Faculty and staff eligible to make changes to their benefits

September 14, 2009

GAINESVILLE, Fla.–The University of Florida’s 2009 benefits open enrollment period will begin at 8:30 a.m. Sept. 14 and end at 5:30 p.m. on Oct. 9. Each year during the open enrollment period, eligible faculty and staff have an opportunity to make changes to their benefits, which are provided through a combination of state- and university-sponsored programs. A list of these benefits, along with other helpful information, may be found on the 2009 open enrollment section of UF Human Resource Services’ (HRS) Web site.

The changes employees elect during open enrollment will take effect Jan. 1, 2010, which is the start of the new benefits plan year.

In conjunction with open enrollment, UF also hosts an annual Benefits Fair, which will be held at the Touchdown Terrace from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Insurance and retirement vendors will be available to discuss plan details and answer any specific questions employees may have. Food and prizes will be part of the event, and a shuttle running at certain campus locations will be available for transportation to and from the fair.

This year’s open enrollment changes will not have a major impact on the existing plan designs affecting the state health or supplemental plans. In addition, full-time employee health premiums have not increased.

A few notable changes to expect this year:

 Health coverage enhancements related to 2009 legislation affecting all plans; please review plan documents for details on changes
 Increased contribution limits on the state Health Savings Account
 State HMO options have expanded to several counties in Florida: Calhoun, Dixie, Franklin, Gadsden, Gilchrist, Glades, Gulf, Hamilton, Hardee, Hendry, Holmes, Jackson, Lafayette, Levy, Liberty, Martin, St. Lucie, Sumter and Washington
 Some dental rates have increased; review supplemental dental brochures for the premiums
 The Lincoln Financial UF Term Life and Personal Accident plans have expanded dependent eligibility requirements
 Long Term Care participants already enrolled in the plan will have a buy-up option to increase their daily benefit coverage

UF Academic Personnel, TEAMS, and USPS employees will receive a benefits statement from the People First Service Center summarizing only their “state” benefits. It will also provide a People First User ID. Open enrollment changes to these benefit plans can be made any one of three ways:

• Enroll online via People First
• Call the People First Service Center at 1-866-663-4735 to make changes by phone
• Return enrollment/change forms to the People First Service Center

In addition to the state plans, UF offers a number of supplemental plans that are managed locally. Please note that these plans will not be found as an option on the People First Web site. To sign up for UF plans, employees need to complete appropriate enrollment forms found on the HRS Web site and return them to University Benefits and Retirement or an HRS satellite office.

All open enrollment changes to state- and UF-sponsored plans must be completed by 5:30 p.m. Oct. 9.

For more information about 2009 open enrollment, visit www.hr.ufl.edu/benefits/openenrollment or contact University Benefits and Retirement at 352-392-2HRS or benefits@ufl.edu.