The Empire Plan is a unique health insurance plan designed especially for public employees in New York State. Empire Plan benefits include inpatient and outpatient hospital coverage, medical/surgical coverage, Centers of Excellence for transplants, infertility and cancer, home care services, equipment and supplies, mental health and substance abuse coverage and prescription drug coverage.
NY15-01
TO: Health Benefits Administrators of New York State Agencies
FROM: Employee Benefits Division
SUBJECT: Planning for Retirement, February 2015
DATE: March 26, 2015
We are announcing the publication of the newly designed and revised Planning for Retirement booklet and DVD.
This booklet provides important health insurance information for New York State employees who are planning to retire from State service and explains health insurance eligibility in retirement, NYSHIP and Medicare, and Empire Plan Medicare Rx. A 30-minute video is also enclosed in the booklet that summarizes your health insurance coverage and related benefits when you retire.
The February 2015 version replaces the January 2014 version. Please recycle any copies you may have of the January 2014 version.
Distribution
This booklet will not be mailed to enrollee homes. If you want to have a supply on hand to distribute to your enrollees, you can use the online order form on HBA Online under Publications & Forms for NY Employees. We have also created a package that includes a cover letter, the new booklet and DVD and the Benefits Checklist. If you want to mail this package directly to an enrollee’s home, scroll down to use the Planning for Retirement Special Order Form.
We will send you two copies of this booklet to distribute to your enrollees who may be considering retirement.
Publications Available on Our Web Site: https://www.cs.ny.gov
Please check our web site for new publications. We generally post publications when we sign off for printing. Publications are available under Using Your Benefits.
Ordering Publications
You can order additional copies of this publication [NY1094 Planning for Retirement/February 2015] on HBA Online under Publications & Forms. Please wait until you receive your shipment before placing an order for more.
If you need help accessing HBA Online, e-mail the ITS Enterprise Service Desk at its.sm.esd.ags@its.ny.gov. If you are unsure of how to order publications or have questions about this distribution, please call the EBD Communications Unit at 518-457-7577.