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Health Insurance and FSA

All full-time Radford University employees and eligible family members have the option to enroll in health insurance coverage through the Commonwealth of Virginia's Health Benefits Program. With various plans and expanded coverage options for hearing, dental, and vision there are many different options to meet the specific needs of employees and their families. An employee's coverage begins on the first of the month following their hire date.  An overview of Health Care Plans and additional resources are below. 

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Health Insurance Plan Overview

Health Care Plans

The Commonwealth of Virginia health benefits program offers different health care plans to fit employee's specific health care needs. These plans include COVA Care, COVA HealthAware, and COVA HDHP (High Deductible Health Plan) statewide to full-time employees, early retirees, and certain family members. The Kaiser Permanente regional health maintenance organization is available to members in Northern Virginia only. For additional information on each plan, please visit DHRM - Health Coverage for details.

Required Documents for Dependents [PDF]

Dental Coverage

The COVA Care, COVA HealthAware, and COVA HDHP plans provide coverage for members to see their dentist twice a year for a checkup. If employees want to add additional dental coverage, expanded dental is an option for employees participating in a health care plan. For more information on dental service, please see Dental on the DHRM website for details.

Premium Rewards

Employees participating in the Premium Rewards Program can save $17 for employee only or $34 for employee and spouse per month on insurance premiums. Employees can sign up for this program at any time and do not have to wait until open enrollment.

Other Health Programs

The Commonwealth of Virginia is dedicated to offering programs that aid in the health of our employees.  If you are an employee who has chronic health issues and are participating in a state health care plan, you may qualify for the Healthy Insights program that provides aid for specific health issues.  The Healthy Beginnings program offers additional benefits for maternity wellness.

In addition, to help our employees live a healthy lifestyle My Active Health offers resources, guidance, and support you need to reach your wellness goals! Change does not happen overnight but we'll help you start down the path to a healthier lifestyle today. To take advantage of these programs, visit MyActiveHealth Brochure [PDF] or select the program listed below that fits your needs.

Health Insurance Changes - Qualifying Mid-Year Event

  • Outside of the Open Enrollment period, (duirng the first week of May), employees can only make changes to their health insurance when a qualifying mid-year event (QME) has occurred.  Following a QME an employee wishing to change their health insurance will need to provide HR with a new enrollment form, reflecting the change and supporting documents, verifying the QME.
  • Qualifying Mid-Year Events include (but are not limited to): marriage, divorce, birth, adoption, change in eligibility, judgment decree, see the full list (DHRM site).
  • Changes due to a QME are required to be submitted to HR in a certain amount of time (set by the Commonwealth of Virginia), visit DHRM's website and select the QME that applies to you to view the full requirements and window to make changes, you can also contact the Benefits Office at hr@radford.edu or 540-831-6110 with any questions or concerns.
  • The next opportunity employees will have to make changes to their health insurance (without a qualifying mid-year event, QME) will be in May next year during the next open enrollment period. The exact dates of open enrollment are determined by the state and are typically announced in mid-April each year.
Required Documents for Dependents

Additional Resources

Contact Information:

Flexible Spending Account

A Flexible Spending Account (FSA) allows you to set aside money from your paycheck, before taxes, to use on qualified health care and dependent care expenses. You may elect to participate during the annual Health Care and Flexible Spending Accounts open enrollment each spring, or within 60 days of a qualifying mid-year event (QME). You choose the amount to set aside based on your anticipated eligible expenses. The money is deducted from your paycheck in equal amounts and placed in your FSA. Plan wisely on how much to set aside in your FSA account because you must use all the money during the plan year, or lose it.   Please note that the FSA ends on June 30th of the plan year and requires a positive enrollment if you wish to set up an FSA plan for the new plan year.  Additional information and resources are available at the COVA Employee Benefits website.  To take advantage of either or both of these flexible spending accounts, please review the Flexible Spending Account (FSA) Sourcebook linked below for important information. If you decide a plan is right for you, you may begin participating by completing a State Health Benefits Enrollment Form linked below during the open enrollment period, or within the 30-day window following your hire date, or the date you become newly eligible for the State Health Benefits program.   If you experience a mid-year qualifying event such as a change in marital status, the number of dependents, a change in employment status, or another life event please contact Human Resources for assistance.

Dependent Care - FSA

A Dependent Care FSA is a plan sponsored by the Commonwealth of Virginia that allows you to set aside part of your income on a pre-tax basis to pay for eligible dependent care expenses throughout the coverage period. You save money on expenses you’re already paying for services such as child care, pre-school, or care for an adult necessary to allow you to work.

Health - FSA

A Health FSA allows you to set aside part of your income on a pre-tax basis and then use that money to pay for eligible out-of-pocket health care expenses for you, your spouse and your dependents.  With a Health FSA, you can reduce your taxes and increase your take-home pay. That’s because you can use pre-tax dollars to pay for eligible health care expenses such as  copays, coinsurance, and deductibles that you may now be paying with post tax dollars. 

Questions? Email benefits@radford.edu

 

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