Open Enrollment Has Started

Enrollment for the North Carolina State Health Plan for 2014 begins today. State employees have until Oct. 31 to choose between three state-sponsored health plans for the coming year.

All employees received a copy of the 2014 Open Enrollment Guide by mail over the last two weeks, detailing the three options: the Enhanced 80/20 Plan, the Consumer-Directed Health Plan and the traditional 70/30 Health Plan.

Anyone who does not choose a specific plan by the end of October will automatically be enrolled in the 70/30 plan.

There are significant changes this year, especially since the Consumer-Directed plan is new. It offers employees (and their families) a higher-deductible plan with lower premiums and a Health Reimbursement Account that is not available in the other two plans.

Both the Enhanced Plan and the Consumer-Directed Plan offer wellness incentives that can reduce premium rates by as much as $50 per year for those employees who participate in three activities during the enrollment period: attesting that you (and your covered spouse) do not smoke or will complete a smoking-cessation program by Jan. 1; completing a confidential health assessment; and selecting a primary care physician.

For those who have questions about their options, there are 16 informational meetings scheduled during an enrollment tour of the state during the month of October, including four in Wake County. The first two are today and Wednesday from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. in downtown Raleigh at the Halifax Mall during the NC Flex benefits fair. Two more are slated for Oct. 16 in Raleigh and Cary.

More information, including a premium calculator, is available on the State Health Care web page and at the Annual Enrollment site maintained by HR.