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.
KATHY HOCHUL
Governor
TIMOTHY R. HOGUES
Commissioner
NY24-16
TO: New York State Health Benefits Administrators
FROM: Employee Benefits Division
SUBJECT: NYSHIP Health Benefits Publications for Employees of New York State represented by APSU and C-82, effective January 1, 2025
DATE: September 17, 2024
As a result of the recently ratified contract between the State of New York and Agency Police Services Unit (APSU) represented by the Police Benevolent Association of New York State (PBANYS) and the recently ratified contract between the State of New York and Council 82 (C-82), there will be Empire Plan benefit changes and NYSHIP premium rate changes for these groups, effective January 1, 2025. The October 2024 Empire Plan Special Report is now available online and will soon be mailed to enrollee homes.
The Empire Plan Special Report for APSU and C-82 (NY1525) includes:
Information about reduced in-network maximum out-of-pocket limits, single visit copayment, the Site of Care Program for Infusions, a new Center of Excellence for Substance Use Disorder and a change to the reimbursement methodology for non-network claims. An informational presentation about the benefit changes is available online. The Empire Plan Special Report includes a QR code for accessing it using a mobile device or tablet. The approximately 12- minute resource can also be accessed on the NYSHIP website under What’s New.
Distribution
The October 2024 publication will begin mailing to enrollee homes in September. The mail file for the Empire Plan Special Report was pulled from NYBEAS on August 31. Any enrollees who were not on the file on that date should be provided copies of the publication.
Publication Available on the NYSHIP website: www.cs.ny.gov/employee-benefits
You can access the publication online under Using Your Benefits from the NYSHIP website home page.
Ordering Publications
You may order copies of the publication on HBA Online under Publications & Forms. 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.