Enrolling in Your Benefits

Who is Eligible ?

If you are an active employee eligible for Ithaca College benefits, you are eligible to participate in Individual Choice. You also may enroll your eligible dependents, including

  • your spouse or qualified domestic partner;
  • unmarried children up to age 19* who are dependent on you, including stepchildren and legally adopted children;
  • unmarried children between the ages of 19 and 25* (up to age 26 for medical plan only) who are full-time students enrolled in an accredited school and who continue to be dependent on you;
  • unmarried children who are older than the age dependent coverage would otherwise terminate and who are incapable of self-sustaining employment because of mental illness, developmental disability, or mental retardation, as defined in the New York State Mental Hygiene Law, or because of physical handicap. The condition must have occurred before the child reached age 19* at which dependent coverage would otherwise have terminated and currently be enrolled under an Ithaca College sponsored plan. The child’s disability must be certified by a physician. In addition to this certification, the plan has the right to check rather a child is and continues to qualify as an incapacitated child.

Please contact the benefits department to schedule an appointment to enroll in the plan of your choice.

* The age limit is reached on the day of the child’s birthday.

NAMING A BENEFICIARY

If you are newly hired or if you want to change your current beneficiary designation for your life and/or accident insurance benefits, it is imperative that you keep your life insurance beneficiary designation current. In order to elect a beneficiary, you must:

  • Fill out the Add Beneficiary/Contact form
  • Submit the form to the Office of Human Resources
  • Designate your Beneficiaries online via Employee Self Service

IF BOTH FAMILY MEMBERS WORK AT ITHACA COLLEGE

If you are married to a benefit eligible Ithaca College employee, or if both you and your qualified domestic partner are eligible employees, each of you must complete the enrollment process. If you have eligible dependents you wish to cover, you must elect shared family coverage and use the rates for that level. If there are no eligible children, each member must elect "employee only" coverage.

No person may be covered as both an employee and a dependent, and no person may be covered as a dependent of more than one employee.

 

 

 

DEPENDENTS BETWEEN THE AGES OF 19 AND 26

If you have dependents between the ages of 19 and 26*, please note the following important benefit information.

  • All unmarried dependents up to age 19 are eligible to participate in the College's Medical, Dental, Dependent Life and ADD plans.
  • Unmarried children between the ages of 19 and 25 who are full-time students and primarily dependent on you are also eligible to participate. *(Up to age 26 for medical plan only)
  • It is your responsibility* to notify Human Resources and fill out the Benefit Contact Update Form as well as updating Aetna and/or First Ameritas when your child turns age 19, if he/she is a full-time student, to prevent the stoppage of coverage and to prevent that any claim be pended.
    • To inform Aetna that your over-19 child is a full time student, you can call the member services number on your card, or fax them a copy your insurance card with the dependent's class schedule, bill or other document reflecting full-time student status. For the Open Choice POS II plan, the number is 1-800-962-6842. For the Open Choice High Deductible Health Plan, the number is 1-800-364-2386.
    • To advise First Ameritas, make sure to fill the related information in the claim forms or you can call member services at 1-800-487-5553.
  • You may have to contact Aetna and/or First Ameritas once each academic year.
  • If your child no longer meets the eligibility requirements, you must notify the Benefits department within 60 days of their loss of eligibility.
    • If your child graduates in May/June/July/August, he/she will be covered until August 31st of that year.
    • If your child graduates at any other time, his/hers coverage will end the last day of the pay period after the graduation date.
  • If the dependent loses eligibility they will be offered continuation of coverage through COBRA for up to 36 months.

Special note for re-enrollment: if your child turns 19 in November or December, make sure to submit the Benefit Contact Update Form to Human Resources before you complete the re-enrollment process.

*You must notify the Office of Human Resources when your dependent turns 19, even if he/she is using the Tuition Remission or Cash Awards Benefits.