http://www.osc.nc.gov/training/osctd/help/Webinars_and_Conference_Calls/HR_Conf_Call_Webinars.html

• OM/PA Updates

• Mass Reallocation Timeline

• Reminder about January New Hires

• Retirement Actions

• Time Updates

• Adverse Weather

• Payroll Updates

• Reminders

• Benefits Updates

• SHP Enrollment Exception/Appeals and Arrears Policy

• Termination Processing Rule

• Return from Leave of Absence – New Re-enrollment Process

• Post Annual Enrollment Updates & Reminders

• Mass Reallocations are planned for February 1, 2017. The below timeline is tentative. We will send out communication if the dates change.

• 12/15/2016 – OSHR hard stop begins on all Reallocations/Position adjustments from authorization/Competency level changes/Create new position actions. These types of actions must be completed and approved by close of business.

• 1/18/2017 – OM PCRs not part of the hard stop (position transfers/supervisor changes) must be completed by close of business on all positions that will be impacted by the mass reallocations.

• 1/25/2017 – PA PCRs must be completed by close of business on all employees that will be impacted by the mass reallocations.

• 1/27/2017 – 1/31/2017: Mass Reallocations will be processed.

• 2/1/2017 – Mass Reallocations should be visible in the HR/Payroll system. We will send out communication if any delays, or changes, occur.

**Reminder** - The Mass Reallocation program will not run on any position/employee with a pending PCR.

Any pending PCRs will be “killed” before we run the program, and would need to be re-created by the

agency after implementation.

• Per policy (State Human Resources Manual – Section 5 Page 71): “If a holiday falls at the first of a month and the employee begins work on the first available workday, pay is received for the holiday…”

• New Hires with a first day of work on 1/3/2017 should be hired effective 1/1/2017 to ensure they receive pay for the New Years’ holiday on 1/2/2017. (Bi-weekly new hires would be hired effective 12/31/2016).

• For transfers and Non-Beacon to Beacons, remember to work with the releasing agency to determine who will be paying for the holiday.

• System is currently closed for actions with effective dates of 2/1/2017 and later.

• It is recommended as normal procedure to process Retirement actions 60 days prior to the retirement date. This is to ensure employees 65 years and older have appropriate time to enroll in the Medicare Advantage Plans.

• The BEST OM/PA team will not process retirement actions with effective dates after 2/1/2017. The agency will be responsible for processing the actions once the system opens (after the Mass Reallocations have been processed).

• For employees retiring effective 3/1/2017 and later, Agencies will need to submit a ticket to BEST indicating:• Employee Name and Personnel Number• Projected Last Day Worked• Retirement Date

• BEST Benefits will manually term the active insurance in eEnroll/Benefitfocus, so the enrollment platform is available for the retiree enrollment.

• Please make sure you contact BEST if the retirement date changes.

• Once the system re-opens, the Agency must remember to process the Retirement actions via PCR as normal.

• All Address changes for employees need to be in the system by January 6 to be reflected on the W-2

• If you have collected full repayment funds for Overpayment they should be paid to OSC through the Intergovernmental (IGO) Cash Transfer process immediately. All repayments were due 12/9/2016.

• The W-2’s are processed here at OSC. They will be mailed before 1/31/2017. There will be a message on the BEST phone line about mailing date and when the W-2’s will be available on line

• Adverse Weather (A/A code 9545) was used by many EEs related to Hurricane Matthew during October.

• These liabilities will begin expiring during the 2nd week of January, 2017.

• Please work with EEs to recover AW liabilities in advance of January payroll, using the 2 IT2012 subtypes (ZAWR/ZAWB).

• Link to Adverse Weather Recovery Job Aid:

• http://www.osc.nc.gov/training/osctd/help/Time%20Management/Job%20Aids/RecoveringAdverseWeatherOwed.pdf

• SHP reviews all exception requests to determine approval with consideration given to:• Reason for request• Timeliness of request, &• Whether an approval will be in conflict with NC G.S. 135 Article 38,

the Federal Public Health Service Act, Section 125 of the IRS code, or any other applicable law or regulation.

• For BEACON Agencies, the Agency HBR must submit the request on behalf of their active employees via the secure file exchange, ‘Leapfile’. This link can be found on the www.shpnc.org website under the Health Benefits Representative tab.

• Retirees and COBRA Members can contact the SHP directly by calling 919-814-4400 to have a Customer Experience Specialist submit the exception.

Timeframe for requests & responses:

• Requests must be made within 60 days of enrollment, termination or change in benefit election, or within 30 days of paycheck deduction or premium payment due date reflecting enrollment, termination or change in benefit election, whichever is later.

• The SHP’s decision will be communicated within 15 State business days.

Appeals Process

• Members not satisfied with the determination made regarding the request may submit an appeal.

• Appeals should be made in writing to:NC State Health PlanDeputy Executive Administrator - Appeal3200 Atlantic Ave.Raleigh NC 27604

• Or, submitted to PPO.inquiries@nctreasurer.com .

• SHP will contact the member directly in writing regarding the appeal decision.

• If denied, information will be provided regarding the ability to file a grievance with the Office of Administrative Hearings.

• This policy outlines the rules for the SHP when a member is in a category that requires the member to be responsible for paying the full premium or portion of the premium directly to the employing unit or the Plan’s billing vendor. • In short, when an employee is on an official LOA and

does not pay their portion of the premium by the due date.

• Revisions to this policy are effective 12/1/16 & applies to premiums due for coverage beginning on or after 1/1/17.

• Premium payments are due to the Plan by the 1st day of the effective month.

• Premium payment grace period ends the last day of the effective month.

• Members who do not pay their premiums in full by the last day of the effective month will have their coverage canceled.

• Any member whose coverage is canceled for non-payment of premium will be eligible to enroll during the next annual enrollment.

• Exception: If the premium payment is received after the coverage is canceled for non-payment, but the post mark is on or before the last day of the effective month (end of grace period), the coverage may be reinstated.

• IMPORTANT!! SHP rules must work in concert with OSC Payroll processing rules, as OSC remits premium payments to the Plan: • BEST requires premium payments to be received by the 10th of the

month PRIOR to the effective date of coverage: For continued coverage in May 2017, premium payment is due at BEST by 4/10/2017.

• Example 1:

• Premium due to Plan for member and family 5/1/2017 for the May 2017 coverage.

• Member did NOT submit payment to BEST by 4/10/2017, as required for BEST payroll processing & plan was canceled by BEST effective 4/30/2017.

• Member submits payment on 5/28/2017.

• Payment is submitted timely & coverage can be reinstated.

• Agency would need to submit exception request outlining the steps above for reinstatement.

• Example 2: • Premium due to Plan for member and family 5/1/2017

for the May 2017 coverage.• Member did NOT submit payment to BEST by

4/10/2017, as required for BEST payroll processing & plan was canceled by BEST effective 4/30/2017.

• Member submits payment which is received on 6/10/2017, but envelop is postmarked by 5/31/2017.

• Payment is submitted timely & coverage can be reinstated.

• Agency would need to submit exception request outlining the timeline steps above for reinstatement.

• Example 3: • Premium due to Plan for member and family 5/1/2017

for the May 2017 coverage.• Member did NOT submit payment to BEST by

4/10/2017, as required for BEST payroll processing & plan was canceled by BEST effective 4/30/2017.

• Member submits payment on 6/23/2017, envelop post marked 6/21/2017.

• Payment is outside of the due date and grace period.• Late premium payment will be refunded.• Employee will have the opportunity to re-enroll upon

the next annual enrollment.

• As a reminder, the State Health Plan’s termination processing rule changed from 60 days to 30 days effective July 1, 2015. • This means, it is important that BEST follows this rule, which includes

terminating coverage for members who are no longer eligible because their Short Term Disability has ended. The SHP have seen a few cases where the member was approved for Extended Long Term Disability but was not auto-enrolled in coverage under the Retirement Systems because the active group still had the member covered.

• Therefore, please process your actions timely!

• The Plan will not approve retroactive terminations past 30 days when a group continues to carry a member that is no longer eligible for coverage.• BEST will terminate the member’s coverage on a current basis.

• Effective 1/1/2017, employees who are returning from a Leave of Absence (LOA) will now need to create a “Return from Leave of Absence” qualifying life event (QLE) in eEnroll in order to enroll in their benefits upon reinstatement.

• In the past, BEST would send an adjusted service date (rehire date) to Benefitfocus (BF) that would automatically create a platform (opportunity to enroll) for the employee. This platform would allow the employee to reinstate in their benefits shortly after signing into eEnroll.

• However, this automation will be removed and BEST will no longer send that adjusted service date to BF.

• If the employee does not create this QLE within 30 days of their reinstatement, the employee will miss their opportunity to enroll.

• If the employee misses their opportunity to enroll, then the HBR will need to submit an exception to the SHP and/or OSHR to get their employee’s benefits reinstated.

What does the employee need to do?

• Once signed into eEnroll, the employee will be asked if they have experienced a life change that requires them to edit their benefits:

• The employee will need to click the “Get Started” link.

• The employee will then be prompted to select a reason for the change in benefits:

• The employee will need to select the “Return from Leave of Absence” reason from the drop down menu.

• After selecting the QLE, the employee will also need to enter their rehire/reinstatement date as the date of the life event.

• Coverage will then begin the first of the month following that rehire/reinstatement date or life event date.• Ex. Employee returned from LOA eff 11/21/2016, therefore, coverage

will begin eff 12/1/2016.

What does the HBR need to do?

• Once the employee has entered the “Return from LOA” QLE, these reinstated employees will now show up on the QLE Task Report that BEST sends to the HBRs on a weekly basis.

• HBRs will need to verify that the rehire/reinstatement date entered by the employees are correct,• No documentation will be required, however, if the

rehire/reinstatement date is not correct. The HBR will need to submit a ticket to BEST to get updated.

• HBRs will also need to verify that the employee have re-enrolled in the same plans as had prior to their leave.

• Effective January 4th, 2017, users will see a new login screen when signing into the OSC Integrated HR-Payroll System (formerly known as BEACON). It is a technical change which will allow an employee to access Benefitfocus within the OSC Integrated HR-Payroll System by means of a single sign on.

• Employees will need to click Next to sign in.

• Enter your User ID and Password and click the Login button.

The OSC Integrated HR-Payroll System Home page will display.

• Click the My Data (ESS) tab on the Home Page.

• Click the My Benefits link within the My Data (ESS) tab

• Under My Benefits, a new eEnroll link will appear. Click the eEnroll link.

• Read the information regarding leaving the OSC site and then click Submit.

• By clicking the Submit button you:• Understand that you will be leaving the OSC Integrated HR-Payroll

System and,• Understand that you will be responsible for logging out of each

application when finished.

• Once you click submit, you will be automatically be logged into eEnroll.

• BEST has also made available 2 new reports in BOBJ:• BO011: Participating Employees with Benefit Plans

• This report is designed to show employees who are enrolled in benefit plans.

• B0047: Benefit Health and Insurance Plan Cost• This report is designed to give the cost of the employees health

and/or insurance plans.

Annual Enrollment elections were loaded into the system on 12/4/2016.

• State Health Plan enrollment changes become effective on January 1st, 2017 and premium deductions will show in the December 2016 paycheck(s).

Please review your December paychecks to ensure your SHP deductions are correct because the SHP will not allow any

exceptions to be submitted after January 31st, 2017.

• For the NC Flex Plans, enrollment changes become effective on January 1st, 2017 but premium deductions will show in the January 2017 paycheck(s).

• Social Security Collection Reminder• Employees who did not provide valid Social Security numbers

for their dependents on the State Health Plan by November 30th, 2016, had the dependent coverage terminated as of December 31st, 2016.

• Up until December 31st, 2016, employees can re-enroll dependents in SHP without a lapse in coverage by calling the Eligibility and Enrollment Center (855-859-0966) and providing a valid SSN for their terminated dependent(s).

• After December 31st, 2016, an exception to SHP will be required and there may be a gap in coverage as dependents will not be re-enrolled retroactively.

• Impacted employees would have recently received a letter from SHP reminding them of this requirement.

• HBR Benefitfocus eEnroll Training – December 8th & 9th

• Designated HBRs participated in an eEnroll navigation training on December 8th and 9th. These HBRs were designated by their Agency HR Director to have view access to eEnroll.

• SHP HBR Alerts• As a friendly reminder, please do not forward your HBR Alerts

to your employees. • These alerts are designed for the HBRs use only and contain

important benefit information and contact information reserved for the HBRs specifically. BF has noticed that the HBR hotline has received calls from employees directly and if continued, this can increase call wait times for HBRs who call.

• If employees want updates on SHP benefits information, pharmacy news and/or health and wellness tips, they can sign up to the “Member Focus” through the SHP website.

• NC Flex Cancer QLE Process• The 2017 Cancer and Specified Disease plan is a managed

benefit in the eEnroll platform. This means employees can now enter Qualified Life Events for Cancer into eEnroll just like all other NCFlex benefits.

• NC Flex MetLife Dental ID Cards• Cards for employees enrolled as of 1/1/2017 are being mailed

to employees at their home address listed in eEnroll. All cards are expected to arrive by Thursday December 22, 2016. After 1/1/2017, employees will not automatically receive a card from MetLife. Employees can log into MyBenefits (MetLife’s Dental Portal) to print an ID Card or request one from customer service. ID Cards are NOT required for dentists to perform services.

• NC Flex Dental Enrollment Notice• A routine audit conducted by Benefitfocus after Open

Enrollment found a possible discrepancy in approximately 200 employees’ 2017 NCFlex Dental election.

• Benefitfocus found that there might have been a discrepancy when employees changed tiers (EE + Spouse to EE Only).

• These 200 employees will be sent an email asking them to check their enrollment in dental for 2017 to verify the election is correct.

• If it is not, employees will be asked to respond to the email with the correct enrollment information and the Benefitfocus NC Flex account management team will make the corrections.

• BEST is working with OSHR & Benefitfocus to obtain the list of impacted employees.

This presentation & recording will be posted on the BEST Shared Services website:

• http://www.osc.nc.gov/BEST/index.html• Under Training tab/BEACON Training/Courseware and Job Aids/Job

Aids and BPPs/Conference Calls/Webinars/Workshops/

The next HR/Payroll Conference Call webinar is scheduled for 1/17/2017 at 10:00 a.m.