New Health Insurance Plan, Online Tools Part of Benefits Open Enrollment

LEXINGTON, Ky. (April 26, 2019) — University of Kentucky’s benefits open enrollment period began April 24 and continues through May 10. This is the annual opportunity for employees to tailor their benefits package to their unique needs.

Highlights of this year’s benefits open enrollment include a new health insurance plan with a health savings account and an online tool to help guide benefits decisions.

Employees do not need to take any action if they do not wish to make any changes to their current benefit plans. However, anyone enrolled in a flexible spending account must re-enroll for 2019-20. Only up to $500 in unused funds from health care flexible spending accounts will roll over to the new benefits year that begins July 1.

New for this year, UK is offering a high-deductible health insurance plan with a health savings account, called the UK Health Saver Plan. This type of insurance plan puts you at risk for paying some health care costs out of pocket, but it also provides a way to save for health care costs this year and in the future.

Except for preventive care, members of this plan must meet a deductible before insurance begins paying for health care costs. This includes the cost of prescriptions. To help cover those costs before insurance coverage begins, UK will deposit money into a health savings account — $1,000 for employee-only coverage or $2,000 for coverage that includes family members. Learn more here about the UK Health Saver Plan.

UK Human Resources is also offering a new online, interactive tool called Alex to help with benefits decisions. Alex will ask you a few questions and guide you through all available insurance plans to make sure employees find the best fit. 

Experts will be available to answer questions at several open houses during open enrollment. View the HR open enrollment website for a complete listing.

Other highlights of open enrollment include:

• More services with just a co-pay, and no deductible or co-insurance, if you choose the UK-PPO health insurance plan with UK HealthCare providers.
• More options to access a health care provider. They include the UK HealthCare Team Blue Primary Care Clinic, the UK HealthCare Urgent Care Clinic coming June 1, and LiveHealth Online.

Rates for vision, Delta Dental, life, and accidental death and dismemberment insurance plans will remain the same. Rates for some of the health insurance plans will increase slightly. View the full rate information here.