2022 Open Enrollment Information

To:         All Benefit-Eligible Faculty and Staff

Open Enrollment is the time each year that benefit-eligible employees may amend their insurance plan selections based upon their personal needs and anticipated healthcare expenses for the coming year. The Open Enrollment period will be in effect from November 8 through November 26, 2021. All new elections will take effect on January 1, 2022. There are no modifications to our current medical, pharmacy, dental, and vision plan designs scheduled for the upcoming year. 

All benefit changes for January 1, 2022 must be entered in Workday. The Open Enrollment task will be in your Workday Inbox starting on November 8^th. Employees who are not making changes or re-enrolling in the Flexible Spending Accounts during Open Enrollment, do not have to take any action. The Open Enrollment task will disappear from your Workday Inbox once Open Enrollment has closed on November 26.

In 2018, Fairfield University established a medical reserve account, also known as a rate stabilization fund. For 2022, favorable medical plan experience has generated sufficient funds in the reserve to offset employee premium contributions. This will result in no employee premium contributions for the Aetna medical plans in the month of January. Health insurance contributions will resume in February.

Detailed benefits information and the 2022 employee cost-share pre-tax amounts can be found on the Human Resources section on My.Fairfield.

If you have questions after reviewing these materials, please contact Blythe Josovitz, Director, Benefits & Compensation at extension 2995 or by email at BJosovitz@fairfield.edu.

Flexible Spending Accounts (FSA & DCA) & Health Savings Account (HSA)

The 2022 FSA contribution limits remain at $2,750 for medical and $5,000 for dependent care. Please note that you must re-enroll in the Medical Flexible Spending Account (FSA) and Dependent Care Account (DCA) during Open Enrollment or no funds will be contributed through payroll deduction in 2022.

The 2022 HSA contribution limits including employer contributions are increasing to $3,650 for a single person and $7,300 for a family of two or more. There is an additional catch-up allowance of $1,000 for people age 55 (or turning 55 anytime during 2022) and older. HSA contributions will continue as-is unless changed by the employee in Workday. 

Life Insurance & Long Term Disability Changes 

Basic Life Insurance, Voluntary Life Insurance, and Long Term Disability will now be administered by Unum replacing Cigna. The plan design for the Basic Life Insurance and Long Term Disability will not change.

As part of the transition to Unum, there will be an Open Enrollment period for Voluntary Life Insurance for employees as well as their spouse and/or dependent children. Employees who are currently enrolled in Voluntary Life Insurance or those who would like to enroll for the first time, may elect Voluntary Life election up to $250,000, a spouse up to $25,000, and dependent children up to $10,000 without completing a medical statement of health.

Employees may also elect additional Voluntary Life Insurance, up to the lesser of 5 times base salary or $500,000 by completing a medical statement of health. If a statement of health is needed for the new life insurance election, a link to complete the online statement of health will be provided on the Workday home page in the Announcements section once Open Enrollment has been closed and finalized in late November. Until the statement of health is approved by Unum, election amounts will be reduced to the guaranteed issue amounts of up to $250,000 for an employee, up to $25,000 for a spouse, or the amount that was previously elected before Open Enrollment.