What’s the BIG news?

The Albemarle County medical plan dependent eligibility review process has begun. This review is being conducted by HMS Employer Solutions. Packets went into the mail last week, and if you have not yet received yours, you should in the next few days. If you do not receive a packet by the end of the week or if you have any questions about the review process, please contact HMS at 866-252-0734. Thank you in advance for your cooperation with this very important process.

As a reminder, the purpose of this review is to ensure all dependents enrolled on our plan meet eligibility guidelines so that only eligible dependents are covered. All employees, retirees, and COBRA participants who currently have a dependent spouse (this includes “county spouses”) or children enrolled on our medical plan are required to participate. It is important that you submit the documentation upon request, as failure to comply will result in your dependents being dropped from your medical insurance policy.

A word about security:

The security of your personal information is a priority for us, and for HMS, and that is one of the reasons they were selected to conduct this review for Albemarle County. HMS meets all of the professional and legal standards required to be compliant with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), and data disposal rules as enforced by the Federal Trade Commission. Due to their extensive work with both state and federal government agencies, they are required to carry in-depth certifications related to the security of information including SSAE-16 SOC1 and HiTrust. All documents provided to HMS are securely stored for six months and then will be securely destroyed by HMS. If you’d like to learn more about this, or read more about the process, please visit our FAQs on the Benefits website.

A special note for “County Spouses”:

If your spouse is also a County employee and you cover him/her on your medical policy, you will receive one mailing from HMS addressed to the primary medical insurance account holder and there will be a Spousal Affidavit included in the mailing. Here’s how to fill out the affidavit:

• In Section I, check the box that your spouse is currently employed
• In Section II, list “Albemarle County” as the Employer Name and leave the rest of Section II blank. (You do not need anyone from HR to complete the affidavit for you.)
• Sign and date in Section III and then follow the instructions in the mailing for sending the affidavit, along with any other required documents for dependent children, to HMS

HMS will confirm with HR that your spouse is a county employee.

If you have any questions about any aspect of the eligibility review please contact HMS at 866-252-0734.

For more information about your employee benefits, our web pages are always available when you are.