A newsletter for IESC, Rexel, and Gexpro employees Fall 2010

Transcription

1 A newsletter for IESC, Rexel, and Gexpro employees Fall 2010 What s New for 2011 Two medical plan choices: Blue Edge HSA and Blue Standard PPO. $0 prescription program: Obtain specific generic maintenance drugs at $0 if you participate in the BCBS Blue Care Connection disease management program. Tobacco user surcharge: Tobacco users will pay an additional $50 month for their medical plan. Annual Enrollment November 8-22, 2010 Our 2011 benefits program provides a comprehensive range of quality plans touching every aspect of your life health, wellness, financial, and protection. We are continuing our commitment to bringing the best benefits at the best price. You will find current and new plans covering everything from What s inside? Health care reform......page 2 Wellness programs..... page 3 Medical plan changes.... page 4 Other changes page 5 Flexible spending accounts.page 6 Enrollment reminders.... page 7 Key contact numbers.... page 8 health insurance for you and your family to health insurance for your pet! In addition, you will continue to have ways to take action to improve your health, whether through our dedicated wellness care coordinators or by completing your preventive wellness visits at no cost to you. We are excited to be able to offer these innovative and cost-effective programs. Please take time to evaluate the options so you can make well-informed decisions and enroll within the time period allotted. Your choices during the enrollment period are among the most important decisions you will make for yourself and your family each year. Free tobacco cessation program: Complete the BCBS tobacco cessation program any time during the year and the tobacco user surcharge will be removed. Health care flexible spending account: New IRS rules about over-the counter drugs and no minimum requirement. New vision provider - EyeMed: Access in-network providers in private practice and at malls and mass merchant stores. Working spouse surcharge: Spouses on the IESC medical plan pay an additional $25 per month if their employer provides medical insurance. New voluntary benefits: Legal plan, critical illness, auto and home, and pet insurance. Benefits Help Line: Extended hours during annual enrollment period. Monday - Friday, 7 a.m. - 8 p.m. CST.

2 Page 2 H E A LTH C A RE REFO R M What it means to you in 2011 The following is a summary of the health care reform changes that will take effect January 1, 2011, and how the changes will be reflected in our plans. No cost sharing for preventive care. Beginning January 1, 2011, IESC will pay 100% of the cost of in-network preventive care services for each person covered under the Blue Edge HSA and Blue Standard PPO medical plans. Extended medical coverage for children until age 26 (regardless of student or marital status). IESC currently allows coverage for unmarried, dependent children until age 19, or until age 25 if they are a full-time student. If your child (up to age 26) lost eligibility under current rules, you will have 30 days to re-enroll them beginning November 8, In addition, IESC will allow children eligible for medical coverage under the new law the option to enroll for dental coverage. Some over-the-counter (OTC) medications no longer qualify as an eligible expense for flexible spending account (FSA) or health savings account (HSA) reimbursement, unless the expense is accompanied by a doctor s prescription. There are some exceptions, including insulin and diabetic supplies. If you used your health care FSA or HSA for significant OTC purchases, you may want to consider adjusting your 2011 contributions. Increased penalty for non-qualified HSA distributions. The penalty tax for using HSA funds to pay for non-qualified expenses will increase from 10% to 20% in No lifetime maximum on medical benefits. IESC s current 2010 lifetime medical benefit maximum of $2 million will be removed effective January 1, Working Together to Improve our Health Managing health care costs and promoting the health of our employees remains a top concern for our organization. The challenge we and many other companies now face is how to balance increased legislation and growing costs against the commitment to provide quality health care benefits to employees. Our medical costs continue to rise and are projected to increase approximately 12% for 2011, some of which is related to the health care reform changes outlined in this newsletter. At IESC, we believe the solution is to share the responsibility while providing programs that will improve the health of our employees. In 2011, you will see an increased focus on programs and plans that enable you to make healthy, responsible choices. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports that chronic diseases, such as heart disease, cancer, stroke, diabetes, and arthritis, now account for more than three-fourths of all health care costs. When employees and the company partner to better manage these chronic medical conditions, health care costs go down, which in turn increases both your physical health and the financial health of the company. Our 2011 plans have been designed to help support you to continue to make healthy choices and improve your health. Some key changes to our medical plans include: Generic drugs that manage certain chronic diseases will now be covered at 100% under our medical plans, and The Blue Premium PPO plan, the most expensive medical plan for employees and the company, will be discontinued. We will continue to offer the Blue Standard PPO as well as the Blue Edge HSA, both of which offer lower premiums and the same wide network of medical providers. While your premiums for the medical and dental plans will increase slightly this year, the company will continue its commitment to share in the cost of health care by paying approximately 75% of the employees health care costs. With your help, we can improve our health and lower our costs in the years to come. Chris Vaerewyck IESC Vice President of HR Shared Services No annual dollar limits for essential health benefits. IESC s current $1,500 annual chiropractic care limit will be removed. Chiropractic care will have a 35 annual visit maximum in Children s (under age 19) pre-existing condition limits removed. IESC s plans currently have no pre-existing condition limitations for you or your enrolled dependents, so no change is required for 2011.

3 Page 3 Encouraging Healthy Choices We all know that our personal health is impacted by the choices we make. But we may not realize that our choices also impact the cost of health care not only personal costs, but the costs of all those covered under the plan. In 2011, IESC will make several benefit changes to reward healthy lifestyles and spread the cost of health care coverage more fairly. Blue Care Health and Wellness Programs IESC encourages employees and their dependents to commit to healthy lifestyle changes and take advantage of the many health and wellness programs available to you and your families at no additional cost if you elect the Blue Edge HSA or the Blue Standard PPO. Blue Care Connection. A team of nurses, dedicated specifically to IESC, Rexel, and Gexpro employees and their families, will help manage diabetes, asthma, high cholesterol, and other serious health conditions. Personal Health Manager. Online wellness tools help you manage your health and adopt healthier behaviors. Special Beginnings. Maternity program provides support and education during and after pregnancy. 24/7 Nurseline. Around-theclock access to advice and information from registered nurses. Fitness Program. Discounted memberships at participating gyms and fitness centers. Learn about these and other health and wellness programs at $0 Generic Prescription Program Enroll in Blue Care Connection to save on your prescriptions. Medical plan participants who participate in Blue Cross and Blue Shield s Blue Care Connection program and have one or more of the medical conditions listed below, can receive generic prescriptions for those conditions at no cost. The five conditions: Asthma Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) Diabetes Hyperlipidemia (high cholesterol) Hypertension (high blood pressure) For Blue Standard PPO participants, the generic prescription co-pay will be waived. For Blue Edge HSA participants, the cost of the generic prescription will be automatically reimbursed to the employee s HSA. Both retail and mail-order prescriptions are covered under the program. If you have one of these conditions and are not already enrolled in the Blue Care Connection program, call , option 4, to be directed to an IESC-dedicated Blue Care Connection team member. Tobacco User Surcharge IESC s total medical claims from smokers are approximately 25% higher than the claims from nonsmokers. To more fairly distribute the costs of tobacco-related illnesses to those who elect to smoke, IESC will implement a tobacco surcharge program. Beginning January 1, 2011, IESC will add a $50 per month tobacco surcharge on medical insurance premiums if you use tobacco products. The default for tobacco user status will be No. If you regularly* use tobacco and enroll in a medical plan, you must change your tobacco user status to Yes. Tobacco surcharge products include: Smoking tobacco Cigarettes Pipes Cigars Smokeless tobacco Snuff Chewing tobacco Failure to accurately declare your tobacco use status may result in cancelation of your medical coverage. Additionally, your claims may be denied and you may face disciplinary action up to and including termination of employment. The tobacco surcharge will be waived once you complete the free, 8-week participation-based tobacco cessation program through Blue Cross and Blue Shield (BCBS). This new program will be available beginning in December Contact IESC s dedicated BCBS Blue Care Coordinators to enroll at , option 4. In addition, free tobacco cessation medications are offered through both of IESC s medical and prescription plans. * More than once every six months.

4 Page MEDICAL PL AN Changes Blue Premium PPO plan eliminated The Blue Premium PPO plan will be eliminated in Employees currently enrolled in the Blue Premium PPO plan will default to Blue Standard PPO coverage in the annual enrollment system, however, employees may elect either the Blue Edge HSA or the Blue Standard PPO plan for For the past few years, the Blue Premium PPO medical plan has been our highest cost medical option for both employees and the company while participation has declined. Many other companies have already eliminated this type of medical plan. As a result, we will not offer the Blue Premium PPO medical plan in In addition to the standard communication materials, conference calls will be conducted for employees currently enrolled in the Blue Premium PPO plan to further explain the differences. In addition, the Benefits Help Line can assist you or you may access the online Health Plan Cost Estimator to determine which plan is best for you. Simply follow the online instructions to estimate your healthcare costs in either the Blue Standard PPO or Blue Edge HSA plan, including the cost of premiums and company contributions to your health savings account at Preventive care services covered at 100% In 2011, both the Blue Edge HSA and Blue Standard PPO medical plan options will provide 100% coverage for in-network wellness and preventive care. You can receive no cost (no co-pay, no-deductible requirement) health care services such as physicals, immunizations, and age-and gender-related health screenings. For a complete list of covered services, go to Choices In 2011, employees will have the choice of two medical plan options: Blue Edge HSA Blue Standard PPO Both plans will be administered by Blue Cross and Blue Shield, using the same network of doctors and hospitals. Blue Edge HSA The Blue Edge HSA is a consumerdriven health plan designed to give consumers greater control over how they spend their health care dollars. Tax-free health savings account (HSA). The Blue Edge HSA is a federally-qualified high-deductible health plan, which allows participants to open a tax-free health savings account (HSA) from which to pay their medical expenses. IESC contributes funds to this account on a quarterly basis, with additional funds for completion of a Health Risk Assessment. You have the option to contribute on a pre-tax basis through payroll deductions. You are not required to use all funds by year-end. Lower premiums. Blue Edge HSA participants pay lower monthly premiums than participants in the Blue Standard PPO. No co-pays. Participants pay the full-cost of non-preventive care and prescriptions, up to the deductible. Once the deductible is met, participants then pay a lower co-insurance percentage (10%) than Blue Standard PPO members (20%). Blue Standard PPO The Blue Standard PPO offers the convenience of fixed co-pays for doctor visits and prescription drugs and individual annual deductibles. The insurance plan pays the difference between your co-pay and the actual cost. Employees pay higher monthly premiums and co-insurance after the deductible is met. The co-pays do not apply to your deductible or annual out-of-pocket maximum. Prescription drugs are covered as follows: Generics $10, preferred name-brands $30, and non-preferred name-brands $50, for a 30-day supply. Prescription drug co-pays do not apply to the deductible or out-ofpocket maximum. For more information refer to your Benefits Guide.

5 Page 5 Additional Benefit Changes in 2011 Voluntary plans IESC will offer several new voluntary plans for If you choose to purchase any of these plans, you may pay for them through convenient, after-tax payroll deductions. Enroll for these two plans during the annual enrollment period: Hyatt Legal plan. The Hyatt Legal plan provides unlimited attorneyprovided legal services such as traffic ticket defense, wills and trusts, adoption assistance, and others through a large network of toprated law firms. MetLife critical illness. This plan provides a tax-free cash payment for your use for any reason if you are diagnosed with cancer, heart disease, or other conditions such as kidney failure. You must have group medical insurance (not necessarily through IESC) to purchase this benefit. Enroll for these two plans anytime after 1/1/11 by calling 888-GET-MET8: MetLife auto and homeowners insurance. Save up to 25% off standard rates with this new program. When you are in the market for home and/or auto coverage, check out this new program. VPI/MetLife pet insurance. We love our pets! This plan offers a way to pay for your pet s care. You can purchase different types of coverage, including accident and wellness care. The cost of insurance depends on your pet s age and species. Working spouse surcharge Beginning January 1, 2011, IESC will add a spouse surcharge to medical plan premiums if a covered spouse declines medical coverage through his/her own employer and chooses IESC coverage. In response to the increasing cost of covering spouses, many companies have already implemented similar programs; some even prohibit working spouses from enrolling in their medical plans. If a spouse chooses coverage through his/her own employer, or if employer coverage is not available, the spouse surcharge will not apply. No surcharge will be applied if the spouse elects an IESC medical plan for secondary coverage. The surcharge will be $25 per month for both Blue Edge HSA and Blue Standard PPO participants. The default for working spouse status will be No. If you enroll your spouse in a medical plan and he/she has insurance available through his/her own employer, you must change the status to Yes in the enrollment system. Failure to accurately declare your spouse s status may result in cancelation of your medical coverage. Additionally, your claims may be denied and you may face disciplinary action up to and including termination of employment. Health savings account Employees can now open their HSA online through Mellon Bank. Just access the link provided in the benefits enrollment system to begin the online account activation process. Dependent eligibility audit Many of IESC s health benefits are available to employees as well as their eligible dependents. Because the company pays a significant portion of the costs for many of these benefits, it is important that only eligible dependents are covered under the plans. Eligible dependents include your spouse and/or your dependent child(ren). A dependent eligibility audit will take place in early A third-party company will audit and verify all dependents covered under IESC s medical plan. In order to keep your dependents covered, you will need to provide proper documentation when requested by the audit company. During the annual enrollment period, employees may remove ineligible dependents without question or penalty. More information regarding the dependent eligibility audit will be provided in early If you are unsure whether your claimed dependents are eligible for our plans, call the IESC Benefits Help Line at or benefits@iesc.com.

6 Page 6 Flexible Spending Accounts Use pre-tax money to pay health care and dependent care expenses Health Care FSA For 2011, employees are encouraged to carefully consider the advantages of opening a Health Care Flexible Spending Account (FSA). You may contribute a maximum of $5,000 per year. Your contributions are deducted (pre-tax) each payperiod.! No minimum $ requirement on FSAs You then use the FSA to pay eligible medical expenses for yourself, your spouse, dependent children, and anyone else claimed as a dependent on your federal income tax return. A Health Care FSA can be used to pay eligible expenses even before the funds are deposited in the account. EXAMPLE: Let s assume you elect to set aside $1,300 a year ($50 per biweekly pay period) into a Health Care FSA. In early January, you have a medical procedure and your share of the cost is $1,200. You may use your FSA debit card to pay your share of the cost even though you only have $50 in the account at the time of your procedure. For a detailed list of FSA-eligible health care expenses, log on to the Payflex website or get a copy of IRS Publication 502, Medical and Dental Expenses at Over-the-counter drug rules for 2011 Due to the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and the Health Care Reconciliation Act of 2010, some over-the-counter (OTC) drugs and medicines once eligible for reimbursement under a Health Care FSA will require a prescription from a licensed physician in 2011 in order to qualify for reimbursement. The new rules apply to items you buy on or after January 1, You must submit a physician s prescription with each request for reimbursement for over-the-counter items affected by the new rule. FSA debit cards cannot be used to purchase OTC drugs in A list of items eligible for reimbursement is available on the PayFlex website. Dependent Care FSA With a Dependent Care FSA, you use pre-tax dollars to pay for the care of dependent children under the age of 13 or for the care of a physically disabled (incapable of self-care) spouse or dependent of any age who spends at least 8 hours per day in your home. Your spouse must also be employed for you to participate in this plan unless he or she is a full-time student, is actively looking for work, or is disabled. The maximum Dependent Care Flexible Spending Account deduction per family per year is $5,000 if you file income taxes jointly or $2,500 per person if you file income taxes separately. Unlike the Health Care Flexible Spending Account, you must have money in your Dependent Care Flexible Spending Account in order to apply for reimbursement or use your debit card. Important FSA rules The pre-tax dollars put into an FSA reduce your taxable income so you pay less in income taxes. However, all of the pre-tax dollars set aside for eligible expenses must be used within specific deadlines depending on the type of FSA or they will be forfeited. This use it or lose it rule is an IRS regulation. These funds do not roll over to the new plan year. Money in your Dependent Care Flexible Spending Account cannot be used for health care expenses, and your Health Care Flexible Spending Account cannot be used for dependent care expenses. Your Dependent Care elections can be changed during the year only if you have a qualified status change and submit a change request within 30 days of the qualified status change event. Health Care FSA elections can only be changed during the annual enrollment period. Limited Use Health Care FSAs for Blue Edge HSA participants cannot be used for medical expenses until the deductible has been met. Remember! If you want to participate in a pre-tax Health Care Flexible Spending Account or Dependent Care Flexible Spending Account, you must actively enroll during the annual enrollment period.

7 Page 7 Enrollment Reminders Annual Enrollment: November 8-22, 2010 Elections. Review and make your benefit decisions carefully. Your 2011 elections will be in place for the entire calendar year, although some benefits allow changes during the year if you have a qualified status change and file a request within 30 days. Active enrollment. Add, drop, and/ or change 2011 benefit elections at during the annual enrollment period: November 8-22, A system user guide is available on our company intranets. Passive enrollment. If you do not go online to make changes, your 2010 benefit elections will roll over, as is, for However, Blue Premium PPO plan participants will be switched to the Blue Standard PPO plan for Tobacco user status. If you are a regular tobacco user,* you must go to the enrollment website to change your tobacco user status to Yes. Working spouse status. If your spouse is enrolled in IESC medical benefits and has insurance options available through his/her employer, you must go to the enrollment website to change your working spouse status to Yes. Benefits guides/enrollment packets. Benefit guides will be sent to each office and branch. Employees who work off-site or from a home office will receive benefit guides at their home address. Electronic copies of the benefits guide, enrollment instructions, and forms are posted on the enrollment website and both company intranet sites. * More than once every six months Flexible spending account and/or health savings account enrollment. If you wish to contribute to a health care flexible spending account, a dependent care flexible spending account, or a health saving account, you must complete your enrollment online to keep these benefits in 2011 as these elections will not roll over. Cost-savings opportunity. Remember, if you enroll in the Blue Care Connection disease management program, you will be able to fill your generic maintenance prescriptions for five key chronic conditions at no cost to you. Evidence of insurability forms. If you elect an optional life insurance plan that requires an evidence of insurability (EOI) form, you must complete the EOI and be approved by the carrier before coverage can begin. Refer to the benefits guide for more information. Tools to help you choose. You may access an online tool to help you choose which medical plan is right for you and your family. The Health Plan Cost Estimator will help you estimate your health care expenses including the cost of premiums and company contributions to your health savings account. Access the Health Plan Cost Estimator at Legal Notices All benefit-related legal notices are posted on the enrollment website and on company intranets. 401(k) Savings Plan: The health of your wealth Participating in a 401(k) plan can benefit you today and tomorrow. You are eligible to participate in the 401(k) plan from your first day of employment. You may contribute any amount from 1% to 30% of your annual salary on a pre-tax basis, up to a maximum annual dollar amount of $16,500. Employees age 50 and older may contribute an additional $5,500 per year.** T. Rowe Price, our company s 401(k) plan administrator, offers IESC, Rexel, and Gexpro employees several investment funds from which to choose. After one year of employment, the company will match 100% of your first 3% of eligible contributions, and then 50% of your next 2% of eligible contributions. You may make changes to your contribution amount as well as your investment fund choices at anytime by calling or going online to ** $16,500 maximum annual dollar contribution and $5,500 maximum catch-up contribution are 2010 limits; at time of publication, 2011 limits had not yet been set by the IRS. Extended Hours for You! The IESC Benefits Help Line will offer extended hours from November 8-22 to assist with benefits enrollment questions. Contact the Benefits Help Line between 7 am - 8 pm CST at or benefits@iesc.com

8 Benefit Plan Administrators and Contact Information Plan/Program Administrator Website or Phone or fax numbers Benefit questions Benefits Help Line 401(k) savings plan T. Rowe Price ( in Dallas area) Fax: Auto & home insurance MetLife GET-MET 8 ( ) Critical illness insurance MetLife GET-MET 8 ( ) Dental MetLife Disability insurance Prudential Employee assistance program ComPsych Flexible spending accounts PayFlex Health savings account ACS Mellon Legal plan Hyatt Legal Life and AD&D insurance Prudential Mail order prescriptions Prime Therapeutics Medical Blue Cross and Blue Shield 24-hour Nurseline (to convert or port life policy) (customer service) (order refills) (customer service) (provider locator) Blue Care Connection disease management program option 4 Tobacco cessation program ext , 28798, or Pet insurance MetLife GET-MET 8 ( ) Specialty pharmacy Triessent Travel assistance Vision AXA Assistance EyeMed (in the U.S.) (outside the U.S.; call collect) (before 1/1/11) Select network (after 1/1/11) Benefits Help Line P.O. Box 9085 Addison, TX IESC, Rexel, Gexpro employees: Important information about the upcoming benefits enrollment period