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.
ANDREW M. CUOMO
Governor
LOLA W. BRABHAM
Acting Commissioner
NY19-14
TO: Health Benefits Administrators
FROM: Employee Benefits Division
SUBJECT: Revised Empire Plan Certificates
DATE: May 1, 2019
We are pleased to announce that we have begun the process of printing and mailing updated Empire Plan Certificates for all NY enrollee groups.
We will shortly be mailing the Empire Plan Certificate for PEF enrollees, which will be effective as of January 1, 2018. (Note: When PEF settles their new contract, we will update and reissue their certificate to reflect their new benefits.) The mail file for the Certificate was pulled from NYBEAS on April 27, 2019.
This mailing will be followed by groups with ratified contracts effective January 1, 2019 (CSEA, DC-37, PBA and UUP). These Certificates, along with the NY Retiree version, will be effective as of January 1, 2019.
The NYSCOPBA and M/C; Legislature Certificates will be effective as of June 1, 2019 and will be mailed later this summer. As the remaining union groups settle and ratify their contracts (C-82, PBANYS and PIA), their Certificates will be effective as of the effective dates of their negotiated benefit changes.
As each version is completed, it will be printed and mailed to current enrollees, as well as posted to NYSHIP Online along with amendments detailing changes to The Empire Plan since publication of the 2014 Empire Plan Certificates. We will continue to update you as new versions are completed through System Announcements and You Should Know postings to HBA Online.
As a reminder, please send any new enrollees or retirees a Quick Order package to ensure they get a complete set of benefit information. You will also be able to determine when each version is complete by checking online or reviewing the group’s fulfillment form. Note: If you maintain NYSHIP materials in your office for various groups in your agency, the materials on your shelves should mirror the group’s updated fulfillment form. Please recycle any old materials that do not appear on these updated forms.
Distribution
For reference, we will send you two copies of each Empire Plan Certificate. Agencies will also receive small supplies of these publications based upon your agency enrollment when each version is completed.
Publications Available on NYSHIP Online: www.cs.ny.gov/employee-benefits
Please check NYSHIP Online for new publications. We generally post publications when we sign off for printing.
Ordering Publications
You may order additional copies of these publications on HBA Online under Publications & Forms. Please wait until you receive your shipment of the new publication before you place an order.
If you need help accessing HBA Online, contact the ITS Service Desk at 844-891-1786, fixit@its.ny.gov or via chat at https://chat.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.