General 1. What changes are taking place with Employee Benefits in 2015? Starting April 1, 2015, BC Hydro s Extended Health Care and Dental benefits provider will be Sun Life Financial (Sun Life), replacing Manulife Financial. Sun Life will continue to be the provider of Life Insurance and Long Term Disability benefits. Sun Life will also be the provider for retiree Extended Health Care benefits, replacing Pacific Blue Cross. There are no changes to the employee benefits plans. Only the provider of the benefits is changing. 2. Why is BC Hydro changing its Group Benefits provider? In 2014, BC Hydro conducted a competitive bid process for group benefits. Benefits providers were evaluated according to wide-ranging criteria including: experience, service quality, cost, technology and business values. By integrating benefit providers, we are able to improve the employee experience, enhance vendor relationships, reduce administrative costs, as well as improve efficiencies and processes. 3. Will any of my benefits change? No. Even though we are changing benefits provider, there will be no changes to the benefits plans. 4. I recently completed my benefit elections for 2015; do I need to re-enrol again? No. Since the benefits plans and coverage levels are not changing, the benefit elections you made for calendar year 2015 as part of the recent annual benefits re-enrolment remain unchanged and you will not be required to re-enrol again for 2015. 5. Will the premiums for any employee-paid optional insurance change effective April 1, 2015? No. The premium rates that were communicated to employees in Fall 2014 and implemented effective January 1, 2015 remain in effect. Optional employee and spousal life insurance premiums decreased by 30 per cent effective January 1, 2015. Optional employee and family AD&D premiums remained the same as they were in 2014. Date: January 2015 Page 1
6. When will I get information about my Extended Health and Dental benefits with Sun Life? In mid-march 2015, you will receive a Welcome package from Sun Life that includes Sun Life contact information, a temporary prescription drug card, a temporary emergency travel card, information on how to access the Sun Life website, and instructions on how to submit extended health and dental claims. The Sun Life Welcome package will be mailed to your home address, so please ensure that your home mailing address is up to date in Employee Connect (go to Personal Information and then Change/Update Address ). 7. When will I receive my prescription drug card and emergency travel card from Sun Life? You will receive a temporary drug card as part of the Sun Life Welcome package in mid-march 2015. This card will have all the necessary information to be used at the pharmacy when purchasing prescription drugs effective April 1, 2015. For prescription drug purchases up to and including March 31, 2015, please continue to use your Manulife drug card at the pharmacy. You will also receive a temporary emergency travel card as part of the Sun Life Welcome package. This card is effective April 1, 2015 and will have all the necessary information if you are travelling outside of Canada and require emergency assistance. If you are travelling outside of Canada and require emergency assistance prior to April 1, 2015, please continue to use the travel assistance contact information on your Manulife card. A personalized permanent card (combined card for prescription drugs and emergency travel) will be mailed to your home address just before the April 1, 2015 transition date. If you do not receive your permanent card before April 1, 2015, your temporary cards can still be used. Once you receive your permanent card, you will no longer need your temporary cards. Please note that for prescription drug purchases, the pharmacy only requires the numbers on the card, not the actual card. You should also give your dentist your new policy number which will be shown on both your temporary and permanent cards. If you have couple or family Extended Health coverage, you will receive two permanent cards in the mail. Both cards will have your name on it (your spouse s and/or dependents names will not be displayed on the card). Effective April 1, 2015, after you have set-up your access to the Sun Life web site, you may also print off a drug card or emergency travel card at any time for you and/or your eligible dependents. Date: January 2015 Page 2
Important Deadlines for 2014 Extended Health, Dental, and Private Health Services Plan (PHSP) Claims 8. Where do I send my outstanding 2014 Extended Health and Dental claims? It is very important that any outstanding 2014 Extended Health and Dental claims be submitted to Manulife and processed by March 31, 2015, prior to the transition to Sun Life on April 1, 2015. This means that you must submit your outstanding 2014 expenses to Manulife no later than March 15, 2015 to allow enough time for processing by the March 31, 2015 deadline. Manulife will not process claims after March 31, 2015 and Sun Life will not process any 2014 claims. 9. Where do I send my outstanding 2014 PHSP claims (M&P employees only)? M&P employees must submit any outstanding 2014 PHSP claims to Manulife for processing. As previously communicated, please ensure that any 2014 PHSP claims are submitted to Manulife by January 31, 2015. Claims Extended Health, Dental, and Private Health Services Plan (PHSP) 10. Where do I send my 2015 Extended Health and Dental claims? Any 2015 claims may be submitted to Sun Life starting April 1, 2015. However, if you incur claims between January 1, 2015 and March 15, 2015, they can either be submitted to Manulife by March 15 or you can hold on to them and submit them to Sun Life starting April 1. Any claims incurred after March 15, 2015 must be submitted to Sun Life starting April 1, 2015. Manulife will not process ANY claims after March 31, 2015. Sun Life will begin processing 2015 claims starting April 1, 2015. 11. What happens to the allocation I made to the Private Health Services Plan (PHSP) for 2015 (for M&P employees only)? The amount you allocated to the PHSP in calendar year 2015 remains the same. Manulife will provide the balance remaining in your 2015 PHSP to Sun Life effective March 31, 2015. The balance remaining in your PHSP for 2015 will be displayed on the Sun Life website under Health Care Spending Account (note that the annual allocation will not be displayed for 2015, only the balance remaining in your PHSP as of the transition date). Date: January 2015 Page 3
12. What if I send my 2015 claim(s) to Manulife after the transition date? If you send your 2015 claims to Manulife after March 31, 2015 or Manulife is unable to process a 2015 claim you submitted before March 31, 2015, Manulife will return the claim to you and you will be required to re-submit the claim to Sun Life (on a Sun Life claim form or via Sun Life online claims) for processing. 13. How do I pay for my prescription drugs at the pharmacy? Your Sun Life drug card can be used for your prescription drug purchases. Present the card to your pharmacist when filling prescriptions. If you have coverage for your spouse and/or dependent children, you can also use the same drug card as it contains all the information required by the pharmacy. Please continue to use your Manulife drug card up to March 31, 2015. Begin using the Sun Life drug card for prescription drugs dispensed April 1, 2015 or later. 14. Are the same calendar year and lifetime maximums still in effect for certain extended health and dental benefits? Yes. Some extended health and dental benefits (e.g., vision care, eye exams, paramedical services, orthodontics, etc.) have maximums which will continue to apply with Sun Life in the same way they applied with Manulife. Your claims history balances will be transferred from Manulife to Sun Life for any benefits with calendar year or lifetime maximums. 15. My dentist completed a pre-authorization for me prior to the transition; however the work will be done after April 1, 2015. Will Sun Life honour the approved dental pre-authorization? Yes. Sun Life will honour the dental pre-authorization submitted by your dentist and approved by Manulife as long as the pre-authorization was approved between April 1, 2014 and March 31, 2015. You or your dental office will be required to provide a copy of the approved pre-authorization to Sun Life for their records. 16. Will I be able to view my claims history on the Manulife website after March 31, 2015? No, you will not be able to view your claims history on the Manulife website once Sun Life becomes our benefits provider on April 1, 2015. If you have questions about claims submitted to Manulife or need historical information about your claims processed by Manulife after March 31, 2015, please contact Manulife at 1-800-268-6195. Date: January 2015 Page 4
Sun Life Website 17. How do I access the Sun Life website? You can access the Sun Life website beginning April 1, 2015. More details on how to register for the website will be provided in the Sun Life Welcome package and posted on the updated FAQs closer to the April 1 transition date. 18. What can I do on the Sun Life website? The following features that are currently available to employees on the Manulife website will be available on the Sun Life website (once you have registered for access to Sun Life s secure website): Print a coverage card summarizing your benefits Print a prescription drug card Print an emergency travel card Arrange direct deposit of your claim payments Print Sun Life extended health and dental claim forms Submit claims online View the benefits booklet View and/or print your latest claim statements (for claims submitted to Sun Life starting April 1, 2015) Send a secure, confidential message to Sun Life Use the on-line Wellness Centre for tools on managing your health, including health assessments, prescription drug information, medical libraries and more. These features are described in detail in the Sun Life Welcome package that will be mailed to your home address in mid-march. 19. Are there any new features available on the Sun Life website? Yes. The following new features will be available on the Sun Life website (once you have registered for access to Sun Life s secure website): Submit co-ordination of benefit claims online View customized information about what s covered in your benefits plan Check when your plan will cover your next purchase of glasses or lenses Check when you or your family members are eligible for your next dental check up Date: January 2015 Page 5
20. When can I start submitting claims online? Beginning on April 1, 2015, you can register for Sun Life s secure website. After you ve registered, you can use the secure website to submit most of your claims online; it s faster, easier, and you save paper. You can also sign-up for direct deposit on the Sun Life website to have your payments made directly to your bank account usually within 48 hours. Additional information about online claims submission will be provided closer to the transition date. 21. Can practitioners submit claims directly to Sun Life? * NEW* Yes. In addition to your dentist, your physiotherapist, chiropractor, optometrist and optician may also be able to submit claims electronically for you directly to Sun Life. Additional information about this feature and eligible practitioners will be provided closer to the transition date. 22. Does Sun Life have a Mobile app? *NEW* Yes. With the Sun Life Mobile app you will be able to use your smartphone as your drug card at the pharmacy as well as to submit your health claims. Further details will be provided in the Sun Life Welcome package that will be mailed to your home address in mid-march and posted on the FAQs closer to the April 1 transition date. Getting Ready 23. What steps do I need to take to get ready for the change to Sun Life on April 1, 2015? Submit any outstanding extended health and dental claims incurred up to December 31, 2014 to Manulife by March 15, 2015 (for processing by March 31, 2015). Submit any outstanding 2014 PHSP claims to Manulife by January 31, 2015. Ensure that your home mailing address is up to date in Employee Connect (go to Personal Information and then Change/Update Address ) so your Sun Life Welcome package and new prescription drug card are mailed to the correct address. 24. What steps do I need to take after the April 1 st transition to Sun Life? Start using your new Sun Life prescription drug card at the pharmacy. Provide your dentist with the new policy number that is displayed on your Sun Life drug card at your next dental visit. Register for the Sun Life website. Register for direct deposit of your extended health and dental claims on the Sun Life website. Date: January 2015 Page 6
Submit your 2015 extended health and dental claims to Sun Life for reimbursement (using Sun Life claim forms or via online claims on the Sun Life website). Take your Sun Life emergency travel card with you on your next trip outside of Canada. 25. I am on a leave of absence - what steps do I need to take? The Sun Life Welcome package will be mailed to your home address as well as the prescription drug card and emergency travel card. We will communicate with employees on leaves of absence by mail. 26. I plan to retire within the next year. What impact will these changes have for me when I retire? When you retire, if you are eligible for post-retirement benefits, you will be provided with retiree benefits information. You may also access this information on the Pension and Retirement Planning page on HydroWeb. Beginning on April 1, 2015, Sun Life will also be the benefits provider for the retiree extended health plan. If you are eligible for post-retirement benefits when you retire, you will be provided with a new prescription drug card because the policy number and coverage for the retiree extended health care plan is different than the policy number and coverage for the employee benefits plan. 27. What happens if I m out of the country at the time of the transition? What happens to my emergency out-ofcountry coverage? If you have an emergency while travelling outside of Canada after April 1, 2015, please use the emergency travel numbers on the Sun Life card. If you began receiving emergency medical care while travelling outside of Canada prior to April 1, 2015, your coverage will continue to be provided by Manulife for the duration of that medical care. Contacts 28. Will there also be a change to BC Hydro s benefits administrator? No. Morneau Shepell will continue in their role as benefits administrator. Employees may contact the Employee Benefits Centre at 1-888-353-9123 or via email at HR, Employee Benefits or employee.benefits@bchydro.com for any benefit questions. Morneau Shepell will also continue to host the BC Hydro Benefits Online website where you can: Review your benefit selections Enrol or re-enrol in the benefits plan Update your dependent benefits coverage Change beneficiaries for life and/or accident insurance Date: January 2015 Page 7
29. Who can I contact if I have specific questions about my benefits coverage? Continue to contact the Employee Benefits Centre at 1-888-353-9123 or via email at HR, Employee Benefits or employee.benefits@bchydro.com for benefit coverage questions. If you have specific questions regarding your extended health and dental coverage or regarding a claim incurred and submitted to Manulife prior to April 1, 2015, please continue to contact Manulife at 1-800-268-6195. After April 1, 2015, if you have specific questions regarding your extended health and dental coverage or regarding a claim submitted to Sun Life, please contact Sun Life. The Sun Life Customer Care Centre contact information will be provided in the Sun Life Welcome package and will also be posted in the updated FAQs closer to the transition date. 30. Who do I contact for questions regarding the change in benefits providers? The FAQs will continue to be updated with details on the transition as we approach the April 1 transition date. If you have specific questions about the change in benefits providers, please email HR, Employee Benefits (BCH) (employee.benefits@bchydro.com). Date: January 2015 Page 8