Top things you need to know this Open Enrollment (OE) season
Below are some commonly asked questions about Open Enrollment.
If you have a question or need help, we may have answers for you below – so read on! If your question isn’t answered here or you have additional concerns, please submit an SDSK ADD 34490.
All of your 2024 elections, with the exception of Flexible Spending Accounts, will roll over to 2025. We encourage all employees to review their current benefits to ensure they continue to work for them and their families.
You have until November 8 to complete both Health Track and Open Enrollment. You do not need to complete the steps all at once. You can start your elections in MYHR and return at a later time to complete them.
To complete your benefit elections, log in to MYHR <GO>. You will find an “Open Enrollment Change” action waiting in your inbox.
If you complete the Health Track course, you should immediately receive an email confirmation from BU <GO> and your BU transcript should be updated. Additionally, within 1 business day of that completion, your “Benefit Credit” will be reflected in MYHR <GO>. If it hasn’t been one business day, we encourage you to wait 24 hours for the credit to be reflected in MYHR <GO>. If none of these things have happened, then you have not successfully completed the course.
No. Completing Health Track does not waive your spousal contribution. You do not have the ability to waive the spousal contribution if you cover a spouse or domestic partner under the Bloomberg U.S. medical plan.
The spousal contribution is an annual $1,500 ($62.50 per paycheck) amount, and your spouse or domestic partner will receive the same coverage under the plan that you receive.
- If you have already made your 2025 Open Enrollment elections: You will need to make them again, after you have completed making elections for your change in family status event. You will need to actively elect your medical/prescription, dental, and vision coverage for yourself and your dependents (if applicable) as well as your FSAs.
- If you have not made your 2025 Open Enrollment elections: report the family status change and make your elections. Next, complete your Open Enrollment elections for 2025.
You may enroll in most voluntary benefits, or change your election for those benefits, at any point during the year. Visit VBEN <GO> for single sign-in access to our voluntary benefits portal (you may also visit www.bloombergvb.com to log in from any device) and review plan summaries and costs. However, you may only enroll in the following voluntary benefits during our Open Enrollment period October 21 – November 8, 2024:
- Legal Plan (offered through MetLife Legal)
- Accident Insurance (offered through Aflac)
- Critical Illness Insurance (offered through Aflac)
Enrollment is completed by accessing the portal: Run VBEN <GO> or visit www.bloombergvb.com. Please review each plan summary and make your choice. Your election will be effective January 1, 2025.
Whole life insurance with Long-Term Care (also available only during Open Enrollment):
Group Whole Life Insurance with LTC, administered by Allstate, combines three kinds of financial protection: a death benefit, funds for LTC expenses, or access to the cash value for financial emergencies. Coverage is available for you, your spouse or domestic partner, and your children. Enroll by visiting this website or call the BenAssist Call Center at 855-806-3204.
Healthcare/Dependent Care FSA contributions do not automatically reset at the start of the next year. If you would like to enroll in an FSA for 2025, you must re-elect within the OE period.
No, unfortunately, you cannot. Per IRS guidelines, the Health Care FSA may not be used to pay for your dependent’s day care expenses, nor may you transfer funds between your Health Care FSA and your Dependent Care FSA.
Open Enrollment glossary
Every time you use your health insurance, your health plan sends you an “explanation of benefits” (EOB) that explains the total cost of care, how much your plan paid toward medical expenses, and the amount an in-network doctor or other healthcare professional is allowed to charge a plan member (called the “allowed amount”). Learn how to read your EOB here.
Funded through pre-tax payroll deductions, an FSA is a cost-savings tool that allows you to pay for qualified healthcare-related expenses with pre-tax dollars. Learn more here.
A provider who has a contract with your health insurer or plan to provide services to you at a pre-negotiated rate. Using in-network providers costs less than using out-of-network providers.
A network is made up of the providers (doctors, specialists, etc.) and suppliers your health insurer has teamed up with to provide healthcare services at pre-negotiated rates.
This is your annual opportunity to review and personalize benefits for the upcoming year. At Bloomberg, employees complete Open Enrollment elections through MYHR <GO>. The benefits you elect go into effect January 1, 2025.
A provider who doesn’t have a contract with your health insurer or plan to provide you services at a pre-negotiated rate. You will pay more to see an out-of-network provider.
When you visit an out-of-network provider, generally covered services are reimbursed subject to the following:
- Annual maximum benefit: This is the maximum dollar amount a benefit plan will pay toward the cost of your healthcare-related expenses within a specific benefit period (usually January through December).
- Calendar-year deductible: The amount you must pay for eligible expenses before your plan begins to pay for benefits. As an example, your medical plan has an out-of-network deductible of $1,000 per person and $3,000 for a family. Once the deductible is satisfied, the plan generally pays 60% of your covered expenses.
- Coinsurance: Your share of the costs of a covered service. As an example, once the calendar-year deductible is met in your medical plan, the plan generally pays 60% of your covered expenses and you pay 40% until you reach the maximum out-of-pocket limit. In this example, the 40% is your coinsurance.
- Maximum allowed amounts (MAA): The plan pays out-of-network benefits up to the maximum allowed amounts for covered services once you meet the annual deductible. If you use an out-of-network provider who charges more than the MAA for care, you must pay the amount that exceeds the MAA, in addition to paying your normal share of the cost.
Preventative care is the care you receive to prevent illnesses or diseases. Learn more about the importance of preventative care here.
A medically necessary determination by a health insurance carrier for a medical service, treatment plan, prescription drug, medical or prosthetic device, or certain types of durable medical equipment. Sometimes it is called prior authorization, prior approval, or precertification. Many plans require preauthorization for certain services before you can receive them, except in cases of emergency. Preauthorization isn’t a promise your medical plan will cover the cost.
This is used to refer to a physician, healthcare professional, or healthcare facility.
A change in your life that allows you to make changes to your benefits coverage outside of the annual open enrollment period. These changes include a change in marital status (marriage, divorce, death of spouse), a change in the number of eligible children (birth, adoption, death, aging-out), and a change in a family member’s benefits eligibility under another plan (losing a job, Medicare or Medicaid eligibility, etc). Learn more about qualifying life events here.