National Insurance Awareness Day (June 28) encourages us to review our insurance options to make sure we’re enrolled in the best plans for our families. As an MSU employee, you have a variety of benefit options available to you beyond just health care and dental plans. While many of these benefits allow you to enroll in or make changes at any time, several require you to sign up, change or cancel enrollment during the Open Enrollment period in October. If you’re interested in a benefit but unable to sign up right away, review the plan options and make a list of changes you’d like to make so you’re prepared for the upcoming Open Enrollment period in October.

Benefits without an Enrollment Period

The following benefits are available to enroll in, change or cancel at any time. You’ll find a brief description of each benefit below and you can click on the benefit name for more details and information on how to enroll/register.

• Auto: find special pricing on insurance for your vehicle through Farmers GroupSelect (formerly MetLife) or Liberty Mutual Insurance.
• Home: find special pricing on insurance for your home through Farmers GroupSelect (formerly MetLife) or Liberty Mutual Insurance.
• Livongo by Teladoc Health: employees and their dependents enrolled in an MSU health plan can receive diabetes management supplies and coaching for free.
• Pet: find special pricing on pet insurance through Nationwide.
• Teladoc Health: an online medical care service that gives you 24/7 access to a healthcare professional via web, phone, or mobile app. Use Teladoc to get help for a range of conditions including cold/flu, bronchitis, allergies, pink eye, dermatology and more.
• Teladoc Medical Experts: get medical advice from leading medical experts. Whether you need medical questions answered, a diagnosis double-checked, help deciding on a treatment plan or guidance about a surgery, Teladoc Medical Experts can help.
• TruHearing: Some benefit providers offer discounts on hearing aids. Please contact the providers directly to learn more about the discounts they offer.
• Educational Assistance: support staff have access to educational assistance funds to help pay for credit and non-credit professional development opportunities.

Benefits with an Enrollment Period

The following benefit options have an enrollment period. This means you can only enroll in, change or cancel the benefit during Open Enrollment in October each year. We encourage you to review the plans you’re currently enrolled in along with the options available and make a plan to make any necessary changes this October. Please note that updates for the 2025 plan year will be shared this September prior to Open Enrollment in October:

• Critical Illness: MetLife gives you extra cash in the event you or a covered family member experiences a covered illness.
• Dental: various plans are available based on your employee type. We encourage you to check which dentists are available in your area before enrolling in a new plan.
• Flexible Spending Accounts (FSA): there are two FSA options available for employees – Dependent Care FSA and Health Care FSA. Be sure you know the difference before you enroll.
• Health Care (including prescription): various plans are available based on your employee type and work location.
• Legal: ARAG currently offers several plan options to help cover a wide range of legal needs.
• Life/Accident Insurance: several types of life insurance are available for you to enroll in, along with voluntary Accidental Death and Dismemberment insurance.
• Vision: two plan options are available through VSP for vision care.

Please visit the HR website to learn more about all the benefit options available to you. For questions about enrollment and eligibility, please contact the HR Solutions Center at SolutionsCenter@hr.msu.edu or 517-353-4434.

Article Updated June 2024