A Health Newsletter Serving the North Coast Schools Medical Insurance Group
Fall 2021
In this Issue: Special Plan Change Period | Cal-ORE Life Flight/AirMedCare | Health Screening Schedule
Special Plan Change Period Nov. 1-19
Beginning on January 1, 2022, NCSMIG will have four Medical Plan choices for its members. With this transition, members that are currently enrolled on the Redwood or Sequoia Medical Plans are required to make a new plan election, for an effective date of January 1, 2022. This special plan change period will be held November 1st through November 19th.
Plan changes are binding for the entire plan year, unless you have a qualifying change in family status, such as marriage, divorce, adoption or birth of a new child. Dependents may not be added to your coverage during this Special Plan Change Period, unless there is a qualifying event.
How Do I Change Plans?
From Nov. 1 – Nov. 19, active employees can log onto our
self-service member portal at MyHealthBenefits.com
Employees may elect a new plan choice by submitting a Benefits Enrollment Form to their district office instead. Retirees must elect a new plan via the Benefits Enrollment Form.
What If I Do NOT Elect a New Plan?
Redwood Plan: Members currently on the Redwood Plan that fail to elect a plan change will be placed on the Oak Plan, effective Jan. 1, 2022.
Sequoia Plan: Members currently on the Sequoia Plan that fail to elect a plan change will be placed on the Spruce Plan, effective Jan. 1, 2022.
In a medical emergency, every second counts, especially when transporting patients who are far away from adequate medical treatment. No one knows that better than the flight crews at Cal-Ore Life Flight, an emergency air ambulance program with over three decades of experience.
Cal-Ore Life Flight medical transport teams are on duty 24-hours a day, 365 days a year at ALL of their base locations in order to assist the communities they serve.
AirMedCare Network providers respond to scene calls, hospital-to-hospital transports, and assist search and rescue, carrying seriously ill or injured patients to the nearest appropriate medical facility.
One flight can cost thousands of dollars and may not be covered in full by your insurance plan. AirMedCare Network providers offer a broad membership plan that covers the remaining balance of your transport after your insurance plan has paid, leaving you with no out-of-pocket air medical transport expenses.
As a member, the AirMedCare Network provides you with reciprocity among more than 200 helicopter and airplane base locations coast-to-coast, across 28 states. Thus, you could be flown by any one of the AirMedCare Network partners and experience the same benefits (i.e. no out-of-pocket expenses for a medically necessary flight).
Become a member TODAY! For more information or to enroll contact Jennifer Hart, Membership Sales Manager, at 530.510.2915 or jennifer.hart@gmr.net.
Upcoming Health Screenings
The annual Health Screening provides our members with the opportunity to check-in on their overall health. This program is now more important than ever, since most individuals haven’t had the opportunity to have their annual checkups done in the midst of the pandemic. This benefit is not only free to our members, but also assists in keeping the medical costs of our program down by catching potentially life threatening conditions early. We provide a full range of tests for our plan members and their spouse or partner. This screening is offered FREE to NCSMIG Medical plan members and enrolled spouses or domestic partners only; tests are not offered to dependent children.
Members are free to attend a screening at any location listed on the schedule. Please call the number listed for that location to sign up for a time slot. If you are able to take a later time, we ask that you do so in order to accommodate those employees that must drive buses or be at school early. If you have any questions about the program, please feel free to give our office a call at 707-445-7126.