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
Commissioner
NY20-35
TO: New York State Health Benefits Administrators
FROM: Employee Benefits Division
SUBJECT: MyBenefits - MetLife Paid Family Leave (PFL) Claim Submission Portal
DATE: December 31, 2020
Beginning January 1, 2021 Management Confidential (M/C) employees in bargaining units 06, 18, 46, 66, 78, and 98 and employees represented by District Council 37 (DC-37) who are eligible for Paid Family Leave (PFL) can file claims through MetLife’s MyBenefits portal. The following website, www.metlife.com/mybenefits, permits eligible employees to initiate a PFL claim, receive a claim number, upload additional PFL claim forms and documentation to support and complete their claim, as well as check the status and record of their claim.
Employees will need to identify their employer/organization as "State of New York" and create an account before the claim can be initiated. Once an account is created the employee will be able to enter their personal information and employer information similar to the PFL-1 form, Part A. Please refer employees to www.cs.ny.gov/pfl to assist in navigating the MyBenefits portal. If employees confront technical issues, they will be instructed to contact MetLife at 1-866-363-8669. This guidance can be found within the attachment below.
Employees are still required to supply the necessary forms to their HBA and physician, if applicable. Once these forms are completed, they can be uploaded to the MyBenefits portal. MetLife will continue to accept applications via fax, email, or US mail.
If you need assistance 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.
Attachment