Long Term Care Insurance
As part of our continuing effort to provide WSU employees with access to a comprehensive selection of employee benefits, we are pleased to provide Long Term Care Insurance. This coverage is available on an employee-paid basis to active benefits eligible employees and their family members.
Do you need Long Term Care Insurance?
Most Americans know about the kind of medical health insurance that pays doctor and hospital bills. Another kind of insurance helps pays for care in a nursing home or home health care -- called Long Term Care Insurance. Long Term Care Insurance covers assistance you could need if you ever have a chronic illness or disability that leaves you unable to care for yourself for an extended period of time. You can receive care in a nursing home, or in your own home, in the form of help with such activities as bathing or dressing.
Two Benefit Options
Briefly, the two Wayne State University program options are:
Universal Life Insurance with Long Term Care
This program option has the flexibility of providing an affordable long term care benefit in combination with a death benefit. The insurance carrier is Trustmark.
Group Long Term Care Insurance
This program option provides the most comprehensive long term care benefits (no death benefits) and is designed to be attractive to employees who have significant assets to protect. The insurance carrier is John Hancock.
Program Advantages
Information on this benefit will be made available to employees at the worksite and offer the following advantages:
• Both program options provide benefits at substantial discounts.
• Both programs allow employees hired on or after April 1, 2007 a one-time opportunity to apply for benefits without the usual medical questions and underwriting.
• Employee participation in either program option is completely voluntary.
• Employees will pay 100 percent of the premiums through payroll deduction.
• On-going counseling and education for employees on their LTC needs will be provided by the insurance carriers.
Education and Enrollment Meetings
Benefit Representatives will be coming to Staff Meetings across the University throughout the month of March 2008 and will provide one-on-one personalized sessions during the 2008 Annual Enrollment Period. The 2008 Annual Enrollment Period will take place between March 31st and April 11th.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Q. Who is eligible to participate in this new benefit?
A. All benefit eligible employees (having an appointment of at least 50%) are eligible to elect either option. The Universal Life Insurance with Long Term Care (Trustmark) option permits enrollment of the spouse, domestic partner and children. The Group Long Term Care Insurance (John Hancock) option permits enrollment of the spouse, domestic partner, children age 18+, grandparents and in-laws.
Q. How do employees find out more information about the program and enroll?
A. Benefits Representatives from Voluntary Benefits Solutions (VBS) will be on-site to attend WSU Staff meetings including a brief 20 minute program overview. At the end of these meetings, each employee will have the option to setup an individual one-on-one consultation with a Benefit Representative to review the program in more detail, to ask questions and to obtain rates.
Q. How do I pay for these new benefits?
A. You pay the full premium amount through the convenience of after-tax payroll deduction. For the Universal Life Insurance with Long Term Care (Trustmark) option, all premiums will be by payroll deduction. For the Group Long Term Care Insurance (John Hancock) option, premiums for you, your spouse or domestic partner will be by payroll deduction. Other covered persons (i.e., grandparents and in-laws) will be billed at their home address and will make payments directly to John Hancock.
Q. When will my benefit coverage begin and when will my payroll deductions start?
A. The coverage effective date for 12-month employees on both program options will be June 1, 2008 with payroll deductions beginning June 11, 2008. For 9 month employees, the coverage effective date for Group Long Term Care Insurance (John Hancock) will be June 1, 2008, and Universal Life Insurance with Long Term Care (Trustmark) will be August 15, 2008, with payroll deductions beginning August 20, 2008. Underwriting approval may delay the actual effective date of coverage.
Q. What underwriting applies for the 2008 Long Term Care Insurance Program?
A. All newly eligible employees (date of hire on or after April 1, 2007) will have guaranteed underwriting (subject to maximum coverage limits, but no medical questionnaire). Other eligible employees will need to provide answers to key health questions (and will also be subject to maximum coverage limits) … and underwriting will have to be approved before coverage becomes effective.
Q. What are the key dates for the 2008 Long Term Care Insurance Program Enrollment?
A. The key dates are provided in table form below:
Action Item 2008 Dates
| VBS begins to attend March Staff Meetings to give program overview | March 3rd – March 31 |
| New hires get a home mailer | March 20 |
| VBS conducts On-Site Education (individual meetings for employees) | March 31st – April 11th |
For more information, go to:
http://wsu.jhancock.com (username: wsu; password: mybenefit)
2008 John Hancock Highlights brochure (pdf)
2008 John Hancock Main brochures (pdf)
2008 Trustmark Highlights brochure (pdf)
Medicaid vs Long Term Care (pdf)