You can only enroll in this account if you have a qualified dependent.
See your Benefit Guide in your employee portal for specific contribution limits and FSA rules.
