Open Enrollment: What You Need to Know
Knowledge Center / Blog
Open Enrollment: What You Need to Know
For many companies, open enrollment is right around the corner. With that, there can be a lot of changes for employees and employers that might be hard to remember and navigate. To better understand and prepare for open enrollment, there are a few key points you should know that can help you and your employees make informed decisions.
What is Open Enrollment?
Open enrollment is a period of time when employees may elect or change the benefit options available through their employer. This typically includes options like health, dental, and life insurance, as well as ancillary or voluntary benefits ranging from legal services to pet insurance. For calendar year benefit plans starting January 1st, open enrollment often takes place in November.
Why would employees want to change their benefits during open enrollment?
There are many factors that could dictate whether or not employees make changes to their benefit plan. It all depends on the employee and their preferences. For some it could be more cost effective to waive coverages or switch to a cheaper plan. For others it could be needing coverage for new dependents or a desire for additional coverage. Open enrollment is the only time of the year outside of an employee’s new hire date that they are free to make changes or additions to their benefits without needing a qualifying life event (such as marriage or a new child).
What should employers know to help prepare for open enrollment?
To stay ahead of the curve, employers should be aware of any changes to the company benefit plan and how that will impact employees’ decisions and clearly communicate those changes out to staff. For example, if switching from one health insurance company to another, what will the difference in monthly premiums be across the different coverage levels? Another thing to consider are the yearly benefit plan limits and thresholds. For 2025, the annual limit on HSA contributions for self-only coverage will be $4,300.00, a 3.6% increase from the $4,150.00 limit in 2024. For family coverage, the HSA contribution limit will jump to $8,550.00, up 3% from $8,300.00 in 2024.
These are just a few tips that employers and employees can do to be more prepared for open enrollment season. If you have any questions about the benefits plans provided by The Employer Group, please feel free to contact us.
This information does not constitute legal advice.