Get ready for Open Enrollment and new choices
BY CYNTHIA LEE
UCLA Today Staff
Even while rising health-care costs have forced other employers to reduce
the number of medical plans they offer and to pass on to employees numerous
cost increases, UCLA employees will find during Open Enrollment in November
that their costs for co-pays and deductibles have remained the same as
last year’s, as has their selection of health-care plans.
UC is continuing to provide dental and vision coverage, and basic life
and disability insurance at no cost to employees. The premium rate for
the supplemental life and disability plan is going down. But because of
rising costs and no additional money in the state budget to offset the
increases, monthly medical premiums are going up for all employees who
are enrolled in a medical plan.
“Despite this, we still think that the UC medical plans are a
good deal for employees,” said Lydia Oller, manager of benefits
at UCLA’s Campus Human Resources. “And again, as it did last
year, UC is helping to ensure that all employees, especially lower-paid
employees, can afford these plans.” This year, four salary levels
will determine an employee’s monthly premium, which will be lowest
for those earning $40,000 or less.
UC is also trying to contain health-care costs in two ways, Oller explained.
First, no employee will be able to add an adult dependent relative to
his or her plan, as of Jan. 1, 2004. This new rule will not affect adult
dependents already enrolled. “This is a small, but very costly,
group to insure,” Oller explained. Secondly, all those who retire
beginning Jan. 1, 2004, must enroll in Medicare Part B if they are eligible.
This will not affect those who are already retired and not enrolled in
Medicare Part B.
For the first time in several years, employees will be able to enroll
in UC’s legal plan. Costs for 2004 will range from $8.49 monthly
for an employee to $12.73 for an employee, another adult, plus child or
children. The new plan administrator is the ARAG Group, which has 30 years
of experience in providing group legal plan benefits. Established in 1973
as Mid-West Legal Services in Des Moines, Iowa, the company was purchased
in 1989 by German-based Allgemeine Rechtsschutz-Versicherungs AG (ARAG),
the world’s leading provider of legal expense insurance.
UC will soon mail out 2004 benefits information to all employees. Because
all enrollment changes this year will be made online in November, CHR
staff will be helping at specified times employees from housing, food
service, medical, Facilities Management and others who lack online access
with Open Enrollment.
Questions? Connect to http://atyourservice.ucop.edu. |
