|
Life Events
Benefits Strategy & Employee Services
Life Event Policy Change Effective May 5, 2008
Life Events
· Best practice
o Employee has 31 days immediately following the actual event date with coverage back to the event date
o Untimely events must be processed during the next available open enrollment period with coverage effective January 1st of the ensuing year
· AMR policy
o Employee has 60 days immediately following the actual event date to process the event with coverage effective back to the event date
o Life events processed outside the 60 days may still be processed on a "go forward coverage basis" for medical & dental coverage only
o Note: if employee processes a life event that occurred in the previous calendar year (prior to annual enrollment), the employee must wait until the next October annual enrollment period to enroll and coverage will begin January 1st of the ensuing year
Example of Policy Language – Current versus May 5, 2008 Change
|
Date of Event
|
60 Days Ends
|
Date Employee initiates Life Event
|
Effective Date of Current Practice
|
Effective Date of Proposed Change
|
|
02/01/2007
|
04/01/2007
|
05/01/2007
|
05/01/2007
|
Not Applicable – No change would be permitted
|
|
12/01/2007
|
02/01/2008
|
01/25/2008
|
12/01/2007
|
12/01/2007
|
|
09/01/2007
|
10/31/2007
|
10/31/2007
|
09/01/2007
|
09/01/2007
|
|
08/15/2007
|
10/15/2007
|
05/01/2008
|
Not Applicable – Change not permitted
(today’s policy)
|
Same
|
May 5, 2008 Policy Change Implementation
§ Communication Solutions
· Communicate to union benefits committees and ARP leaders in 1Q2008
· Develop communication message for 1Q2008 Life Matters
· Send out Heads Up communication to leaders in 1Q2008 with examples & talking points for messaging change during employee meetings
· Develop feature article for Jetnet benefits page
§ 11,131 total life events processed from October 4, 2006 to October 3, 2007
· 10,667 requests processed within the 60 day window of actual life event date
· 336 add-life events processed post 60 day window of the actual life event date or 3.1% of overall life events
Current Employee Policy Guide Language – All Workgroups
· If you process your Life Event after the 60-day time frame, changes are effective on the day that HR Employee Services processes your Life Event, rather than on the date the event actually occurred. If you miss the 60-day deadline and the event occurred in the current year, you may only add or delete dependents from the medical or dental coverage you previously elected; you may not make other changes. If you miss the 60-day deadline and the event occurred in the previous year, you may add dependents to your file but you may not cover them under your benefits, make any changes to existing dependents or make any benefit plan changes. (Adding the dependent to your file lists the dependent as eligible to be enrolled at the next annual enrollment, but does not enroll him or her in benefits currently.)
Revised Employee Policy Guide Language – All Workgroups
· If you process your Life Event after the 60-day time frame, you may only delete dependents from the medical or dental coverage you previously elected; you may not make other changes. If you miss the 60-day deadline you may add dependents to your file but you may not cover them under your benefits, make any changes to existing dependents (other then delete dependents), or make any benefit plan changes. (Adding the dependent to your file lists the dependent as eligible to be enrolled at the next annual enrollment, but does not enroll him or her in benefits in the current year.)
|
