2016 Open Enrollment – Closes Friday, October 16th
The window for enrolling in the Concordia Health Plan (CHP) closes October 16.
Your employer should have already shared with you the CHP option(s) you may elect for your 2016 coverage option. Coverage elected during the Open Enrollment period will be effective January 1, 2016.
If you are an active, full-time worker who previously declined CHP coverage for yourself and/or your eligible dependents, you may enroll in the CHP during this time.
Concordia Plan Services must receive all worker elections by October 16.
Medicare and HSA – the challenging problems encountered
Do you offer Option HDHP, Choice 1500, or Choice 2000 to your workers along with a health savings account (HSA)? For workers who are age 65, eligible to enroll in Medicare, and are not receiving Social Security benefits yet, enrollment in Medicare Part A and Part B is not automatic and is not mandatory. However, if you have workers who are receiving Social Security benefits when they turn age 65, they will be automatically enrolled in Medicare. This can cause some confusion for workers, and can potentially have an impact on the benefits you offer to them.
Federal legislation prohibits people who are entitled to or enrolled in Medicare from contributing to a health savings account (HSA). If you offer your workers a high deductible health plan along with an HSA, and you have workers approaching age 65 and therefore will soon be eligible for Medicare, talk to them about possibly delaying their Medicare enrollment in order to prevent any adverse tax consequences regarding their HSA.
If a worker does become entitled to or enrolled in Medicare—even just Medicare Part A, he/she can no longer have contributions made toward the HSA. We know that not being able to contribute to an HSA can make it difficult for your workers to budget for out-of-pocket expenses under a high deductible health plan. However, there are some alternative options which may include putting in place a different personal spending account.
Concordia Plan Services encourages you to speak with its team of Employer Resources Specialists at 888-927-7526 who can discuss this situation and share options that may be available to you and your workers. We also ask for your assistance in raising awareness of this issue with your workers who may be in (or soon approaching) this particular situation.
