New Hires | University of Arkansas System Benefits

Welcome

We’re happy you are here! The University of Arkansas System is committed to offering competitive, affordable benefits programs that give you choice, protection and security for you and your family.

You’ll need to make your benefit selections within 31 days of your date of hire into a benefits-eligible position. If you miss this deadline, your next opportunity to enroll or make changes will be the annual open enrollment period, unless you have a qualifying life event.

Choosing the Right Coverage

The university offers benefits designed to support you and your family. As a new hire, choosing the right benefits should be a top priority. Before you make your selections, take the time to learn what is available and to carefully consider which health plans and voluntary coverages will be best for you and your family.

Your Benefits

Medical

You have three medical plan options to choose from, including:

Health Savings Plan
Classic Plan
Premier Plan

All three medical plans are administered by UMR, offer the same nationwide network of providers and facilities, and cover in-network preventive care at no cost to you.

To help you make the right decision:

Visit the Choosing Coverage page if you need help to determine which medical plan is right for you and your family.
Use the health care cost modeling tool to determine your own out-of-pocket expenses under each plan.
Follow these steps to find an in-network provider.

Prescription Drugs

If you enroll in a university-sponsored medical plan, your plan will include prescription drug coverage through MedImpact.

When you fill a prescription, the amount you pay will depend on the medical plan you enroll in. You’ll also have a mail-order option. You can order up to 90 days of maintenance medications at a time, which will be sent directly to your home with no shipping fees.

All three medical plans use the same prescription drug formulary. However, your out-of-pocket costs may differ depending on the medical plan you enroll in.

Health Savings Account

If you choose the Health Savings Plan for medical coverage, you can open a Health Savings Account (HSA). Use your HSA to pay for eligible health care expenses with pre-tax dollars.

The university will contribute $650 (for individual coverage) or $1,200 (for family coverage) to your HSA. You can also make pre-tax contributions (up to the IRS annual contribution maximum), which are deducted from your paycheck.

To help you make a decision:

Visit the Optum Bank Employee Resources portal for helpful videos, flyers and online tools.
Register for a Health Savings Account webinar to learn more about the features of an HSA, including saving for the future, eligible expenses, reimbursements, maximizing benefits, and more!
Use the Health Savings Account calculator to determine your maximum contribution, estimate your tax savings, and see how your savings could grow over time.

Dental

The university’s dental plan, administered by Arkansas Blue Cross and Blue Shield, offers coverage for preventive, basic, major and orthodontia services.

To help you make the right decision, review the Dental Benefit Summary.

Vision

You have two options for vision coverage: the Basic Plan and the Enhanced Plan. Both plans are administered by EyeMed and pay benefits for eye examinations, prescription eyewear, and contact lenses.

Healthcare Flexible Spending Account (FSA)

If you are enrolled in the Classic Plan or the Premier Plan, you can elect a Healthcare FSA. This tax-advantaged account can be used to pay for eligible health care expenses for you and your covered dependents.

You can begin using your FSA the first month after you enroll. Your contributions will be deducted from your paycheck after your benefits start.

Use the FSA worksheet to estimate your annual Healthcare FSA costs.

Dependent Care Flexible Spending Account (FSA)

You can pay for eligible dependent care expenses through the Dependent Care FSA, a tax-advantaged account.

You can begin using your FSA the first month after you enroll; however, you can only reimburse yourself up to the amount in your account at that time. Your contributions will be deducted from your paycheck after your benefits start.

Use the FSA worksheet to estimate your annual Dependent Care FSA costs.

Life Insurance

If you die, Basic Life Insurance pays a benefit equal to your annual salary, up to $50,000. Coverage is automatically provided at no cost to you and is administered by Standard Insurance. You cannot opt out of this coverage.

You also have the option to enroll in additional employee-pay-all Optional Life Insurance of one, two, three or four times your annual salary, up to $750,000. Evidence of Insurability (EOI) is required for Life Insurance amounts over $500,000 or three times your annual earnings. You have the option to buy Dependent Life Insurance as well.

To help you make the right decision:

View this brief life, AD&D and disability overview video. If you are Family Group Practice or a Medical Resident, view this brief life, AD&D and disability overview video.
Use The Standard’s life insurance calculator tool to estimate your Life Insurance needs.
Review the Additional Life Coverage Highlights flyer.

Disability Insurance

Disability Insurance coverage is administered by Standard Insurance.

Short-Term Disability

The university provides Basic Short-Term Disability Insurance at 60% of your pre-disability salary, up to $45,000, at no cost to you. You can choose to enroll in voluntary Short-Term Disability benefits.

Long-Term Disability

The university provides Basic Long-Term Disability Insurance at no cost to you. Benefits start after you have been out of work for 180 days, or at the end of your accumulated sick leave, whichever is later. The coverage is at 60% of your pre-disability salary, up to $20,000.

To protect more of your income, you may want to enroll in additional employee-pay-all. If you enroll after your initial benefits eligibility date (start date), benefits will be subject to a 12-month pre-existing condition waiting period.

To help you make the right decision:

Use The Standard’s disability benefit calculator tool to estimate your Disability Insurance needs.
Review the LTD Buy-up Coverage Highlights.

Accidental Death & Dismemberment Insurance

You can enroll in employee-paid Accidental Death and Dismemberment (AD&D) Insurance, which provides a benefit to you if you have a covered injury, or to your beneficiary if you die from a covered accident. You can purchase coverage in units of $25,000, to a maximum benefit of $300,000.

To help you make the right decision, review the Voluntary AD&D Coverage Highlights.

Critical Illness Insurance

You can enroll in employee-pay-all Critical Illness Insurance through UnitedHealthcare, which pays a lump-sum benefit to you for covered illnesses.

Hospital Indemnity Insurance

You can enroll in employee-pay-all Hospital Indemnity Insurance through UnitedHealthcare, which pays a lump-sum benefit to you for covered hospital admissions and care.

Accident Insurance

You can enroll in employee-pay-all Accident Insurance through UnitedHealthcare, which pays a lump-sum benefit to you for covered injuries.

Voluntary Benefits

You also have the option to enroll in these employee-pay-all voluntary benefits:

University of Arkansas Retirement Savings Plan

As a university employee, you contribute to the 403(b)/457(b) University of Arkansas Retirement Savings Plan. You can invest the money in your University of Arkansas Retirement Savings Plan through TIAA or Fidelity.

You must contribute 5% of your regular salary (pre-tax); you can also elect additional voluntary contributions on a pre-tax or after-tax (Roth) basis. The university will match your contribution, dollar for dollar, up to 10% of your regular salary (up to IRS limits).

Default Investments

If you do not make an investment election, you will be defaulted to a Vanguard target date fund (TDF) as your investment choice. TDFs invest money in stock and bond holdings based on your current age and your expected age of leaving the workforce, and then shift your holdings from higher-risk investments to lower-risk investments the closer you get to retirement.

Work-Life

In addition to health and financial protection benefits, the university offers work-life benefits such as:

What You Need to Do

Watch for enrollment information from your campus Human Resources office, including deadlines for you to enroll in benefits.
Enroll yourself and your eligible dependents. You have 31 calendar days from the first day you become eligible for benefits — known as your benefits eligibility date — to complete your enrollment. You will complete enrollment for all benefits in Workday.
Dependent eligibility verification. If you plan to cover a dependent, you’ll need to provide documentation that proves their eligibility for coverage.
Enroll in the 403(b). Enroll through Workday. When enrolling for the first time, you must complete an online application with TIAA or Fidelity.
Consider your other benefit options. You have a variety of disability, life insurance, and voluntary benefits available to you to enhance your core health care coverage elections.

Enrolling for Coverage

When you are ready to enroll, log in to Workday. Once you log in, access the Change Benefits for Life Event task in your inbox. If you do not see this task, please contact your campus Human Resources office.

Click the Let's Get Started button.
This page displays the benefits available for enrollment. If you would like to see more information and/or enroll in the plan, select the Enroll hyperlink. Follow the instructions on the screen for each type of benefit plan.
After enrolling in the desired plans, click the Review and Sign button at the bottom of the screen.
If you enrolled with dependent coverage, attach the required documentation. Dependents will not be approved until the correct documentation is received.
Review your selections and check the box next to I Agree to electronically sign your elections.
Click Submit. Your request is not finalized until your Human Resources representative has reviewed and approved your documentation. If you have any questions, contact your campus Human Resources office.

If You Don’t Enroll

If you don’t enroll within 31 days of your start date, you will automatically be enrolled in the following “default” benefits:

Benefit	Coverage
Medical	No coverage
Prescription Drugs	No coverage
Dental	No coverage
Vision	No coverage
Retirement Plan	5% of your regular salary (pre-tax) to a TIAA target date fund
Life Insurance	Equal to your annual salary, up to $50,000
Short-Term Disability Insurance	60% of your pre-disability salary, up to $45,000
Long-Term Disability Insurance	60% of your pre-disability salary, up to $20,000
AD&D	No coverage
Critical Illness Insurance	No coverage
Hospital Indemnity Insurance	No coverage
Accident Insurance	No coverage
Flexible Spending Accounts	No contribution
Voluntary Benefit	No coverage

When Coverage Begins

Once you enroll, your elections go into effect on the first day of the month following the month in which you enroll, but within 31 days of your date of hire or qualifying event.

Resources

Visit the Resources page to contact your campus Human Resources office with any questions. You’ll also find a list of benefits vendor contacts.