Staff members who wish to add a newborn child or new spouse to their insurance benefits need to act quickly and should contact the Benefits Office as soon as possible for forms.
They will be asked to complete a Health Insurance Change Form to add the new baby or spouse. The completed form must include the staff member’s signature and be received by either the Central Campus or Medical Campus Benefits Office within 30 days of the date the child was born or the date of marriage.
The new spouse will be added retroactive to the date of marriage. The form must be accompanied by a copy of the marriage certificate.
The new baby will receive coverage retroactive to date of birth unless the child is being added to the father’s M-CARE, M-TOP or Care Choices contract and the mother is not covered under that contract. In this instance, the effective date of the newborn’s coverage is the date of discharge from the hospital.
If the health insurance change form is not received by the Benefits Office within the 30-day deadline, the new dependent cannot be added to health insurance coverage until the open enrollment period in October, with an effective coverage date of Jan. 1 the following year.
New dependents also can be listed as beneficiaries on the group life insurance and retirement benefits. Forms for this also can be obtained at the Benefits Offices.
For information, call 763-1214 or 764-6584.
