Benefits open enrollment starts next week; watch for enrollment guide

October 20, 2011

Employees should watch for the delivery of their Enrollment Reference Guides as open enrollment for 2012 benefits gets under way next week. To enroll, employees will sign on to EBenefits, the online benefits system that was introduced last year. Enrollment ends Nov. 24.
  
A key goal in designing medical plan options for 2012 was preserving choice for employees. With this in mind, the University opted to continue the Copay Plan, even though it costs the University more than the Choice Fund with HSA and Incentive plans do. However, the premiums for the Copay Plan will increase by 30 percent, reflecting the higher claims cost of this plan.
  
Employees covered by the Copay Plan may wish to consider enrollment in the Choice Fund with HSA or Incentive plans, which both offer a lower premium for 2012 than Copay Plan participants have paid in 2011.

Employees will continue to be able to use the lab of their choice, but services through preferred, Tier 1 labs will be paid at 100 percent by the Incentive and Copay plans, while services at other labs will be paid at a lower benefit.
  
A tobacco-user additional premium will apply to all 2012 medical plans. Non-tobacco users can avoid the additional premium by certifying their tobacco-user status within EBenefits while completing the enrollment process. Tobacco users have the choice to avoid the additional premium by completing an approved tobacco cessation program.
  
PayFlex will be the new administrator for health care and dependent care flexible spending accounts (FSAs). PayFlex will process FSA claims within two business days and will offer enhanced technology, such as a mobile app for smartphones.
  
For more information about these and other changes for 2012, refer to the recently distributed Choose Well, Live Well newsletter, the Enrollment Reference Guide that will be mailed next week or the Benefits website at www.purdue.edu/benefits, beginning Monday (Oct. 24). These resources also provide instructions for using EBenefits, plus information on presentations, walk-in labs and other assistance available during open enrollment.

Important to note:

* Employees who do not certify non-tobacco-user status through EBenefits will be considered tobacco users, which will affect what they pay for Purdue medical insurance for themselves and their covered spouses/SSDPs and what they pay for any additional employee term life insurance they may carry.

* EBenefits will be available for 2012 open enrollment through midnight on Nov. 24.