Members Benefit from Insurance Options; Important New Information
Retirees between the ages of 50 and 64 who have been insured through the Educators Health Alliance (EHA) for five years immediately prior to retirement can continue their EHA coverage through the EHA Direct Bill Plan. Current premiums and deductible options can be found on the EHA website, www.ehaplan.org. To participate in the plan, you must join the EHA group by paying the Special Services fee. For more information, call NSEA at 1-800-742-0047 or 402-475-7611 and ask for Special Services Membership or call Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Nebraska at 1-877-721-2583. Be sure to refer to the EHA Direct Bill Plan when you call.
Either EHA subscribers or NSEA-Retired members who are age 65 and above and on Medicare may purchase the newly renamed Educators’ Medicare Supplement Plan (the plan that was previously named NSEA-Retired Blue Senior Classic) to pay for the medical costs that Medicare does not cover. Educators’ Medicare Supplement Plan is endorsed by NSEA-Retired and has excellent dental plan options which are available only at the initial time of enrollment. Supplementary plans pay costs that Medicare Parts A and B do not. To be fully insured, you will also need Medicare Part D for prescription drug coverage. Medicare Part D providers may be changed each fall. You can call BCBSNE at 1-877-721-2583 to request information and enrollment forms. Be sure to refer to the Educators’ Medicare Supplement Plan when calling. Additional information on Medicare can be found at www.medicare.gov.
Educators’ Medicare Supplement Plan is a Plan F Medicare supplement with optional dental coverage. Beginning Jan. 1, 2019, this plan will also offer a Plan G Medicare supplement with optional dental coverage. The only difference between the two is that Plan F pays the Medicare Part B deductible (currently $183 per year), and Plan G does not. Because Educators’ Medicare Supplement Plan is an Employer Group plan, the Plan F supplement will continue to be offered to new enrollees when they become eligible for Medicare. (Congress acted to stop new enrollees in Plan F supplements for other groups beginning Jan. 1, 2020.) Current subscribers may switch to Plan G with an effective date of Jan. 1, 2019, by completing an enrollment form. The change will be for the 2019 year.
BCBSNE will host seminars regarding Educators’ Medicare Supplement Plan twice at each of four locations. The sessions will be offered from 9:30 a.m. – 11:30 a.m., and again from 1:30 p.m. – 3:30 p.m.
- Friday, Nov. 2: Omaha Public School Board Room, 3214 Cuming St., Omaha
- Tuesday, Nov. 6 : Holiday Inn, 110 S. 2nd Avenue, Kearney
- Wednesday, Nov. 7: Southeast Community College, 8800 O Street, Lincoln
- Thursday, Nov. 8: Northeast Community College Lifelong Learning Center, 801 E. Benjamin Avenue, Norfolk
Seminar registration is required by October 26, 2018. Go to http://18educators.eventbrite.com. Note you will need an email address to register online. You can also call 1-800-562-6394 to register.
Members who are not able to attend one of the in-person seminars are invited to participate in one of two webinars. The webinars will be on Tuesday, Nov. 13 at 9:30 a.m. and Thursday, Nov. 15 at 1:30 p.m. Registration is required for the webinars. To register for the Nov. 13 morning webinar, go to bit.ly/18educatorsam; to register for the Nov. 15 afternoon webinar go to bit.ly/18educatorspm. Registration deadline is noon, Monday November 12.
Retirement Seminars
NSEA-Retired offers seminars on retirement planning to local associations. NSEA-Retired does not charge individual NSEA members to attend the seminars, but does ask that expenses to bring the seminars to local associations be covered. Each NSEA District has established a policy that will help cover expenses to bring the seminars to locals in that District. Locals are encouraged to contact their District President to learn what kind of help is provided and how to access that help.
How to request a seminar:
Send an email to Roger Rea at rrea68154@yahoo.com to request a seminar for your local. Please put “Retirement seminar request for [your local name]” in the subject line of the email. You can call Roger at 402.330.6870 if you need additional information.
The seminar covers these topics:
- How to calculate your retirement benefit
- Factors that affect the amount of your retirement benefit
- How the 8 payment options differ
- Tips on who to name as your primary beneficiary
- Health insurance options after retirement
- Answers to your questions
