myHR Archives
myHR: March 25, 2020
Review Upcoming Benefits Enrollment Changes
Penn Benefits Open Enrollment is your annual opportunity to make changes to your healthcare elections. While Open Enrollment is still a few weeks away, we want to give you plenty of time to learn about the upcoming changes.
We also have unprecedented news to share. There will be no increase in medical and dental rates for the third straight year. That means Penn’s faculty and staff enrolled in a medical plan will not see an increase for the 2020-2021 plan year.
There are many other developments for you to consider as you choose a plan for you and your family, including a new online enrollment process. For the first time, benefits-eligible faculty and staff will make their elections and any updates using the Workday@Penn portal at www.workday.upenn.edu.
Be sure to carefully review enrollment information mailed to your home. This year, the Division of Human Resources will provide a single enrollment guide that lists the benefits available to full-time faculty and staff, as well as part-time and ACA eligible employees. Penn provides many other tools and resources to help you make an informed decision.
For more information about your benefits, visit www.hr.upenn.edu/openenrollment. You'll have access to benefit comparison charts, contribution charts, and more.
Plan Changes as of July 1, 2020
No Increase in Medical and Dental Rates for the Third Year
Your cost for medical and dental coverage will not increase for the 2020-2021 plan year.
The University of Pennsylvania’s medical and dental plans have seen favorable claims experience over the past several years, which has enabled Penn to maintain the same rates for the third straight year. Although the healthcare market in general has experienced approximately 5% medical cost inflation over the past few years, Penn’s plan costs have been much lower than the industry trend.
Thanks to plan design changes, favorable claims experience, enhanced prescription drug
management, wellness initiatives, and better employee consumerism, Penn’s faculty and staff enrolled in a medical plan will not see an increase in the 2020-2021 plan year.
New Enrollment Process with Workday@Penn
This year you will complete Open Enrollment at the Workday@Penn portal at www.workday.upenn.edu. The benefits enrollment process has been simplified and is quick and easy. Use your PennKey and password to access the portal. Then follow the steps listed below to enroll or make changes to your benefits for the 2020-2021 plan year.
Be sure to review your current elections and available choices in Workday even if you plan to keep the same coverage you have now. After Open Enrollment, healthcare benefits changes can only be made if you declare a qualifying life event.
Also, review your beneficiary information, confirm its accuracy for all elections, and update it if necessary. Once you have made your elections, you must print a confirmation. No confirmation statements will be mailed. However, an enrollment guide will be mailed to your home in April.
Steps to Enroll
- Log into Workday at www.myworkday.com/upenn/login.html
- From your home page, select the Inbox icon in the upper right corner or click “Go to Inbox”
- Select “Open Enrollment – Event”in your inbox
- Click “Elect” or “Waive” next to the corresponding benefit plan (your current coverage will be displayed for each benefits election)
- When you have completed all of your elections, click “Submit”
A One-Time Opportunity to Increase Supplemental Life Insurance Coverage
The University through MetLife is offering a one-time opportunity to enroll or increase your Supplemental Life Insurance.
Eligible faculty and staff can increase their supplemental life insurance coverage during Open Enrollment before providing evidence of insurability (i.e. proof of good health). This means, if you’re not currently enrolled, you can elect .05 x to 5 x your benefits base, or if you’re currently enrolled you can increase your coverage up to the 5 x max. If you select a total coverage level above $750,000 (coverage amounts based on your benefits base) you must provide additional evidence of insurability. To take advantage of this opportunity, you must elect this increase during this year’s Open Enrollment period.
Watch the mail for your personalized information sheet from MetLife, which will provide you with detailed information about your current life insurance amounts and your available options during Open Enrollment. Please remember to review and/or update your beneficiary information in Workday.
Remember that Penn provides you with Basic Life Insurance of 1 x your benefits base salary (maximum of $300,000) at no cost to you. If you are PT/ACA eligible, Penn provides a maximum of $50,000 in Basic Life Insurance. This one-time Supplemental Life Insurance coverage is in addition to the Basic Life benefit.
*Note: You must be currently eligible for life insurance to take part in this offer. The amount of coverage is based on your benefits base that is effective as of March 2020. If you are a union employee, you can select up to 6 x your base salary to the max of $750,000. If you are PT/ACA eligible, you can select up to 2 x your base salary.
Colonoscopy Screening Age Requirement Removed
Effective July 1, an annual (as recommended by your medical provider) colonoscopy screening will be covered at $0 co-pay for those enrolled in the Keystone HMO, Aetna POS II and the PennCare/Personal Choice plan. The age and frequency limitation for this type of screening has been removed.
Penn Introduces Telemedicine
The University has partnered with Penn Medicine to offer a virtual care telemedicine practice called Penn Medicine OnDemand. Formerly called FirstCall, Penn Medicine On-Demand provides urgent primary care services by providers in the Penn Center for Connected Care.
Penn Medicine OnDemand providers address your immediate care needs such as sore throats, rashes, earaches, muscle or joint pain, and other minor injuries.
The telemedicine practice is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year by Penn Medicine providers who deliver fast and speedy care using video visits. When an in-person, office-based appointment with a PennCare provider is recommended, the Penn Medicine OnDemand team will help you schedule it at a time and location that is convenient for you.
Health Care and Dependent Care Flexible Spending Accounts (FSA)
When you participate in a Health Care Flexible Spending Account, you set aside pre-tax dollars to use for certain out-of-pocket healthcare costs.
The IRS has increased the FSA limit from $2,700 to $2,750 for the 2020 calendar year. As you know, you can only rollover $500 to the next plan year, so be sure to submit your claims for the current plan year in a timely manner.
The rules for using your FSA account remain the same. You may still need to provide receipts to verify that your claims are qualified expenses in accordance with IRS guidelines.
Health Savings Accounts (HSA) for HDHP
An HSA is a tax savings account for High Deductible Health Plan participants. HSA funds may be used to offset the cost of care. Penn will contribute to your HSA $1,000 for single coverage or $2,000 for family coverage. You can also contribute additional money to an HSA via pre-tax payroll deductions.
The IRS has announced an increase in the HSA family maximum contribution by $100 for calendar year 2020. The single contribution limit will be $3,550 and the family contribution limit will be $7,100—inclusive of your employer contribution. If you are 55 and over, you can contribute an additional $1,000.
Penn’s Health Savings Account custodial bank is changing from BNY Mellon to HealthEquity, effective May 2020. BNY Mellon will no longer serve as the custodial bank for HSA accounts. A new account will be opened for participants at HealthEquity. BNY Mellon will transfer your HSA balances to HealthEquity by the end of May.
If you are currently enrolled in a Health Savings Account, you do not need to take any action for your account to be moved.
You will receive a new HealthEquity health savings card in May. Please watch for important notification in the mail and your email from HealthEquity.
Open Enrollment Presentations and Wellness Fairs
Due to the evolving situation around COVID-19, the on-campus Open Enrollment Presentations scheduled for March 31, April 2, April 7, April 9, April 13, April 27, and April 29 have been cancelled. The Wellness Fairs scheduled for April 21 and April 22 have also been cancelled.
Division of Human Resources Program Updates
During the current limited operations period, Penn’s Division of Human Resources remains available to help faculty and staff with professional services, information, and consultations. Whether you’re working remotely, taking time away from work, or on-campus performing life-sustaining, essential duties, we are here for you.
Human Resources staff continue to work remotely during Penn’s limited operations period, although our campus offices are closed.
Visit our Special Hours page for details about services such as Onboard@Penn, the Penn Employee Solution Center, the Benefits Solution Center, and Employee Assistance Program (EAP). Faculty and staff can reach these services online, by phone, and email.
The Division of Human Resources COVID-19 Workplace Health and Safety web page provides links to workplace-related guidance for faculty and staff. Human Resources will continue to update this page as the situation evolves.
Modifications and Cancellations
In line with the Provost and the Executive Vice President recommendations, all Division of Human Resources on-campus events and programs have been cancelled or rescheduled as part of Penn’s effort to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 and to protect public health.
Open Enrollment Presentations and Wellness Fairs
Benefits Open Enrollment for the 2020-2021 plan year will take place as scheduled Monday, April 20-Friday, May 1, 2020. However, the on-campus Open Enrollment Presentations scheduled for March 31, April 2, April 7, April 9, April 13, April 27, and April 29 have been cancelled. The Wellness Fairs scheduled for April 21 and April 22 have also been cancelled.
Visit www.hr.upenn.edu/openenrollment for details about the upcoming plan year, including links to this year’s Open Enrollment guide and presentation, which will be available in April.
Penn's 2020 Take Our Children to Work Day
With your family’s well-being in mind, Take Our Children to Work Day, which usually takes place in April, will not be held this year.
2020 Models of Excellence Program
This year Penn's Models of Excellence Program honors 110 exceptional staff members who play key roles in Penn's successes. The honorees will receive their financial awards in April.
The 21st Models of Excellence Ceremony and Reception, scheduled for April 28, will take not place. In lieu of the ceremony and reception, Penn will mark the occasion by producing and distributing a commemorative video and keepsake publication to honor and recognize 2020 honorees.
Wellness, Work-life and Professional Development
On-campus programs originally scheduled through March 31 have been cancelled. On-campus Be in the Know wellness campaign biometric screenings have been cancelled through the remainder of the spring term.
In the meantime, many new and previously scheduled Human Resources classes and events are available online. For the latest online offerings, including dial-in workshops, webinars, and other interactive programs, check www.hr.upenn.edu/calendar.
We encourage staff to register for online professional development courses through KnowledgeLink and Penn’s LinkedIn Learning service.
Adoption Benefits Extended
Loving families are dynamic and take diverse forms. Many parents welcome children into their homes through adoption. The University strives to ensure faculty and staff members who adopt have the best possible support through this phase of their lives.
To assist these families, the University of Pennsylvania amended the Adoption Assistance Plan. Effective March 2, 2020, the revised plan extends benefits to eligible faculty and staff for the adoption of their spouses’ children.
Penn’s Adoption Assistance Policy was implemented to reimburse eligible employees for qualified expenses resulting from the adoption of an eligible child. Now the child of an eligible faculty or staff spouse is considered eligible. Participants may be reimbursed up to $5,000 for costs directly related to a legal adoption, such as travel and court fees.
The updated Adoption Assistance Plan, along with details about eligibility, timelines, and tax treatment for qualified adoptions, is available at www.hr.upenn.edu/adoptionpolicy.
If you have questions about adoption assistance, please contact Karen Kille, Senior Work-life Consultant, karener@upenn.edu or 215-898-7729.
Protecting Kids from Substance Abuse
Elder health and safety have rightfully gained attention in recent weeks, but young people’s well-being is never far from parents’ and guardians’ minds. Drug and alcohol abuse still pose risks to children and teens. The rise of e-cigarettes makes it easier to hide drug use, while the dangers of smoking and vaping have been compounded by contagious disease.
That’s why Penn is offering a Prevention Resources and Education for Parents and Caregivers (PREP) webinar on April 8 from 12 p.m. to 1 p.m. This Caron Treatment Center webinar is open to faculty and staff members who have a young person in their life and wish to learn more about how to keep them safe from drugs and alcohol.
Research shows that the information provided in the PREP webinar can reduce the chances that young people will engage in substance use. In the Caron Treatment Center interactive online seminar, parents, grandparents, and other caregivers will discuss how to set clear expectations for kids with proven tactics such as taking a firm stand, establishing curfews, encouraging extra-curricular activities, and talking about the science so they recognize the trap of addiction.
The PREP webinar will explore the following objectives:
- Provide information on current youth drug trends, such as vaping, and the dangers of use to the developing brain and body
- Empower parents and caregivers with effective communication skills when talking with their children about alcohol, tobacco and other drug use
- Review the importance of establishing clear rules and consequences at home regarding substance use
- Evaluate resiliency factors that help protect kids from substance use
- Provide local resources if addiction support is needed
Register for the Prevention Resources and Education for Parents and Caregivers webinar through www.hr.upenn.edu.
Upcoming Change to Your Health Savings Account
Are you enrolled or plan to enroll in Penn’s High Deductible Health Plan? If so, there is an important change coming to the Health Savings Account (HSA) that you should note.
BNY Mellon, the current custodial bank of the HSA program administered by WageWorks, has resigned. HealthEquity will become the new custodian of your HSA, effective May 21, 2020. So, what does this mean for you?
If you wish to have your account transferred to HealthEquity you do not have to take any action with respect to your HSA funds. Your funds will be automatically transferred from BNY Mellon to HealthEquity on the effective date. However, once your account is established you will need to re-submit your direct deposit and beneficiary information.
You will be receiving detailed information from WageWorks/HealthEquity regarding this transition. HealthEquity will also provide a welcome packet and a new HealthEquity Visa Health Account Card to use in place of your WageWorks HSA debit card. Please read all of the materials carefully.
If you do not want to have your funds transferred to Health Equity you can follow the instructions in the letter that you will receive. However, please note that if you do not have your funds transferred you will not be able to make contributions from your paycheck or receive any employer contributions.
Health Savings Accounts are an important benefits option that allow you to use pre-tax dollars to pay for a variety of products and services such as allergy medications, eyeglasses, physical exams, and many other eligible expenses, as well as save for future health care costs for you and your family.
Here are some important dates for you to remember about the transition.
Week of | New HSA cards and welcome kits mailed to participants allowing access to HealthEquity member portal |
| May 11, 2020 | Note: This applies only to participants who do not want their funds transfer to HealthEquity Remove funds from HSA account or complete a transfer of your HSA. |
| May 14, 2020
| Last day to use WageWorks HSA debit card.
|
| May 21, 2020 | HSA account balances transferred from BNY Mellon to HealthEquity |
| May 22, 2020 | Funds available on HealthEquity HSA cards with balances from BNY Mellon. |
If you have any questions, please contact HealthEquity at 844-373-5899.
For more information about HSAs, visit the Health Savings Account webpage.
Did You Know? Remote Mindfulness Classes
Penn faculty and staff can join Jennifer Schelter on March 27 and April 3 from 12:30 p.m. to 1:45 p.m. for the Call Up Calm Mindfulness Workshop by Phone. This guided meditation conference call will focus on breath, letting go of negativity and fear, and allowing one’s self to feel inner reserves of strength, clarity and intentionality. No experience necessary. Access information will be provided by email when you register online.Healthy Meals: Slow-Cooker Chicken Noodle Soup Meal-Prep Freezer Pack
This comforting favorite that’s packed full of health-boosting ingredients and flavor. Make it an easy dinnertime delight by simply setting the crock pot. You can also prep the ingredients ahead of time, put them in the freezer, then enjoy the soup another day. Pair it with your favorite crackers, and you’ve got a tasty meal.
Find the recipe here.
Click here to send us your healthy recipes and tips.