health and wellness Archives

What Are the Deadlines for Open Enrollment 2022?

by AllyMauch | Sep 7, 2021 | Blog

What Are the Deadlines for Open Enrollment 2022? Open enrollment for 2022 is just around the corner. Here are the deadlines and exceptions to know.

As fall approaches, so does open enrollment — the annual period where most Americans enroll in a health insurance plan for the upcoming calendar year.

With the COVID-19 pandemic far from over, health insurance remains more important than ever. So, whether you’re insured through your employer or venturing into the insurance marketplace on your own, it’s vital to know how and when to obtain coverage.

Below, we’ll outline all the important opening and closing dates for the 2022 period, as well as any extensions or exceptions.

When is open enrollment 2022?

For health coverage that starts January 1, 2022, nationwide open enrollment begins November 1, 2021 and ends December 15, 2021.

However, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services have proposed extending the deadline 30 days, through January 15, 2022. Even if this extension is passed, residents in most states will still need to enroll by December 15 in order to have coverage by January 1.

There are also some states and areas that have different dates from the above:

California: October 15, 2021 through January 31, 2022
Colorado: November 1, 2021 through January 15, 2022
Connecticut: November 1, 2021 through January 15, 2022
Idaho: November 1, 2021 through December 31, 2020
Massachusetts: November 1, 2021 through January 23, 2022
Minnesota: November 1, 2021 through December 22, 2021
Nevada: November 1, 2021 through January 15, 2022
New Jersey: November 1, 2021 through January 31, 2022
New York: November 1, 2021 through January 31, 2022
Pennsylvania: November 1, 2021 through January 15, 2022
Rhode Island: October 15, 2021 through December 31, 2022

Washington DC: November 1, 2021 through January 31, 2022

Other Dates and Special Enrollment Periods

Medicaid and CHIP. Open enrollment for Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) is year-round for those who qualify.

Native Americans. Members of federally recognized tribes and ANCSA shareholders are eligible to enroll year-round.

Qualifying Events. There are a few life events that can qualify you for a special enrollment period if anyone in your household has experienced them in the last 60 days.

Marriage
Having a baby, adopting a child or placing a child for foster care
Getting divorced or legally separated and losing health insurance (Divorce or legal separation without losing coverage doesn’t qualify you for a special enrollment period)
Death of someone on your plan (this qualifies you for a special enrollment period if the death results in you being no longer eligible for your current health plan)
Changes in residence:
- Moving to a new home in a new ZIP code or county
- Moving to the U.S. from a foreign country or U.S. territory
- If you’re a student, moving to or from the place you attend school
- If you’re a seasonal worker, moving to or from the place you both live and work
- Moving to or from a shelter or other transitional housing
Loss of health insurance

COVID-related. In light of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, there was also a nationwide special enrollment period for obtaining 2021 coverage that ended on August 15. For some of the states that run their own open enrollment, though, these special periods are ongoing.

California: Through December 31 for uninsured residents and those switching from off-exchange to on-exchange coverage.
Connecticut: Through October 31
DC: Through the end of the pandemic emergency period
Minnesota: Minnesota’s special enrollment period for COVID ended in July, but those who have received unemployment compensation in 2021 can still enroll
New Jersey: Through December 31
New York: Through December 31
Vermont: Through October 1 for uninsured residents

For more information and updated information about the open enrollment period, refer to healthcare.gov.

If you want to learn more about how Best Money Moves can bring financial wellness to your company, download our whitepapers.

What is Financial Wellness — and Why Should It Matter to Your Team?

by daniel@bestmoneymoves.com | Jun 15, 2021 | Blog

What is Financial Wellness — and Why Should It Matter to Your Team? After the pandemic, Financial Wellness is in greater focus than ever before. Here’s what to know about this important wellness benefits.

After the financial upheaval of the Coronavirus/COVID-19 pandemic, financial wellness has come to the forefront of many HR plans. But what exactly is financial wellness — and Why Should It Matter to Your Team?

What is financial wellness?

Financial wellness or financial health is one facet of your overall well being, much like mental, emotional or physical health. It refers to the stability of your personal finances.

Everyone’s financial situation and needs are different, so there’s no one way to be financially healthy. However financial wellness can usually be determined by the indicators such as the size and accessibility of your savings, your retirement preparedness, your creditworthiness and more.

Are financial wellness and physical wellness connected?

Like any other type of stress, chronic financial stress affects the hormone balance in your body. Consequently, this can lead to physical symptoms ranging from from sleep loss and migraines, to muscle aches and high blood pressure. In fact, according to a report from PwC, more than 30 percent of employees say their health has been impacted by their financial worries.

The physical effects aren’t just the symptoms caused directly by the stress itself. Financial insecurity can have a serious impact on access to care. Individuals often skip buying or refilling their medicine because of the cost. A 2019 survey from the Kaiser Family Foundation found that 29% of Americans failed to take their medication as prescribed because of the cost.

The state of financial health has the biggest impact on Americans with chronic diseases. According to Forbes, 56% of Americans with chronic diseases say they’ve missed medication because of the cost.

Why should your workforce be thinking about financial wellness?

COVID-19 left most Americans in a worse financial state than it found them. As it stands, 63% of workers claim their financial stress has increased since the start of the pandemic, according to PwC’s 2021 Employee Financial Wellness Survey. This number is unsurprising, when you consider the pandemic’s effect on employment, emergency savings, and physical health.

Thankfully, employers are listening. Financial wellness is trending upwards. According to a study by MassMutual, 86% of employers characterize financial wellness programs as important.

One major key to incorporating financial wellness into your company’s benefits is finding a program that fits the particular individuals you employ. Everyone’s financial stress is personal, and they deserve a personalized set up.

Best Money Moves is a human-centered and individualized approach to financial wellbeing. The comprehensive and user-friendly platform provides a plethora of financial resources and educational tools. The library of resources contains over 700 articles, videos, and calculators. Each Best Money Moves user has their personal feed tailored to the several distinct factors that monitor their personal stress. This means your employee can use Best Money Moves to educate themselves on anything from investing in the stock market to co-signing loans to buying their first home.

Employee information is always private but employers do have access to key analytics that show overall employee financial stress and stress levels over time. The Employer Dashboard also features information on program usage, debt and savings levels and more so employers can see just how valuable Best Money Moves is to their employees.

If you want to learn more about how Best Money Moves can bring financial wellness to your company, download our whitepapers.

Top 3 Hiring Trends for 2020

by LizStevens | Dec 18, 2019 | Blog

Top 3 hiring trends for 2020. How employers are planning to expand recruitment efforts to attract and retain the right talent in a tight labor market.

Employers are ready to pay up to combat the skills shortage in the new year.

More than 80 percent of employers are ready to offer higher salaries for sought-after candidates and give pay raises to ensure their current staff is happy, according to the third-annual hiring trends report by Hays, a global recruitment firm.

“It’s encouraging to see such employer confidence and motivation in the face of market uncertainty but they should consider that money on its own may not be the long-term solution to skill deficits and employee dissatisfaction,” said David Brown, CEO, Hays US.

Top 3 Hiring Trends for 2020

Hays drew from a national survey of more than 3,500 employers and employees across the U.S. for their latest report. Their findings identified three major hiring trends for 2020:

1. More Flexibility

Nearly 35 percent of employers offer no flexible work options, but that percentage is likely to drop in the next year. More than 50 percent of employers are working on adding the ability to work remotely. Almost 40 percent are investing in flexible work hours.

Hays notes that unlimited vacation time and free childcare are also growing in popularity, but are implemented on more of a case-by-case basis.

2. Career Development

Over 20 percent of employees are considering leaving their current role because of limited opportunities for career growth.

“It’s an incredibly competitive job market and employers have to focus on bigger picture aspects of work if they want to achieve their business goals,” added Brown. “People expect to do more than punch a clock. They’re looking for meaning, a vibrant culture and to be united with their colleagues under a shared purpose. Employers who understand this fact will be better-suited in the 2020 fight for talent while nurturing their current team.”

3. Health and Wellness Focus

Close to 60 percent of workers say they have no health and wellness activities through work. Providing healthy snacks and space where employees can rest and reset on their breaks is investing in the health and wellbeing of employees.

Employers can also remind employees when it’s time to get flu shots, when open enrollment starts, and have someone available to review healthcare benefits and out-of-pocket costs to help them better understand changes each year.

If you’re not convinced that sending a reminder can make a difference, read about how a reminder the IRS sent out to those who paid a fine for failing to have health insurance may have saved 700 lives.