Penn Benefits Open Enrollment is your annual opportunity to make changes to your healthcare elections. While Open Enrollment is still a few weeks away, we want to give you plenty of time to learn about the upcoming changes. 

We also have unprecedented news to share. There will be no increase in medical and dental rates for the third straight year. That means Penn’s faculty and staff enrolled in a medical plan will not see an increase for the 2020-2021 plan year. 

There are many other developments for you to consider as you choose a plan for you and your family, including a new online enrollment process. For the first time, benefits-eligible faculty and staff will make their elections and any updates using the Workday@Penn portal at www.workday.upenn.edu

Be sure to carefully review enrollment information mailed to your home. This year, the Division of Human Resources will provide a single enrollment guide that lists the benefits available to full-time faculty and staff, as well as part-time and ACA eligible employees. Penn provides many other tools and resources to help you make an informed decision. 

For more information about your benefits, visit www.hr.upenn.edu/openenrollment

You’ll have access to benefit comparison charts, contribution charts, and more.

Plan Changes as of July 1, 2020

No Increase in Medical and Dental Rates for the Third Year

Your cost for medical and dental coverage will not increase for the 2020-2021 plan year.

The University of Pennsylvania’s medical and dental plans have seen favorable claims experience over the past several years, which has enabled Penn to maintain the same rates for the third straight year. Although the healthcare market in general has experienced approximately 5% medical cost inflation over the past few years, Penn’s plan costs have been much lower than the industry trend.

Thanks to plan design changes, favorable claims experience, enhanced prescription drug
management, wellness initiatives and better employee consumerism, Penn’s faculty and staff enrolled in a medical plan will not see an increase in the 2020-2021 plan year.

New Enrollment Process with Workday@Penn

This year you will complete Open Enrollment at the Workday@Penn portal at www.workday.upenn.edu The benefits enrollment process has been simplified and is quick and easy. Use your PennKey and password to access the portal. Then follow the steps listed below to enroll or make changes to your benefits for the 2020-2021 plan year.

Be sure to review your current elections and available choices in Workday even if you plan to keep the same coverage you have now. After Open Enrollment, healthcare benefits changes can only be made if you declare a qualifying life event.

Also, review your beneficiary information, confirm its accuracy for all elections and update it if necessary. Once you have made your elections, you must print a confirmation. No confirmation statements will be mailed. However, an enrollment guide will be mailed to your home in April.

Steps to Enroll:

1. Log into Workday at www.myworkday.com/upenn/login.html
2. From your home page, select the Inbox icon in the upper right corner or click “Go to Inbox”
3. Select “Open Enrollment—Event” in your inbox
4. Click “Elect” or “Waive” next to the corresponding benefit plan (your current coverage will be displayed for each benefits election)
5. When you have completed all of your elections, click “Submit”

A One-Time Opportunity to Increase Supplemental Life Insurance Coverage

The University through MetLife is offering a one-time opportunity to enroll or increase your Supplemental Life Insurance. 

Eligible faculty and staff can increase their supplemental life insurance coverage during Open Enrollment before providing evidence of insurability (i.e. proof of good health). This means, if you’re not currently enrolled, you can elect .05 x to 5 x your benefits base, or if you’re currently enrolled you can increase your coverage up to the 5 x max. If you select a total coverage level above $750,000 (coverage amounts based on your benefits base) you must provide additional evidence of insurability. To take advantage of this opportunity, you must elect this increase during this year’s Open Enrollment period. 

 Watch the mail for your personalized information sheet from MetLife, which will provide you with detailed information about your current life insurance amounts and your available options during Open Enrollment. Please remember to review and/or update your beneficiary information in Workday. 

Remember that Penn provides you with Basic Life Insurance of 1 x your benefits base salary (maximum of $300,000) at no cost to you. If you are PT/ACA eligible, Penn provides a maximum of $50,000 in Basic Life Insurance. This one-time Supplemental Life Insurance coverage is in addition to the Basic Life benefit. 

*Note: You must be currently eligible for life insurance to take part in this offer. The amount of coverage is based on your benefits base that is effective as of March 2020. If you are a union employee, you can select up to 6 x your base salary to the max of $750,000. If you are PT/ACA eligible, you can select up to 2 x your base salary. 

Colonoscopy Screening Age Requirement Removed

Effective July 1, an annual (as recommended by your medical provider) colonoscopy screening will be covered at $0 co-pay for those enrolled in the Keystone HMO, Aetna POS II and the PennCare/Personal Choice plan. The age and frequency limitation for this type of screening has been removed. 

Penn Introduces Telemedicine

The University has partnered with Penn Medicine to offer a virtual care telemedicine practice called Penn Medicine OnDemand. Formerly called FirstCall, Penn Medicine On-
Demand provides urgent primary care services by providers in the Penn Center for Connected Care. 

Penn Medicine OnDemand providers address your immediate care needs such as sore throats, rashes, earaches, muscle or joint pain and other minor injuries. 

The telemedicine practice is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year by Penn Medicine providers who deliver fast and speedy care using video visits. When an in-person, office-based appointment with a PennCare provider is recommended, the Penn Medicine OnDemand team will help you schedule it at a time and location that is convenient for you. 

Health Care and Dependent Care Flexible Spending Accounts (FSA)

When you participate in a Health Care Flexible Spending Account, you set aside pre-tax dollars to use for certain out-of-pocket healthcare costs. 

The IRS has increased the FSA limit from $2,700 to $2,750 for the 2020 calendar year. As you know, you can only rollover $500 to the next plan year, so be sure to submit your claims for the current plan year in a timely manner. 

The rules for using your FSA account remain the same. You may still need to provide receipts to verify that your claims are qualified expenses in accordance with IRS guidelines. 

Health Savings Accounts (HSA) for HDHP

An HSA is a tax savings account for High Deductible Health Plan participants. HSA funds may be used to offset the cost of care. Penn will contribute to your HSA $1,000 for single coverage or $2,000 for family coverage. You can also contribute additional money to an HSA via pre-tax payroll deductions. 

The IRS has announced an increase in the HSA family maximum contribution by $100 for calendar year 2020. The single contribution limit will be $3,550 and the family contribution limit will be $7,100—inclusive of your employer contribution. If you are 55 and over, you can contribute an additional $1,000. 

Penn’s Health Savings Account administration is moving from WageWorks to HealthEquity, effective May 2020. BNY Mellon will no longer serve as the custodial bank for HSA accounts. A new account will be opened for participants at HealthEquity. BNY Mellon will transfer your HSA balances to HealthEquity by the end of May. 

If you are currently enrolled in a Health Savings Account, you do not need to take any action for your account to be moved. 

You will receive a new HealthEquity health savings card in May. Please watch for important notification in the mail and your email from HealthEquity.

Open Enrollment Presentations and Wellness Fairs 

Due to the evolving situation around COVID-19, the on-campus Open Enrollment Presentations scheduled for March 31, April 2, April 7, April 9, April 13, April 27 and April 29 have been cancelled.

The Wellness Fairs scheduled for April 21 and April 22 have also been cancelled.

Health Care Rates for 2020-2021