The 2015 You Decide! booklet is now available!

The booklet gives you an opportunity to review and understand your flexible benefits package. It summarizes Flexible Benefits Program options – such as, dental and vision care, legal insurance, spending accounts, long and short-term disability insurance, life insurance, specified illness and long-term care – that are available to employees and their dependents, along with certain procedures to be followed to obtain these benefits.

There are some plan enhancements for the 2015 Plan Year, so review all information carefully in advance of the Annual Enrollment period, beginning October 27 to November 14, 2014. It is up to you to understand all the options available and make the choices that best suit your needs.

Making the right decisions about your options can make a real difference toward building a rewarding future for you and your family.

Flexible Benefits — Don’t Forget

In addition to the 2015 You Decide! Booklet, Flexible Benefits Program information and enrollment is also available at www.gabreeze.ga.gov.

In preparation for Open Enrollment 2014 (October 27  – November 14, 2014), here are a few tips to make your GaBreeze experience simply a BREEZE!

Tip #1: Access Granted!
Please ensure that you can log in to the GaBreeze website at  www.gabreeze.ga.gov.

Tip #2: Forgot Your User ID or Password? No problem!
If you experience difficulty accessing your account or problems with your User ID, please click on the appropriate links on the Login page — either “I Forgot My User ID” or “I Forgot My Password.” You will then be asked personal identifying information (i.e., your Social Security Number (SSN) and birth date). Once you enter this information, you will be asked security questions that you answered when you first registered on the GaBreeze website.

If you previously entered an e-mail address on the GaBreeze website, you will receive a new temporary password sent via e-mail usually within 15 minutes. If there is no e-mail address on file, the password reset will be sent through regular mail to your home address within 5-7 business days.

Tip #3: Update Your Contact Information
Please update your mailing address and other important contact information online through the Team Georgia Employee Self-Service system.

Tip #4: Update Your Beneficiary Information
To ensure that all your beneficiary information is up to date, please log in to the following sites to review what is currently on file.

• GaBreeze: UPDATE (Peach State Reserves and Supplemental Life)
• Employees Retirement System (ERS): UPDATE

Tip #5: Need Help?
GaBreeze benefits representatives can provide assistance to you in accessing your account by calling toll-free at 1-877-3GBREEZ (1-877-342-7339). Representatives are available Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Please be ready to provide your name, date of birth, the last four digits of your Social Security Number and your ZIP code to access your Flexible Benefits information.

The Georgia Department of Community Health (DCH) has announced the new vendors for the state’s health care coverage for state employees, teachers, school system employees, retirees (and former employees on extended coverage), and dependents. DCH is the administrator of the State Health Benefit Plan (SHBP), which is responsible for coordinating and overseeing the vendors that provide claims administration services and insurance coverage under the Plan.

Blue Cross Blue Shield of Georgia (BCBSGA) has been awarded the contract to provide health plan administration and medical management. BCBSGA will coordinate closely with Express Scripts Inc., selected to administer pharmacy benefits, and Healthways Inc., selected to administer wellness programs and related incentives. The new plan contracts will be effective for Plan Year 2014, which begins on January 1, 2014.

“SHBP members have seen years of rising health care costs while, for most, the economic recession has negatively impacted their salaries,” said DCH Commissioner Clyde L. Reese III, Esq. “The plan options for 2014 will provide members with the real possibility of financial relief and ensure that SHBP remains on a solid financial footing.”

More than 650,000 SHBP members statewide will have access to a high-quality provider network and will have the choice of enrolling in one of the three (Bronze, Silver or Gold) consumer-driven, PPO-type plan options offered by BlueCross BlueShield. Enrollees will also be provided the added benefit of a Health Reimbursement Account (HRA). The dollars provided to the SHBP member in the HRA can be used toward eligible medical expenses and will lower the SHBP members’ deductible. The majority of members will have an option available to them that will reduce their monthly premiums.

“This approach will provide administrative and plan coverage efficiencies which are key to SHBP’s fiscal soundness,” said Trudie Nacin, chief of SHBP. “SHBP has taken a member-centered, value-based approach. Throughout the re-procurement, we sought best in practice delivery for our members while achieving the best-value in plan delivery to strengthen our Plan’s fiscal health.”

SHBP will conduct intensive member outreach and education on members’ plan options prior to and during the state’s Open Enrollment and Retiree Change Option Period, scheduled for October 21 through November 8, 2013.

To learn more about DCH and its dedication to A Healthy Georgia, visit www.dch.georgia.gov.