Insurance Open Enrollment (IOE) runs from August 1st through August 23rd this year and eligible State of Michigan employees will want to be aware of upcoming changes. This year’s big news is an update to dental and vision dependent eligibility guidelines, a new Behavioral Health/Substance Abuse carrier for the State Health Plan (SHP) PPO, and other changes to health and vision benefits, all going into effect for the 2019-2020 plan year.
Remember, IOE is your once-a-year opportunity to change, enroll in, drop or add individuals to your benefits without a qualifying life event, so you are strongly encouraged to review your elections to ensure you and your eligible dependents have the necessary coverage for the coming year. Changes to benefit elections outside IOE are not permitted except in limited circumstances. See the Family Status Changes page for more information.
Effective October 6, 2019, dependent eligibility guidelines for dental and vision insurance will align with health insurance, meaning adult children will be eligible to remain on your coverage through the end of the month in which they turn age 26. IOE is your opportunity to add dependents to your dental and vision insurance if they are not currently covered. Prior to October 6, 2019, eligibility of dependent children will follow the current Dependent Eligibility Guidelines.
Effective October 1, 2019, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan, in partnership with New Directions, will be replacing Magellan Health as the State Health Plan (SHP) PPO Behavioral Health/Substance Abuse carrier. Current SHP PPO enrollees will be automatically transitioned with no gap or changes in coverage. New SHP PPO membership ID cards will be mailed in September.
Effective October 6, 2019, under the State Vision Plan, administered through EyeMed, eyeglass frames allowance under the routine vision and computer glasses benefit will increase from $100 to $150.
*Note: MSPTA-represented employees are excluded from this change.
Effective October 6, 2019, under the SHP PPO and all HMO health plans, telemedicine copays will be reduced from $20 to $10.
Telemedicine visits allow you to meet with a doctor using a video-chat tool to help treat minor illnesses such as colds, sinus or respiratory infections, sprains, or rashes. The online doctors can even send prescriptions directly to your pharmacy. Tele-medicine and online health care does not replace your relationship with your primary care physician
*Note: MSPTA-represented employees are excluded from this change.
Effective October 6, 2019, United Healthcare will no longer be an offered HMO option. If you were previously enrolled in United Healthcare and want to continue health coverage, please ensure you elect new health coverage during IOE.
Effective October 6, 2019, for MSPTA-represented employees only, a new COPS Health Trust plan is being offered. Visit the Insurance Plans page for a plan summary and more information regarding COPS Health Trust Plan 4.
Be sure to review the insurance rates as nearly all have changed. Individual coverage levels have been updated to more closely align with claims costs for each group. Over all combined groups, there is no rate increase for the State Health Plan PPO, State Dental or Preventive Dental Plans, or State Vision Plan, and there is no change to the share of premium paid by the employee and the state. This re-tiering has resulted in reduced premiums for the Employee Only coverage level and an increase in rates for Full Family and some other coverage levels. The tier change aligns insurance rates with actual claims costs and is consistent with typical structures for other employers.
For rates, plan summaries, and contact information, visit the Insurance Plans page. If you are adding a dependent to your insurance, any required supporting documentation must be provided to the MI HR Service Center by September 30, 2019. If required supporting documentation is not received by September 30, 2019, your dependent(s) will not be attached to coverage(s). Visit www.mi.gov/docs4ebd for further details regarding dependent eligibility and supporting documentation requirements.
To enroll, visit the HR Gateway and log-in to HR Self-Service. Keep in mind, if you do not make any changes, your coverage and covered individuals will remain the same. You may also call the MI HR Service Center at 877-766-6447 to walk through enrollment with a MI HR representative. Please refer to individual plan summaries for details on coverage.
