Insure your future against the unknown
by cynthia Lee
today staff Writer
Like many UCLA employees, Lydia Oller requested a CalPERS Long Term Care Enrollment Kit five years ago. Oller didn’t know much about long-term care insurance and didn’t have the time to thoroughly read all the materials that came in the kit.
But as the head of the Benefits Office for Campus Human Resources, she sensed this was a good thing to have and opted for the middle-level plan without any research and very little thought. “I thought I’d just sign up for it then and learn the details later,” she recalled.
Today, Oller realizes how critical her decision was. She now has a medical condition that, though not very serious, precludes her from qualifying for long-term care insurance.
“It was a very good thing in my case that I didn’t wait to sign up for it,” Oller said. “Someone recently asked me when is a good time to sign up for long-term care insurance. I told her, ‘Just before you get sick.’ You never know when that will be. Now I’m really glad I have it.”
Since UC does not offer its own long-term care plan, the California Public Employees’ Retirement System (CalPERS) makes its plan available to UC employees and retirees. UC neither oversees nor endorses the plan but instead recommends that employees do the same kind of com parison-shopping and research they would do before any major purchase.
But Oller’s case illustrates that since we don’t know what the future holds, sometimes even a short delay in making a decision can be costly.
This year, UC employees and their families must apply by Sept. 30. For an application kit, call (800) 266-1050 or visit www.calpers.ca.gov.
Being prepared for a serious illness or non-work-related disability will also become a consideration this November when employees are offered a UC-sponsored supplemental disability plan during Open Enrollment.
“This has never been done before,” Oller said. Typically, only new employees may sign up and pay for this plan. But because of heavy demand from faculty and staff and the health of the fund that pays supplementary disability benefits, current employees will have a chance to enroll in November. Plans take effect in January 2006.
How does it all work?
Short-term disability insurance, which the UC provides free, pays disabled employees who can no longer work $800 a month or 55% of their monthly eligible earnings, whichever is less, for up to six months following a waiting period.
Employees who buy supplemental disability insurance will receive 70% of their monthly eligible earnings — up to $10,000 per month — for the first 12 months. After that, benefits could continue, in some cases to age 65, at a rate of 50% of their eligible earnings.
Employees who enroll in the supplemental disability insurance plan must select the length of the waiting period. The longer the waiting period before benefits kick in, the lower the cost of the premium. No matter which waiting period you choose, UC’s disability plans require that you use up to 22 days of accrued sick leave (if available) before benefits start. Premiums are paid through payroll deduction.
For more information, go to http://atyourservice.ucop.edu and select “health and insurance,” then “disability.” |
