2019 Access Tufts Benefits for Postdoctoral Scholars
Effective 9/1/2019 the Post Doc Health and Dental benefits will be administered by HR Benefits. As of 9/1/2019, Cynthia Lynton and/or SAHA will no longer handle the Postdoc Health and Dental benefits.
The Post Doc Health plan is the: Blue Cross Blue Shield (BCBS) Access Blue New England Value Medical plan, which is an HMO plan. Post Docs residing outside of New England will have the Blue Cross Blue Shield (BCBS) Blue Care Elect Preferred , which is a PPO plan.
Vendor Information:
Blue Cross Blue Shield Member Services- 1-800-358-2227 Hours of Operation- M-F 8am to 6pm ET
Group number 004066444.
Starting in 2020 the Post Doc Open Enrollment will occur in the October/November timeframe only just like faculty/staff. There will no longer be an August effective September enrollment.
Post Docs will be able to make changes to ALL benefits (including Medical) during the Faculty/staff Open Enrollment from November 4th thru November 18th effective January 1, 2020.
RATES for Benefits effective 9/1/19-12/31/19
- The Individual coverage is still at no cost to the Post Doc (shows as 1 cent Post Doc HMO individual under Before Tax Deductions on Paycheck)
- Two Person-
- Access Blue New England Enhanced Value Plan: $655.02 per Month
- Blue Care Elect Preferred (for Post Docs residing outside of New England): $690.74 per month
- Family-
- Access Blue New England Enhanced Value Plan: $994.22 per month
- Blue Care Elect Preferred (for Post Docs residing outside of New England): $1,048.00 per month
- Please Note: The 1/1/20 rates will change. KA will be updated once details are finalized
New Hire Enrollment:
PostDoc New Hires are able to make their New Hire Elections on eServe within 31 days of their start date. Starting on 9/3/2019, they will attend the Benefits portion of the New Hire Orientation, along with the rest of the program which they were already attending. The Newly Hired Postdoc receives a New Hire letter which discusses benefits, New hire orientation and the contact info to TSS & the Postdoc Access Tufts Link. On the AccessTufts page there is instruction to complete the Blue Cross Blue Shield Member Enrollment Form and return it to TSS (along with also enrolling in Benefits in eServe, since until 1/1/2020, there will not be a File Feed to BCBS so both steps must be completed). Note regarding New Hire Orientation: timeslot to discuss benefits only available to Postdocs (Health, Dental, Retirement plans) is from 9:30am – 9:40am.
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- PostDocs then join the rest of the group and all benefits will be discussed.
- Benefits then returns in the afternoon from 2-3pm for 1x1 sessions, when all employees/Post Docs can ask questions about any/all benefits .
For more information about Medical benefits enrollment, please contact the vendor BCBS. If there are still questions after you speak with the vendor, starting 9/1/19, please contact TSS. Prior to 9/1/19, contact Cynthia Linton at 617-636-2701.
Post Docs who are not on Payroll (POIs)
IMPORTANT: If a Post Doc is not on the Tufts University payroll and wants to enroll in the BCBS Health plan and/or the Delta Dental plan, TSS must provide the Post Doc with the BCBS Enrollment Form and/or the Delta Dental Enrollment Form. The completed forms must be returned to TSS and the Benefits group will work with BCBS and/or Delta Dental to process the enrollment. Within 7-14 business days from completing enrollment forms, the Post Doc will receive a coupon/invoice in the mail from EBPA. The Post Doc will need to make payments to EBPA by sending a check, or via ACH. Payments must be made monthly, within 30 days of receiving the packet from EBPA to keep coverage active. Questions about this Direct Bill process can be directed to EBPA at 888-232-3203. Life Events:
For Life Events, please log into eServe-Benefit Information-Life Events to initiate the process to change Benefits. Follow the automated workflow.
- IF the Post Doc is changing Medical Benefits, TSS must provide the Post Doc with the BCBS Member Enrollment Form (see below).
- The Post Doc must then e-mail the BCBS Enrollment form to TSS along with the supporting documentation required for the Life Event.
- Starting 9/1/19, TSS must escalate the case with the completed form and the full contact information for the postdoc (phone number and e-mail address) to Benefits (T3).
If the Life Event includes changes to Medical Benefits, HR Benefits will update the BCBS database, to ensure the Post Doc receives coverage. Dental coverage information will automatically be sent to Delta Dental in a feed.
It is imperative that Benefits receives the enrollment form for changes to Medical Benefits starting 9/1/19 as there are no file feeds currently being sent to BCBS. The file feeds are set to begin in January 2020.
For information about Dental coverage, please see Post Doc Dental Coverage.
Benefits upon Separation:
Please see information regarding COBRA , administered by EBPA
Questions pertaining to other benefits (403b, FSA, Commuter) should be directed to Tufts Support Services
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