HR Question of the Week

HR Question of the week

When does the Open Enrollment period end?

The annual Open Enrollment period for eligible faculty and staff to select medical, vision, dental insurance and other benefits-related options for next year will run through Monday, Nov. 8, at 6 p.m. The booklet detailing the benefits selections is available online at www.kent.edu/hr/benefits/open-enrollment.cfm. On that website you will also find many other resources and the link to the secure, online enrollment site.

As you make your health care elections, please keep in mind the following information:

• If you want to keep your current health care elections for calendar year 2011, you do not need to complete the Open Enrollment process; your benefits will carry over for 2011.
• However, if you have a Flexible Spending Account (for Health Care or Dependent Care), and want to continue the account in 2011, you must log in tothe Open Enrollment site and make this election. These accounts require you to enter a contribution amount and do not automatically carry over from year to year.
• Last week University Benefits sent employees an announcement regarding the increase in 2011 premium rates. The example used to illustrate the 2011 annual costs for a Medical Mutual of Ohio 90/70 family plan listed amounts calculated at a two-year increment instead of a one-year period. The example used should have reflected an annual cost of $873 for an employee earning $22,000, and an annual cost of $3,056 for an employee at the highest salary tier (earning $200,000 and above).
• The Benefits staff encourages all faculty and staff to review and make necessary changes to beneficiary information for any insurance plans you may have through the university. In some instances employees have not reviewed this information for several years and that information may no longer be current.

If you have Open Enrollment questions, call the Benefits Office hotline at 330-672-MyHR(6947) or send an e-mail to benefits@kent.edu.

View an archive of past HR Questions. If you have a suggestion for a future HR Question, please send it to hrweb@kent.edu.