Category: Benefits News

This category is for articles and announcements related to your benefits as an MSU benefits-eligible faculty or staff member.

Breathe Easy: Tobacco and Nicotine Cessation Program

Published on by MSU Human Resources4 Comments
Anti-Smoking Symbol
Take control of your tobacco or nicotine addiction, register for Breathe Easy today!

The deadline to pre-enroll in MSU’s tobacco and nicotine cessation program, Breathe Easy, is quickly approaching. Breathe Easy combines a number of approaches, such as behavioral support sessions and medical evaluations, in order to help participants kick their tobacco and nicotine habits once and for all. Participants may elect to use conventional anti-smoking treatments or can attempt smoking cessation sans medication. In order to be eligible, participants must be  MSU faculty, academic/support staff, graduate student employees, or adult benefits-eligible family members.

This fall’s pre-enrollment orientation date is scheduled for Wednesday, October 8. The event will run from 1:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. in the Olin Health Center Classroom (247).  In order to sign up for pre-enrollment, interested parties may register in person at 330 Olin Health Center, via phone at 517-353-2596, or by email at health4u@msu.edu.

For more information, read the entire PDF created by Health4U.

Enrolling in Benefits

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You asked, we’ll answer! The “Mailroom Questions” segment of our blog serves to provide you with detailed responses to your inquiries. This month’s focus is enrolling in benefits.

How do I enroll in benefits?

  • To enroll in benefits, log in to the EBS Portal.
  • Select the “ESS”* tab then the “Benefits” link.
  • Select the “Add or Change MSU Benefit and Retirement Plans” link.
  • Select the (this varies depending on the reason that you are completing enrollment) link.
  • Select “OK” to bypass the CDHP disclaimer.
  • Use the radio button to select the plan that you would like to add, then “Edit Plan”.
  • Select the insurance carrier that you want, then “Add Plan to Selection”.
  • Repeat steps for each plan that you wish to enroll in.
  • When finished, choose “Review Enrollment” located at the bottom of the screen.
  • Review your plan selections, then select “Save”.
  • You will receive a confirmation to your msu.edu email account for review.

*The ESS tab will be followed with a descriptor of your position, such as ESS Faculty or ESS Hourly.

HR Toolkits: New Employees Start Here

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When you start a new job, the last thing you want to do is search for the information you need right away. That’s when you want to start with HR Toolkits for new employees.  There’s a toolkit for what you should expect and bring with you to Support Staff Orientation, information about parking, ID Cards, and the all-important NetID.

You’ll also find information about changing dependent information for benefits, what retirement plans are available and how to enroll.

Support Staff Orientation – what to expect and bring with you to orientation

New Graduate Assistants – what you need to know before your first day

Life Events and Benefits – Birth, adoption, legal guardianship, loss of coverage, marital status changes, or loss of a loved one

Employment Information – ID cards, parking, NetIDs

Retirement

What Retirement Plans are available at MSU?

How do I enroll as a New Hire or make changes in a Retirement Plan?

What Retirement Investment Vendors are available at MSU? 

How much can I contribute?

 

Discounts for MSU Employees!

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MSU faculty and staff receive plenty of discount opportunities at MSU, greater Lansing and beyond. These perks are at your disposal because of your dedication to MSU as a Spartan employee!

MSU Basketball Game
Photo courtesy of Communications and Brand Strategy.

Regardless of your unique interests, I’m positive there is some way or another you can benefit. Are you a lover of the arts? The Wharton Center for Performing Arts gives discounts to MSU employees for select performances. Or would you rather play some indoor tennis with a close friend? MSU employees receive a discount on tennis court rentals! More discounts can be found on the MSU HR Employee Discounts webpage. Here, you can find discounts and perks for hotels, computer services, books and much more. The page is updated regularly! Give it a look every once in a while to see what you can benefit from next.Continue Reading… Discounts for MSU Employees!

Become Nicotine Free in 2014

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There’s no better way to start the New Year then to decide to quit smoking. According to the Centers for Disease Control, 70 percent of people that smoke want to quit. If you’ve ever thought about quitting, then the MSU Breathe Easy: Tobacco and Nicotine Cessation Program is for you.

The MSU Breathe Easy: Tobacco and Nicotine Cessation Program is a 15 month program designed to help participants eliminate any tobacco/nicotine addiction through support group sessions, with or without the use of prescription medications. Items the program focuses on include: cigarettes, cigars, patches and e-cigarettes.

Health4U has one of the most successful tobacco/nicotine cessation programs in the country, as measured by a 15-month sustained cessation rate of over 27 percent.

Participants of the program enjoy many benefits when they quit smoking and stop using nicotine products, including fresher breath, whiter teeth, better breathing, and more money to spend on the things they enjoy.Continue Reading… Become Nicotine Free in 2014

Woman to Woman Financial Essentials Workshops

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Don’t miss your chance to attend a financial essentials workshop, especially for women at MSU. These free workshops will be held Nov. 12 and 13 at the MSU Union.Workshops Events Poster

Postcards from the Future: A Woman’s Guide to Financially Ever After is geared towards women who are 15 years or less away from retirement. The session will help participants identify how much they will need to retire and when, so they can have the retirement they want. The first session is on Tuesday, November 12 from noon to 1:30 p.m. with lunch provided. Registration is available at https://publictools.tiaa-cref.org/public/tools/events?eventId=1-1JCXZGY.  The second session is from 4:30 p.m. to 6 p.m. with snacks provided, and registration is available at https://publictools.tiaa-cref.org/public/tools/events?eventId=1-1JCTTT6.Continue Reading… Woman to Woman Financial Essentials Workshops

Benefits Open Enrollment for 2014 Ends Thursday!

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If you haven’t yet participated in Benefits Open Enrollment, tomorrow (October 31) is your last chance! Reminder Note

Remember, this Open Enrollment now covers health, dental and life insurance, along with Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs) and voluntary benefits. View the Open Enrollment Guide to see all of the details.

You need to complete Open Enrollment if you want to make any benefits changes to these plans for the 2014 plan year, or if you want to continue coverage for a spouse or Other Eligible Individual (OEI). (See the spousal/OEI affidavit instructions here if you only need to complete the affidavit and don’t want to make other changes.) There will not be any extensions to the time Open Enrollment is available.

To complete Open Enrollment, see the instructions at http://www.hr.msu.edu/openenrollment/instructions.htm.

2013 Campus Flu Clinics

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Dropping temperatures and shorter days means flu season will soon be among us and preparation for the foreboding season is vital. The University Physician’s Office will be offering flu clinics at various campus locations in October and November. Flu vaccines administered at the flu clinics will be subsidized by Human Resources for MSU faculty, staff and retirees and will be offered at a cost of $10. The vaccine cost for non-MSU employees and students will be $30.

Woman sick in bed
The flu can be time-consuming, stressful and agonizing. Be sure to get your vaccination provided by the University Physician’s Office.

This flu season the University Physician’s Office is stocking the new quadrivalent flu vaccine, which includes two influenza A strains and two B strains to help protect against influenza disease, in both injectable and intranasal formulations. Until this year, seasonal influenza vaccines included two influenza A strains and only one B strain.Continue Reading… 2013 Campus Flu Clinics

Stay Healthy All-Year Round with the New MSU Health e-Guide

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The MSU Healthwise Knowledgebase has been upgraded to the new MSU Health e-Guide, making access to resources and educational materials for maintaining your health easier than ever.

MSU Health Website
The new upgraded MSU Health e-Guide makes accessing important medical and health information easier for visitors.

The MSU Health e-Guide features a new homepage in an easier to use format, allowing visitors to find medical information quickly. The extra features include: an archive of the Healthy Email Series directly on the homepage, a Consumer Care Section with videos on health care reform and suggested questions to ask about medicines and other health topics. It also includes the top 10 searches for various health subjects to see what others in the MSU community are searching for.Continue Reading… Stay Healthy All-Year Round with the New MSU Health e-Guide

Curious about Health Care Reform?

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The Affordable Care Act (ACA), also referred to as Health Care Reform, consists of about a thousand pages of complex information. It also brings massive changes to MSU and other employers.

To help people understand the complex information contained in the ACA, MSU Human Resources has created a special section on the HR website. The goal of the site is to share what MSU is doing in its effort to comply with the ACA, and also to provide you access to resources where more information can be found.Continue Reading… Curious about Health Care Reform?