The two-week open enrollment period is Oct. 31-Nov. 11 for benefits-eligible UGA employees. Main points for this year’s open enrollment are:
• The shared leave program is changing. Eligible employees can donate between eight and 80 hours of sick leave to the shared sick leave pool for other UGA employees to use. Only participants in the program are eligible to receive donated hours. Employees who wish to be in the sick leave pool in 2017 must donate a minimum of eight hours of sick leave during open enrollment. The donation is prorated for part-time employees.
• No action is required for employees who wish to make no changes to their benefits choices for 2017, with the exceptions of the required annual enrollment for flexible spending accounts and the decision required of those who have the UGA critical illness plan or the UGA accident plan.
The UGA critical illness and accident plans will be replaced by new USG critical illness and accident plans. Employees who wish to participate in the new USG critical illness and accident plans must enroll in those plans.
Employees who choose to use this passive enrollment for other benefits will have the same coverage in 2017 as they have in 2016.
• Increases in deductibles and out-of-pocket family maximums for the Consumer Choice HSA plan and increases in co-payments for emergency room and specialist visits on the BlueChoice HMO plan.
The benefits plan in 2017 includes four new insurance plans:
• The critical illness plan that provides cash benefits paid directly to employees for insured individuals suffering from critical illnesses.
• The accident plan that pays benefits for specific injuries and accidents.
• The hospital indemnity plan that helps out with hospital stays by paying a daily amount to cover time in a hospital, critical care unit or rehabilitation facility.
• The legal plan that provides aid and protection from personal legal issues.
Benefits-eligible employees must indicate their tobacco usage using the MyBenefits@UGA system. They also must disclose tobacco usage for any dependents older than 18. Failure to comply will result in a $75 surcharge, which will be added to health plan premiums. If there is no change in tobacco usage from the previous year, no action is needed.
A general information session for current employees about the open benefits enrollment process will take place Oct. 27 from 1-3 p.m. One-hour information sessions for pre-65 retirees will be held Oct. 28 at 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. All sessions will be held in Masters Hall of the Georgia Center.
Employees may review their benefits choices for 2017 by visiting the HR home page at www.hr.uga.edu and selecting “2017 benefits open enrollment” under the HR News heading.
To view a comprehensive list of all the provided health care options, visit www.usg.edu/assets/hr/benefits_docs/BOR_Comparison_Guide_NEW.pdf.
Employees who need assistance or have any questions about open enrollment should contact HR at benefits@uga.edu or 706-542-2222.
