Tag: Open Enrollment

Final notice: Deadline is October 31 for Health FSA open enrollment

http://www.ble-t.org/pr/news/newsflash.asp?id=6011

INDEPENDENCE, Ohio, October 27 — Time is running out for BLET members who want to sign up for the Health Flexible Spending Account Plan (Health FSA). Open enrollment for the 2018 Plan Year ends at midnight Tuesday, October 31, 2017.
It is important to note that Health FSA enrollment is not automatic — even if you enrolled in the current plan year, you must re-enroll by October 31 to participate in the 2018 Plan Year.

Your participation is important as continuation of the plan is dependent on enrollment levels. At least 7.5% of eligible engineers must participate in the FSA Plan in the 2018 Plan Year, and subsequent Plan Years, or the Carriers will have the right to terminate the plan.

Except as noted in this paragraph, locomotive engineers and Tex-Mex train service employees covered by the Health & Welfare portion of the most recent National Agreement, dated January 5, 2012, are eligible to participate in the FSA Plan. The national FSA is distinct and separate from the on-property BNSF FSA Plan. The participation rates identified in this News Flash do not apply to BNSF engineers, and BNSF engineers are not required to participate in the open enrollment described in this News Flash. Also, BLET members subject to the September 16, 2011 UTU National Agreement are currently eligible to participate in the Health FSA program provided for in that Agreement.

The FSA Plan, administered by United Healthcare, is designed to allow you to use pretax dollars to pay for certain medical expenses that are not covered under any health plan (including a railroad health & welfare plan) or any other source. You can then use your FSA account to cover eligible expenses, which means you will be using pretax dollars to pay for those expenses. The key to the plan is that it allows you to save hundreds of dollars in taxes each year. The amount you could save in taxes depends on how much you set aside and the amount of your expenses.

To Register

Information to sign up for the FSA is contained in open enrollment packets that were mailed during the week of September 23, 2017. This year, open enrollment is again being done online. To do so, you must log in to the Your Track to Health website:

https://www.yourtracktohealth.com/

Once logged in, select the option to “Enroll Now for 2018.” New users may have to complete a brief registration process. Anyone with questions should call the FSA Customer Care Center at 1-888-298-9754 if you have any questions.

For additional information, please see BLET News Flash dated September 26, 2017:

https://www.ble-t.org/pr/news/newsflash.asp?id=6002

Again, open enrollment began on October 1, 2017, and ends at midnight on October 31, 2017.