What is Open Enrollment?
The annual Health Insurance Open Enrollment period provides you with an opportunity to switch your employer- sponsored medical and dental insurance carriers and/or add eligible dependents, including sponsored dependents to your insurance policy. If you fail to make these changes within this time period, your next opportunity to do so will be during the next open enrollment period in the year 2009. You are not required to make a change to your health or dental insurance plan[s] if you do not wish to do so. Eligibility In general, all active employees eligible for health benefits administered by Wayne County are eligible to change their current health insurance carrier[s]. If you are a New Hire or Rehire, your current collective bargaining agreement [CBA] or benefit plan may require that you be covered by the plan of the Employer’s choice for one year for both medical and dental benefits. That year must be completed by October 1st of this year. If you have not been covered by these plans
Open enrollment means that any individual, and dependents of such individual, and any small group, including all eligible employees or group members and dependents of employees or members, applying for individual or small group health insurance coverage, including Medicare supplement coverage, must be accepted at all times throughout the year for any hospital and/or medical coverage offered by the insurer to individuals or small groups in this state. Once accepted for coverage, an individual or small group cannot be terminated by the insurer due to claims experience.
During the Annual Open Enrollment Period, all eligible participants may make changes in the State pre-tax benefit more freely than the rest of a plan year. Other than the Open Enrollment Period, “Qualifying Status Change” (QSCs) events are required for changes in pre-tax benefits. Retirees and COBRA participants do not have all the options that active employees have.
