Benefits

Contact Information

Keffus Falls, Director of Benefits    281-998-6358

Darla Lackey, Benefits Coordinator (Last Names A - L) 281-998-6358

Dorothy Grant, Benefits Coordinator (Last Names M - Z)   281-998-6325

Sara Aranda, HR Specialist - Benefits   281-991-2661

Enrollment in Benefits

New employees may sign up for dental, optional term life, accidental death and dismemberment, dependent term life, short-term disability and TexFlex during their first 31 days of employment without providing proof of good health. Likewise a new employee may sign up for health and long-term care during the first 90 days of employment without providing proof of good health. After the employee’s initial periods of eligibility (30 or 90 days), proof of good health or Evidence of Insurability (EOI) may be required to 1) enroll in, 2) add dependents to, or 3) increase some insurance coverage. Evidence of Insurability means that you must provide evidence of good health in order to be considered for coverage. The EOI Application must be completed in its entirety, signed, dated, and returned at no expense to Fort Dearborn Life Insurance (FDL). You and any dependent applying for coverage are required to answer the medical questions (which may include providing medical records and a physical exam). The information you provide on this EOI Application and any additional information requested and received is subject to review and approval by FDL Medical Underwriting. You may be requested to provide additional information. Coverage will either be approved or denied based on the information you provide.

Employees may be able to add or change certain insurance coverage without providing EOI when qualifying life events occur such as the birth of a child, marriage, divorce, job changes by the employee or spouse. Generally when a qualifying life event occurs, the employee has 31 days from the date of the event to enroll in or make changes to benefits. Contact the Benefits Office for help with these changes.

After initial enrollment, changes and additions to insurance without a qualifying life event may only be made in the summer during open enrollment. Dates of open enrollment are announced by the State in the late spring. Most changes in enrollment are effective September 1 of the succeeding fiscal year.

Adjunct Benefits

Medical Insurance

Medical/Health insurance coverage is available through HealthSelect of Texas, a point-of-service plan offered state and higher education employees through the Employees Retirement System (ERS). HealthSelect is administered through BlueCross/BlueShield of Texas. San Jacinto College and/or the State of Texas pays the employee portion of the premium and one-half of dependent coverage, if elected. Medical coverage on the employee for health, prescription, vision, and basic life coverage begins the first of the month after the completion of a 90-day probationary period of employment. Medical coverage for eligible dependents can begin that date also, if the employee enrolls dependents within his or her first 90 days. Coverage besides those tied to the medical coverage (health, prescription, vision, basic life) can be effective on the employee’s first day, if elect on the first day, or on the first of the month after the first 30 days, if elected within the first 30 days

Children's Health Insurance Program (formerly SKIP)

State funding for the State Kids Insurance Program is ending on August 31, 2011.  State employees who were covering their children in SKIP can now apply for the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) or Children’s Medicaid. Both programs let employees pay reduced premiums for their children age 18 or younger.

ERS does not manage enrollment or eligibility for Medicaid or CHIP. The Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) will contact participants about applying for CHIP or Children’s Medicaid. If you have questions, call HHSC toll-free at (877) 543-7669 or visit www.chipmedicaid.org.  

For more information on the CHIP program sunset, please visit the ERS website. 

Prescription Drug Coverage

The medical plan covers prescription medications using a prescription drug card. New prescriptions may be obtained through a participating pharmacy or through the mail order service. Prescription coverage is managed by CareMark. The CareMark website has resources including cost comparisons, mail order enrollment, and preferred drug listings.

Vision Benefits

One annual eye exam per year is covered under the medical plan. Additionally, discount benefits on glasses, contacts and LASIK are available through certain discount providers, or employee paid coverage through Spectera Vision.

Life, Accidental Death, and Disability Insurance

• The State provides each eligible full-time employee covered by medical insurance with $5,000 basic life insurance. In addition, the college provides each full-time employee life insurance at twice the annual budgeted salary, rounded to the nearest $1,000, up to a maximum of $400,000 and an Accidental Death and Dismemberment policy at a like amount.
  ERS Basic Life Insurance
• Long-term disability insurance is purchased by the college for each eligible full-time employee that provides up to 60% of regular insured salary up to $10,000 monthly, to age 65 for qualified disabilities after 90 days of continuous disability and exhaustion of sick leave. LTD
• Employees may purchase additional life insurance, accidental death and dismemberment insurance, short-term disability insurance, dependent term life insurance at their own expense. See discussion below on optional coverages.
  Option III Life Insurance

Dental Insurance

San Jacinto College pays for eligible full-time employees dental coverage, if elected and one-half of the premiums for dependent dental coverage. There are two plans available, The State of Texas Dental Choice, a PPO dental plan and HumanaDental DMO, a dental maintenance organization.

Optional Employee-Paid Insurance Coverage

• Supplemental term life insurance in multiples of one to four time annual salary ($400,000 maximum total of all life).
• Dependent term life insurance of $5,000 (doubles in event of accidental death).
• Accidental death and dismemberment coverage for individual or family.
• Short-term disability coverage; provides up to 66% of regular insured monthly salary up to $10,000 for up to five months for qualified disabilities after 30 days of continuous disability and exhaustion of available sick leave. STD
• Long-term care (home healthcare and nursing home facility coverage) is available through direct enrollment with John Hancock Insurance at the ERS group rates offered to all state and higher education employees. Long-Term Care
• Supplemental Cancer and critical illness insurance is available through third party providers. (AFLAC or Colonial)
• Additional Vision Insurance may be obtained through (Insert Link Z:\Benefits\Flyers\Spectera)

Flexible Spending Accounts

Tax sheltered reimbursement accounts can be established for eligible out-of-pocket medical/dental or dependent care expenses. For more information, contact the Benefits Office or the TexFlex website.

Social Security and Medicare Tax

While San Jacinto College does not participate in the federal Social Security program, employees hired after 1986 are required by law to pay the Medicare Tax of 1.45%, which is matched by the college. For more information, contact the Benefits Office or The Social Security Administration.

Retirement Programs

Voluntary Retirement Savings Plans – 403(b) Tax Sheltered Accounts (TSA’s) and/or a 457 Deferred Compensation Plan are available using mutual funds and/or annuities.

State required retirement plans for eligible full-time employees in lieu of Social Security are the Teacher Retirement System of Texas (TRS) available to all classes of employees and the Optional Retirement Program (ORP), available to faculty and certain administrators as an alternative to TRS. Both of these retirement programs receive pre-tax employee contributions in addition to the state’s contributions.

Employee Assistance Program

A service offered full-time employees that offers a variety of confidential services, including counseling, legal and financial advice, crisis management, coping and dealing with day-to-day family problems. Information is available in the Benefits Office or by reading the brochure, UTEAP.

Paid Leave Benefits

• Monthly sick leave accrual of eight hours for full-time benefit-eligible employees, may accumulate up to 1,280 hours
• Monthly vacation accrual for eligible staff, starting at 6.67 hours per month.
• Sixteen hours of sick leave may be used per year for personal business
• Up to 21 paid holidays for staff per fiscal year
• Sick leave bank and more

Links to External Information

AFLAC
Spectera
Employee Assistance Program
Teacher Retirement System of Texas
Employees Retirement System of Texas
Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board
HealthSelect
TexFlex
Social Security
Overview of ORP and TRS
Colonial

Monthly 2011-2012 premium information on insurance plans

Vacation and Sick Leave

Full-time employees earn paid vacation time as follows:

Years	Hours Per Year
1 - 8	80
9 - 15	120
16 - 24	160
25 +	200

Full-time employees receive paid sick leave at a rate of eight hours per month. Sixteen hours per year of your sick leave may be used for personal business.

**Note to 12-month employees - No vacation time should be scheduled from August 4 through September 1, 2008 due to the college's fall registration guidelines. Any campus employee with a vacation scheduling conflict should discuss it with the appropriate campus Vice President of Student Services. District employees with a similar conflict should appeal to their Vice Chancellor.

Have more questions?
Please contact the Benefits Office at 281-998-6115.

Holiday Calendar for 12-month Employees Academic Year 2011 - 2012
Date(s)	Holiday(s) or Break(s)	No. Days
09/05/11	Labor Day	1
11/23/11 - 11/27/11	Thanksgiving	3
12/22/11 - 01/02/12	Winter Break	8
01/16/12	Martin Luther King, Jr. Day	1
03/12/12 - 03/18/12	Spring Break	5
04/06/12	Good Friday	1
05/28/12	Memorial Day	1
07/04/12	Independence Day	1
	TOTAL	21

 

Adjunct Benefits

Adjunct Eligibility Instructions 2011-2012  

Adjunct Benefits Election Form

Adjunct Certification of Eligibility