Author: deeringk

The 2024 Annual Benefits Enrollment (ABE) period is September 25 – October 20, 2023. This is your annual opportunity to enroll in or make changes to most of your benefits. Changes made during ABE are effective January 1, 2024.

Plan now so you are ready for the enrollment period.

UW System Human Resources is hosting virtual presentations to review the upcoming benefit changes and actions you may need to take. Presentations are scheduled for:

• • Tuesday, September 26, 2023 at 12:00 pm
  • Thursday, September 28, 2023 at 5:00 pm
  • Wednesday, October 4, 2023 at 2:00 pm
  • Thursday, October 12, 2023 at 9:00 am
  • Wednesday, October 18, 2023 at 12:00 pm

Registration is not required. To attend a session, click on the link above. To save the link to your Outlook calendar create a ‘New Appointment’ and copy and paste the link for the session you want to attend to the appointment.

The presentations will be approximately 45 minutes. You will have an opportunity to submit questions during the presentation (excluding personal health information). A recording of the presentation will be available on the ABE web page (following the first presentation).

UW System Human Resources

The State Group Health Insurance premiums will be increasing in 2024.  The annual medical deductible for the High Deductible Health Plan (HDHP) and Access HDHP have increased to comply with federal requirements:

• • Individual: increased to $1,600
  • Family: increased to $3,200

Premium changes will be effective January 1, 2024. More information pertaining to the State Group Health Insurance program can be found on the UW System Annual Benefits Enrollment website.

 

The Annual Benefits Enrollment (ABE) period is September 25 – October 20, 2023. This is your opportunity to enroll in or change your benefits and/or dependents for the upcoming calendar year. Changes made during ABE are effective January 1, 2024. Below are the highlights for 2024.

State Group Health Insurance
The plan designs (health plan and high deductible health plan), copayments, and coinsurance will remain the same.

The annual deductibles for the High Deductible Health Plans (HDHPs) will increase to $1,600 for individual coverage and $3,200 for family coverage to remain compliant with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) minimum deductible requirement.

Group Health Cooperative (GHC) of South Central Wisconsin will split into two separate networks starting January 1, 2024.

• • GHC of South Central Wisconsin Dane Choice* will include current in-network providers in Dane County.
  • GHC of South Central Wisconsin Neighbors is a new plan that will cover in-network providers in Columbia, Grant, Iowa, Sauk, Jefferson, Juneau, and Lafayette County.

*If you are currently enrolled in a plan with GHC of South Central Wisconsin as the carrier, you will default to GHC of South Central Wisconsin Dane Choice with the same dependents for 2024 unless you make a change during ABE.

All other health insurance carriers will continue to be offered for 2024. Employee premium information will be available prior to ABE.

Uniform and Preventive Dental Insurance Plans
These plans provide coverage for preventive dental services, most basic dental services, and orthodontia services (up to age 19). Employee premiums for the Preventive Plan will increase. Employee premium information for Uniform Dental will be available prior to ABE.

Supplemental Dental Insurance Plans
The Select and Select Plus plans provide coverage for major and restorative dental services. The Select Plus plan covers orthodontia services for children and adults. Employee premiums for the Select Plan will decrease. Employee premiums for the Select Plus Plan will increase.

Vision Insurance Plan
The vision insurance plan provides coverage for an annual eye exam and materials (contacts and/or glasses). Employee premiums will remain the same in 2024.

Accident Insurance Plan
This plan provides a lump sum payment to you for specific injuries due to an accident. This plan includes an accidental death & dismemberment component. Employee premiums will decrease in 2024.

Pre-tax Spending and Savings Accounts
Below are the annual contribution maximums for 2024.

• • Healthcare Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs): $3,050 (increase)
  • Dependent Day Care Account: $2,500 or $5,000 (depending on tax filing status)
  • Parking & Transit Accounts: $300 per month (increase)
  • Health Savings Accounts: $4,150 for individual coverage; $8,300 for family coverage (increase)

The Healthcare FSA carryover limit will increase to $610. The Parking & Transit Account carryover is unlimited. To be eligible for Healthcare FSA and/or Parking & Transit Account carryover from 2023 to 2024, you must:

• • Have a minimum balance of $50 in your account at the end of the run-out period (March 31, 2024) OR
  • Enroll for the 2024 plan year with a minimum contribution amount of $50 (in each account if you enroll in multiple accounts)

Carryover does not apply to the Dependent Day Care Account. All remaining funds in your Health Savings Account roll over year to year.

Next Steps
Most institutions will host onsite benefits fairs during ABE as a resource to help you understand the benefits for 2024. Check the benefits fairs schedule to see if your institution will be hosting a benefits fair. Then, mark your calendar to attend!

Watch for emails in September for more information about ABE and actions required.

Source: UW System Human Resources

If you have a child in college that you cover as a dependent on your State Group Health Insurance plan, here are some tips about their coverage.

• • If they attend school within your health plan’s service area, they should seek care only from in-network providers unless they need Emergency Room or Urgent Care services.
  • If they attend school outside your health plan’s service area, Urgent Care and Emergency Room services will be covered by your health plan as in-network.

After an Urgent Care or Emergency Room visit, in most cases, your child must return to your health plan’s service area for follow-up care.

Since most plans only provide coverage for services when they are in-network, it is important that you plan for the possibility of your child needing care.

For additional information, including mental health services, review the College Students and Health Benefits article.

Source: UW System HR

Effective July 2, 2023, night and weekend differentials for hourly non-exempt University Staff have increased.

• • Night differential (for hours worked between 6:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m.) have increase from $0.45 to $0.80 per hour.
  • Weekend differential (for hours worked between 12:00 a.m. on Saturday and 12:00 midnight on Sunday) have increased from $0.60 to $0.80 per hour.

There are no changes in time reporting for employees, the system has been configured with the differential updates.

For more information, see UW System Administrative Policy 1277.

In a continued effort to better support UW-Green Bay faculty and staff, align with the institution’s mission and strategic initiatives, and streamline processes, the Office of Human Resources and Workforce Diversity will be transitioning benefits administration functions to UW System on April 10, 2023. UW System has been leading this move to a centralized, shared-services benefits support model over the past couple of years. It follows the centralization of payroll support, which UW-Green Bay transitioned in November, 2021.

UW-Green Bay will join a number of other UW institutions who are already utilizing the UW System Benefits Counseling Team, including UW-Oshkosh, UW-Parkside, UW-Whitewater, UW-Platteville, UW-Stevens Point, and UW-Superior. The UW System Benefits Counseling team is comprised of benefits specialists who have deep and broad subject matter expertise on the benefits offered by the UW System.

This benefits support change aligns with recent efforts undertaken by the UW-Green Bay Office of Human Resources and Workforce Diversity to transition away from primarily transactional activities, and towards becoming a true strategic partner with employees, managers and leadership at UW-Green Bay. Centralization of payroll/benefits and the upcoming implementation of Workday will allow our office to become more future-focused, holistically supporting employees and managers throughout the career lifecycle and contributing more fully in the areas of business analytics, employee engagement, and organizational strategy.

What does the change in benefits support mean for employees?

• General Questions and Support: Employees needing benefit-related information or counseling will work directly with a team of benefit counselors at UW System. Employees will experience little to no change in service as this team is trained in the full array of benefit options offered to UW System employees and can offer individualized support while considering each employee’s unique situation.
• Retirement Counseling: Employees considering retirement, or those who are ready to finalize the details of their retirement, will be able to meet virtually with the benefit counselors to receive guidance through the retirement process.
• Benefit Orientations: Newly hired employees, or those transitioning into benefits-eligible positions, will be contacted directly by the benefit counseling team and offered information on enrollment deadlines and benefit packages available. They will be encouraged to attend a virtual bi-weekly benefits orientation session. One-on-one appointments are also available.
• Open Enrollment: The benefits counseling team will lead open enrollment activity at our university with virtual informational sessions while still offering the ability to meet with employees to answer questions and review options.

How do employees get benefits support when they need it?

The Benefits Counseling Team uses a ticketing system to track and respond to all inquiries. Employees can contact the team by either sending an e-mail to benefits@uwss.wisconsin.edu or leaving a message at (888) 298-0141. This contact information will also be housed on our UW-Green Bay benefits website. Employees will begin utilizing this contact starting April 10, 2023.

What will be the role of the UW-Green Bay Office of Human Resources for benefits functions going forward?

• FMLA & ADA: The UW-Green Bay HR team will remain responsible for administration of all Family and Medical Leave Programs and accommodation requests.  Employees can contact hr@uwgb.edu if they need assistance or have questions about FMLA and/or ADA.
• Employee Well-being: The UW-Green Bay HR team will continue to work with the Wellness Committee to lead all well-being related activities and programs for our employees.
• UW-Green Bay HR Systems & Rewards Team: The team will maintain responsibility for all activity within HRS and related systems, play a key role in the Workday transition, and serve as a liaison to UW System Payroll & Benefits teams. In addition, this team will provide additional strategic data analysis, forecasting for decision-making, and digital transformation of HR-related business processes.

While our office will move away from providing benefits services, we are excited about the opportunities this transition will provide to better serve as a strategic partner with the campus community. If you aren’t sure who to reach out to, or have any questions or concerns about this transition, please feel free to contact us at hr@uwgb.edu or (920) 465-2390.