August employee benefits spotlight
Optional benefits open enrollment will be Sept. 1-30
From: Human Resources
Please see the following announcements from the Benefits Team.
Optional benefits open enrollment will be Sept. 1-30
The open enrollment period for optional Legal Resources and Aflac benefits is Sept. 1-30. Any changes made during this time will be effective Oct. 1. No action is required if employees are already enrolled in these benefits, unless they wish to discontinue or make changes. Employees do not need to experience a qualifying event to take advantage of this open enrollment period.
Now is also a good time to consider signing up for New York Life’s whole life coverage or Securian’s term life insurance. There is no open enrollment period for either of these benefits; employees may enroll at any time.
The Commonwealth of Virginia also offers Genworth long-term care. This benefit is not deducted from your paycheck. For more information, including how to register, visit the long-term care website.
Full information session details can be found on the optional benefits open enrollment webpage. Legal Resources and Aflac will hold information sessions on the following dates:
Legal Resources:
Sept. 8, 12-12:30 p.m.
Join the meeting via the link.
Meeting ID: 216 004 604 470 826
Passcode: Jg2T97pg
Sept. 10, 12-12:30 p.m.
Join the meeting via the link.
Meeting ID: 221 771 984 752 362
Passcode: 2MK9zE6A
Aflac
- Wednesday, Sept. 9, 10 a.m.
- Tuesday, Sept. 15, 2 p.m.
- Thursday, Sept. 17, 10 a.m.
- Wednesday, Sept. 23, 2 p.m.
(This Calendly link allows employees to register for a Zoom presentation for any of the above dates. Once registered, they will receive an email with the Zoom link for their chosen session.)
To schedule a meeting with Virginia Tech’s Aflac representative apart from the times listed above, contact Michael Glover at michael_glover@us.aflac.com or call 540-248-1304.
Fall Social Security 101 Sessions – Save the Date!
Employees are invited to attend one of two free workshops to learn more about Social Security benefits this September.8. Guest speaker and Social Security representative Jacqueline Weisgarber, who has more than 18 years of experience, will answer questions such as:
- When are you eligible to receive retirement benefits?
- How does early retirement affect your benefits?
- Do you qualify for disability, survivors, and spouse benefits?
- How do you get the most from your benefits?
- What is the future of Social Security?
- When should you file for Medicare?
Attendees are encouraged to go to socialsecurity.gov/myaccount to create a “my Social Security” account and print or download their Social Security Statement which will be helpful in reviewing benefits.
Please register for one of the sessions below via the links provided:
Health Insurance Premium Rewards
Employees can still earn premium rewards for the 2026-27 plan year.
Premium Rewards is an incentive for participants in the COVA Care and COVA HealthAware plans who complete specific healthy actions listed below. An employee can earn up to $17 per month ($8.50 per paycheck) if the requirements are met. An employee and enrolled spouse can earn up to $34 per month ($17 per paycheck) if requirements are met by both the employee and spouse. Premium rewards are not available for other dependents.
Healthy action for Premium Rewards:
1. Annual preventative exam; this can be either
- A well-adult annual physical or
- A well-woman (gynecological) preventative exam
Note: The visit must be billed as a preventative care visit, not any other type of appointment
2. Complete a Health Assessment
- This is a questionnaire located on your health insurance provider’s website.
- Completing only the Health Assessment is not enough to qualify for Premium Rewards
Seeing a doctor for the first time just to establish care is considered a “New Patient” visit, not a preventive visit, even if preventative topics are discussed.
Your health insurance must process and pay for the preventive visit. If the visit is billed as anything other than a preventive visit, it will not satisfy the requirement. COVA Care and COVA HealthAware cover eligible preventive visits at no cost if the visit is billed correctly and follows the plan’s rules. The completion date of the Annual Preventive Visit is based on when the claim is received and paid by the health plan, not by the date of service of the exam.