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Open Enrollment Guide

 

open enrollment guide for faculty and staff

 2024 Open Enrollment Period: October 9 - 27, 2023

You are viewing the 2024 open enrollment information for GW Full and Part-Time Faculty and Staff in benefits-eligible positions and their eligible dependents.

Life and Accidental Death and Dismemberment (AD&D) Insurance

GW provides basic life and accidental death and dismemberment insurance* equal to your annual benefits salary, up to $500,000 for all benefits eligible faculty and staff.

You also have the opportunity to elect optional coverage for yourself, spouse, domestic partner or eligible children (up to age 26):

  • Optional life and/or AD&D insurance coverage for yourself in increments of $10,000, up to a maximum of $1,000,000.
  • Optional life and/or AD&D insurance coverage for your spouse or domestic partner in increments of $5,000, up to a maximum of $500,000 or 50 percent of your coverage (whichever is less).
    • Please note: You must have optional employee life/AD&D coverage in order to elect coverage for your spouse or domestic partner.
  • Optional life and/or AD&D insurance coverage for your dependent children in increments of $2,000, up to a maximum of $20,000 or 50 percent of your coverage (whichever is less).
    • Please note: You must have optional employee life/AD&D coverage in order to elect coverage for your dependent children.

Evidence of Insurability (EOI)

You may be asked to provide proof that you and/or your dependents are in good health, otherwise known as Evidence of Insurability (EOI). Coverage is dependent upon our life and AD&D insurance provider, Lincoln Financial, approving your EOI. You have 30 calendar days following the end of Open Enrollment to complete your EOI.

Note: My Lincoln Portal, from Lincoln Financial, is the online platform where you will submit your EOI. The portal has single sign-on capability; once you are signed in to the GW Benefits Enrollment System, you will not need a separate log in to submit your EOI application.

* Full-time faculty and staff, as well as part-time faculty and staff working at least 14 hours per week, qualify for basic life and AD&D insurance.

For additional details on the coverage available (including age reduction provisions), and to determine when EOI applies, please visit hr.gwu.edu/EOI.

Life Insurance and Income Taxes

The university pays for your Basic Term Life coverage. The cost of any coverage exceeding $50,000 is considered “imputed income” by the IRS. Imputed income will be reported on your W-2 form as part of your taxable income. If you wish to avoid imputed income, you may waive coverage over $50,000. Please note: If you waive employer coverage over $50,000 initially, and later decide to change this election, you may need to provide EOI at that time.

Special Note: Guaranteed Issue (GI) and Open Enrollment

During Open Enrollment, you may newly elect or increase optional employee life coverage by $250,000, up to $500,000 without EOI as long as you have never been denied Optional Employee Life coverage. Employees can also elect Optional Spouse or Domestic Partner Life Insurance coverage up to $50,000, without EOI, as long as coverage has not been previously denied due to EOI.

  • Employees who have optional employee life insurance coverage below $250K, or are not yet enrolled, can elect up to an additional $250K of coverage without EOI.
    • Example: An employee currently enrolled with $100K, can elect up to $350K without EOI.
  • Employees with $250K or more in optional employee life insurance can increase their coverage up to the new GI of $500K without EOI.
    • Example: An employee currently enrolled with $350K, can elect up to $500K without EOI.
  • If you are newly enrolling in optional spouse life coverage, or have coverage below $50,000, you may elect up to $50,000 without EOI.

Tip: Evidence of Insurability (EOI)

If you make elections that require EOI, you will be redirected from the GW Benefits Enrollment System to Lincoln Financial’s portal to complete your EOI. You can also access the EOI application at go.gwu.edu/mlp. You have 30 calendar days following the end of open enrollment to submit your EOI application.

If Lincoln Financial requires supporting medical documentation to process your EOI application, you will have 60 calendar days from the date that Lincoln requests that documentation to submit the supporting documentation.

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