Changing
Your Benefits
When Can I Change My Benefits?
Each November, employees receive an instruction booklet to guide
them through the online open enrollment process. Employees
may request any type of change, and all changes requested at that
time will become effective January 1 of the next calendar year.
The deadline to request open enrollment changes is always early
December.
2. Change in Status
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) allows certain benefit changes to be made mid-year, only as a result of a "change in status". This can include marriage, divorce, birth, adoption, death, significant
change in spouse's employer's insurance coverage or eligibility,
and dependent ineligibility.
To request a benefit change as a result of a change in status,
you must contact the Benefits and Risk Management Department within
60 days, or within 30 days to enroll a newborn child as of the child's
birthdate or a newly-adopted child as of the placement date. (You can request
addition of a newborn or newly-adopted child later than the first
30 days and before the regular 60 day deadline; however, coverage
will not begin on the birthdate or date of placement.)
The benefit change will be effective the first of the month after
the change in status occurs. Changes can only be made 1) on the
first of a month; 2) after the change in status has occurred; 3)
no earlier than the month in which the change is requested; and
4) no later than 60 calendar days since the change in status occurred.
We will send the necessary form requiring the employee's signature.
The signed change form must be returned along with documentation
of the change in status. This could be a copy of the marriage license,
copy of the divorce papers, copy of adoption papers, or a letter
from your spouse's employer. We will let you know what you
need to return to us and when it is due.
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