Open Enrollment
Open Enrollment Overview
Open enrollment is defined as an established period during a calendar year when the employer allows employees to make changes to their benefit plans. Employees can use the Open Enrollment feature to review, elect, and submit their benefit choices during the designated period. Employee access to UltiPro reduces time spent with a benefits practitioner, allowing the employee to complete modifications based on individual needs.
Open Enrollment Setup Overview
The Open Enrollment feature enables your company to administer the open enrollment process in an efficient manner. Using this feature, you can reduce the amount of paperwork required during the open enrollment process by allowing employees to record benefit elections via a company intranet or the Internet instead of on paper.
Note:To configure or edit an enrollment session, you must be assigned the role type of Benefits Administrator.
The Benefits Administrator usually oversees the open enrollment process, enabling your company to administer and complete related steps in a timely manner. Employees can record benefit elections instead of completing extensive paperwork, reducing the amount of time needed to complete this process.
Access the Open Enrollment Setup features via Benefits Admin > Open Enrollment Setup.
As a Benefits Administrator, the Open Enrollment feature allows you to:
· Configure benefits enrollment sessions, including passive enrollment sessions
· Create customized employee messages on enrollment pages, which may include instructions, deadlines, and information regarding benefit and provider choices such as new benefit plans, provider information, and benefit disclaimers. Messages can include basic formatting, HTML, document attachments, and website links.
· Monitor all benefits enrollment activities.
· Add or modify employee elections.
Adding or Changing Details for an Open Enrollment Session
Add or change details for an open enrollment session on the Define Session page. Enter information specific to the open enrollment session including code, description, plan year, status, enrollment period, pending effective date, an employee message, and administrator options.
A passive enrollment session can also be configured. When this option is selected for a plan, employees are then provided with a "quick enrollment" option to keep the same benefits as the prior year. Electing passive enrollment bypasses all other election options for the employee and opens the Confirmation page immediately instead.
A passive enrollment can also be configured without using the Administrator Option by indicating which Deduction/Benefit Types require an election and which do not. Flexible Spending Account (FSA) plans can be included with Open Enrollment Sessions configured in this manner (for example, Medical, Dental, and Vision Deduction/Benefit Types – passive (no election required), and FSA – active (election required) could be configured in the same Open Enrollment Session).
Best Practice:If the Administrator option for Passive Enrollment is used, we recommend that Flexible Spending Account plans are not included in that session since they must be elected each year. This exclusion also applies to any Deduction/Benefit Types that are configured to require an election.
Best Practice:
Determine the Pending Effective Date of the Open Enrollment Session by using the Pending Effective Date Worksheets to identify pay periods, pay dates, and benefit effective dates. Different pay periods, pay frequencies, and plan effective dates require separate Open Enrollment Sessions, which could run concurrently.
Best Practice:
Configure your sessions by pay groups with common Period Start, Period End, and Pay Dates to ensure correct amounts are calculated and deducted from pay statements.
To add or change details for an open enrollment session:
1. From the Define Session page, enter a code.
2. Enter the session description.
3. Enter the plan year.
4. From the Status drop-down list, perform one of the following:
· To add a session, select Incomplete. Incomplete displays by default.
· To work with a session in test mode, select Test. Only the Benefits Administrator has access to the session.
· To enable a session for employee election, select Live.
Note:After an open enrollment session has been configured and tested, select Live. The session will be available to eligible employees on the Session Open date.
5. In the Dates section, enter dates for this session:
· At the Session Open field, enter the date when this session is available to employees.
· At the Session Close field, enter the last date when employees can enroll in this session.
· At the Pending Effective Date field, enter the date determined by the Pending Effective Date Worksheet based on pay periods and pay dates.
Best Practice:Be sure to discuss dates with your internal Human Resources, Payroll, and Benefits teams and with your carriers. This helps to ensure that the correct pending effective date, deduction start/stop dates, and coverage start/stop dates are configured within Open Enrollment ahead of time.
6. From the Messages section, enter messages in the following fields:
· Employee Welcome Message
· Beneficiaries and Dependents Message
· Confirm Your Elections or Changes Message
· Confirmation Message
Hyperlinks can also be included in the messages. The messages will appear for the employee in the applicable area during open enrollment.
Note:Messages can provide your employees additional information regarding the open enrollment session. Customize messages to include basic formatting, HTML, document attachments, and website links.
7. In the Administrator Options section, select how benefit options should be sorted: Option Name or Option Cost (Employee).
The default for new sessions is to sort by Option Cost and the default for existing sessions is to sort by Option Name. If configured to sort by option cost and two benefit options exist with the same employee cost, then the options sort alphabetically.
8. Check the applicable boxes.
· When re-enrolling in a plan:
o Use the existing deduction start date
o Use the existing benefit start date
· When canceling an already canceled plan:
o Use the existing deduction stop date
o Use the existing benefit stop date
· Display Days Remaining in the Session
· Allow employees to add and edit Beneficiaries and Dependents within the session
Note:When checked, the message appears "Approvals are not required when employees add Beneficiaries and Dependents within the session." Select OK.
· Allow Employees to Modify Elections During the Active Session
Note:When checked, employees can make changes to plan elections after elections have been posted until the Open Enrollment session closes.
· Allow Employees to Keep Existing Benefit Plan Enrollments Including those of the FSA Type (Passive Enrollment)
Note:When checked, the Passive Enrollment Message field becomes required.
9. Select Next.
Adding or Changing Groups for an Open Enrollment Session
Add or change a deduction/benefit group on the Deduction/Benefit Group List page. This page designates which benefit group(s), therefore employees, are assigned to this session. At least one benefit group with at least one benefit plan is required to activate an open enrollment session.
To add or change groups for an open enrollment session:
1. From the Deduction/Benefit Group List page, select Add. The Add/Change Deduction/Benefit Group page appears.
2. Continue (see "Adding or Changing Details for an Open Enrollment Session" on page 2) configuration for all deduction/benefit groups. If all deduction/benefit groups have been configured for this open enrollment session, select Next. The Session Summary page appears.
Adding or Changing Details for a Deduction Benefit Group
Add or change the deduction/benefit group on the Add/Change Deduction/Benefit Group page. This page designates specific deductions/benefits dates applicable to the deduction/benefit group from within an open enrollment session.
Stop Deductions and Start Deductions dates include a message that reminds to discuss best dates with your Payroll Administrator, and where to find more information.
To add or change details for a deduction/benefit group:
1. From the Add/Change Deduction/Benefit Group page, Benefit Group drop-down list, select a deduction/benefit group.
2. In the Stop Year Benefits/Deductions section:
· At the Stop Benefits field, enter the date to stop benefits coverage.
· At the Stop Deductions field, enter the date to stop the deduction. A best practice is to enter the date prior to the Start Date for the applicable pay period.
3. In the Start Year Benefits/Deductions section:
· At the Start Benefits field, enter the date to begin benefits coverage.
· At the Start Deductions field, enter the date to begin the deduction. A best practice is to enter the date for the Period End Date for the applicable pay period.
4. Select Next.
Adding or Changing Types for an Open Enrollment Session
Add or change deduction/benefit types and related data for this benefit group on the Select Deduction/Benefit Type page for this open enrollment session.
The Deduction/Benefit Type business rule determines the information displayed for each deduction/benefit type and availability of the Decline by Benefit Plan or Decline by Benefit Type check box. When a deduction or benefit allows multiple deductions, the Decline by Benefit Plan check box is enabled. When a deduction or benefit does not allow multiple deductions, the Decline by Benefit Type check box is enabled.
To add or change types for an open enrollment session:
1. From the Select Deduction Benefit/Type page, check a box for a deduction/benefit type to be included for this deduction/benefit group. By default, when a code is checked, the Do Not Allow Decline box is checked.
2. At the Display Order field, enter the sort order field number to display the deduction/benefit types during the employee open enrollment session. If a display order is not designated, then the types will appear in alphabetical order.
3. At the Employee Election is Required box, check the box if an employee action is required; the employee must then select or decline the benefit type. If the employee does not make an election for this benefit type, the Submit button will not be enabled for the employee during the session.
4. For the selected deduction/benefit type, check one of the following boxes:
· Do Not Allow Decline
· Decline by Benefit Plan
· Decline by Benefit Type
If a display order is not designated, then the types will appear in alphabetical order.
5. Select Next.
Adding or Changing Plans for an Open Enrollment Session
Add or change specific deduction/benefit plans for this benefit group on the Select Deduction/Benefit Plan page for this open enrollment session. Plans are displayed by deduction/benefit type.
The Deduction/Benefit Type business rule determines options and behavior for specific deduction/benefit plans. When a deduction or benefit allows multiple deductions, the employee can select one or more deduction/benefit plans or depending on the configuration, decline all plans. However, when a deduction or benefit does not allow multiple deductions, one plan must be configured as a plan that can be declined. The plan identified with the check will be the waived plan on the employee record when the coverage is declined.
Benefit options can be configured by plan for an Open Enrollment session. For the selected deduction plans that use option rates, configure benefit options by selecting the Configure Benefit Options field and selecting the applicable options. If you choose not to configure benefit options for the selected deduction plans that use option rates, then all available benefit options will be included in Open Enrollment.
· Informational message:
· Configurable benefit options:
Plan contingencies (linked plans) are offered in Open Enrollment. When you have plan contingencies for an Open Enrollment session, use the Display Order feature to display the deduction/benefit type containing the plan to be elected first prior to displaying the deduction/benefit type containing subsequent plan contingencies. This requires an employee to enroll in one plan before enrolling in another plan.
Note:The most common plan contingency scenarios occur for High Deductible Health Plans/Health Savings Account Plans and Employee Supplemental Life/Dependent Life Plans.
To add or change plans for an open enrollment session:
1. From the Select Deduction/Benefit Plan page, for each deduction/benefit type, select one or more deduction/benefit plans to be included for this deduction/benefit group.
2. At the Display Order field, enter the sort order field number to display the deduction/benefit plans during the employee open enrollment session.
3. At the Configurable Benefit Options field for those plans that use option rates, select the applicable options.
4. Check at least one Employee Can Decline Plan box. If only one plan can be selected for the category (Allow Multiples de-selected at the Deduction/Benefit Type Business Rule), then the plan identified with the check will be the waived plan on the employee record when the coverage is declined.
If multiple plans can be selected for the category (Allow Multiples selected at the Deduction/Benefit Type Business Rule), then check the Employee Can Decline Plan box for all plans in the category.
5. Select Next.
Adding Qualifiers for an Open Enrollment Session
Add qualifiers to a benefit group for an open enrollment session on the Add/Change Qualifiers page. Any qualifiers configured for the selected deduction/benefit group will also appear. Qualifiers can be used to restrict employees in an open enrollment session by matching additional information aside from the benefit group. Only those employees meeting the benefit group qualifiers will be added to that benefit group within that session.
To add qualifiers to a benefit group for an open enrollment session:
1. From the Add/Change Qualifiers page, select Add.
2. From the Qualifier drop-down list, select a qualifier.
3. At the Value or From and To fields, select or enter the applicable qualifier information.
Note:If two of the same qualifiers are used, an "or" relationship is implied between the qualifiers. If different qualifiers are used, an "and" relationship is implied between the qualifiers.
4. Select Next. The Deduction/Benefit Group List page appears.