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
NY25-08
PE25-06
PA25-05
TO: All Health Benefits Administrators
FROM: Employee Benefits Division
SUBJECT: Empire Plan Online Provider Directory Postcard
DATE: May 12, 2025
A postcard will soon be mailed to enrollees promoting The Empire Plan’s online provider directory, which has been redesigned for easier use. This intuitive tool, updated on a weekly basis, provides a more accurate resource and better customer experience.
With a few clicks on a computer, tablet or smart phone, enrollees can choose from a nationwide network of over one million providers, 15,000 hospitals and 9,000 pharmacies.
Accessing the online provider directory
- Enrollees should visit the NYSHIP website at cs.ny.gov/employee-benefits
- Select their group and click Find an Empire Plan Provider
- Or use their tablet or smart phone to scan the adjacent QR code included on the postcard and click the link that appears
Help getting started
Enrollees can learn how to use the provider directory by watching a short video posted on the above webpage or by calling The Empire Plan at 1-877-769-7447 and selecting the desired program.
Distribution
The postcards are broken into four mailings by state to spread out the calls and questions HBAs and EBD and program administrators’ call centers may receive from enrollees requesting help using the online provider directory.
Postcards will be mailed:
|
May 15 |
New York State |
|
June 16 |
Connecticut, Florida, Massachusetts, New Jersey and Pennsylvania |
|
July 1 |
North Carolina, South Carolina, Washington DC, Maryland, Virginia, Alaska, Delaware, Hawaii, Idaho, Maine, Montana, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Dakota, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Vermont, West Virginia and Wyoming. |
|
July 15 |
Illinois, Arizona, Georgia, Alabama, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Washington and Wisconsin. |
For 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. For questions about ordering publications or this distribution, please call the EBD Communications Unit at 518-457-7577.