OSD Employee Benefits
Medical
Medical Benefits
Health benefits are administered by Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Mississippi through the AHS State Network of physicians, hospitals and other health care providers. Each October during the annual open enrollment period, an employee may elect or change coverage. The coverage elections/changes made during open enrollment will take effect on January 1. You may discontinue coverage for yourself or dependents at any time throughout the year but may only enroll or make changes for coverage during open enrollment or if there is a qualifying life event. If you are currently enrolled and have no changes to your plan, you do not need to do anything. Your current plan selections will remain in place for the upcoming calendar year.
The plan offers two coverage choices for active employees, COBRA participants and non-Medicare eligible retirees: Base Coverage and Select Coverage. Each coverage type is independent of the other. The monthly cost is shown below:
| Active Employee | Legacy Employees | Horizon Employees | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Base | Select | Base | Select | |||||
| Total Premium | Employee Portion | Total Premium | Employee Portion | Total Premium | Employee Portion | Total Premium | Employee Portion | |
| Employee* | $412 | $0 | $432 | $20 | $412 | $0 | $455 | $43 |
| Employee + Spouse | $863 | $451 | $945 | $533 | $863 | $451 | $968 | $556 |
| Employee + Spouse & Child(ren) | $1,099 | $687 | $1,181 | $769 | $1,099 | $687 | $1,204 | $792 |
| Employee + Child | $529 | $117 | $612 | $200 | $529 | $117 | $635 | $223 |
| Employee + Children | $711 | $199 | $793 | $381 | $711 | $299 | $916 | $404 |
Legacy Employees: Initially hired before January 1, 2006.
Horizon Employees: Initially hired on or after January 1, 2006.
*The State pays 100% of the employee’s premium for Base Coverage. Active employees enrolling in Select Coverage must pay a portion of the employee premium.
The Base and Select plans are similar; however, there is a difference in the annual deductible, office visit co-pays, etc. The individual deductibles are $1,800; the family deductibles are $3,600 for Select coverage and $3,200 for Base coverage. For more information, please visit the Department of Finance and Administration website at knowyourbenefits.dfa.ms.gov.
Forms to enroll or make changes to your existing Blue Cross policy will be available during open enrollment. If an employee meets certain criteria, he or she may make changes outside of open enrollment. Contact the OSD Human Resources Associate for more information.
Life Insurance
Life Insurance
Standard Life Insurance (district paid)
All active, full-time employees of OSD receive a $10,000 life insurance policy that is paid for by the district. You were automatically enrolled in this policy when you were hired. This policy is with Standard Life Insurance.
The Oxford School District covers 100% of the premiums for a term life insurance policy (up to $10,000) with Standard Insurance Company on its employees.
You are covered as a Member under this policy if you are one of the following:
- An active employee of the Oxford School District who is regularly working at least 20 hours per week; or
- An active Bus Driver employee of the Oxford School District who is regularly working at least 10 hours per week.
You are not covered as a Member if you are:
- A temporary or seasonal employee; or
- A full-time member of the armed forces of any country.
Note: This Standard Life Insurance Policy decreases based on age. If you reach an age shown below, the amount of insurance will be the amount determined from the Schedule of Insurance, multiplied by the appropriate percentage below:
| Age | Percentage |
|---|---|
| 65 through 69 | 65% |
| 70 through 74 | 50% |
| 75 and over | 35% |
If you need to modify beneficiaries or any change, please contact the Human Resources Associate to retrieve the Enrollment and Change form.
Minnesota Life Insurance (optional, state issued)
As a participant in the Mississippi State and School Employees’ Life Insurance Plan, you also have access to affordable Group Term Life insurance coverage.
| Coverage Type | Coverage | Additional Information |
|---|---|---|
| Employee Group Term Life | 2 times of your basic annual earnings rounded to the next higher $1,000 |
|
| Accidental Death & Dismemberment (AD&D) | 2 times of your basic annual earnings rounded to the next higher $1,000 |
The cost for additional Group Term Life is based on your age/salary.
Learn more about Minnesota Life Insurance.
To manage your beneficiary designation online:
- Log in to bcbsms.com. If you have not previously registered, information will be required from your BCBSMS ID card to complete the registration process.
- Go to the “Your Benefits” tab.
- Under the “Life Benefits” section, click the link to update your beneficiary information. You will see a notification that you will be transferred to a third-party website. Click “I Agree.”
- Under “Beneficiary details”, click “View details or make changes.”
- If you need to make any changes, click “Edit beneficiaries.” Provide the name(s), relationship(s) and respective benefit shares.
- After this information has been entered, you will receive an email confirmation, as well as a letter in the mail confirming your changes to your beneficiary designation.
- While online, you can edit your profile to make updates to your email address and phone numbers.
If you would rather designate your beneficiary using a paper form, please go to Forms and Documents to download a beneficiary designation form. For more information on term life insurance coverage through Minnesota Life, go to Life Benefits for Mississippi State and School Employees or call Minnesota Life at (888) 658-0193. Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Mississippi - view health benefits and claims, and Minnesota Life coverage and beneficiary information.
Supplemental Benefits
Supplemental Benefits
- Supplemental Benefits
- Dental
- Vision
- Additional Supplemental Benefits
- Questions about Supplemental Benefits
Supplemental Benefits
Supplemental benefits are documented below and are offered through American Fidelity.
Dental
Provider: Delta Dental
Description: The national network of Delta Dental companies protects more smiles than any other dental insurance company.
| Coverage | Low Plan | High Plan |
|---|---|---|
| Deductible per calendar year | $50 per person or $150 per family. Waived for diagnostic and preventive (D&P) services. |
$50 per person or $150 per family. Waived for D&P services and orthodontics. |
| Annual maximum per calendar year | $1,000 per person. | $1,500 per person. D&P and orthodontics do not count toward annual maximum. |
| Lifetime orthodontic maximum | Not applicable. | $1,000 per person. |
| Waiting periods | None | None |
| Monthly rates |
|
|
Vision
Provider: Ameritas
Description: Ameritas offers diverse vision insurance plans to meet the budget and health needs of individuals and families. Individual vision plans have no waiting periods, no enrollment fees, and policyholders can choose next-day coverage. Most states offer vision plans with access to either the VSP or EyeMed network. Both networks include retail storefronts and in-network online stores for greater benefits and savings.
| Service | In-Network Coverage | Out-of-Network Coverage |
|---|---|---|
| Annual Eye Exam | Covered in full | Up to $45 |
| Single-vision Lenses | Covered in full | Up to $30 |
| Bifocal Lenses | Covered in full | Up to $50 |
| Trifocal Lenses | Covered in full | Up to $65 |
| Lenticular Lenses | Covered in full | Up to $100 |
| Progressive Lenses | See lens options | Not Applicable |
| Frames | $150 | $75 |
| Contacts (standard) fit & follow-up exam | Member cost up to $60 | $0 |
| Contacts (elective) | Up to $150 | Up to $120 |
| Contacts (medically necessary) | Covered in full | Up to $210 |
| Service | In-Network Deductible | Out-of-Network Deductible |
|---|---|---|
| Annual Eye Exam | $20 | $20 |
| Eyeglass Lenses or Frames | $20 | $20 |
| Employee | $9.20 |
|---|---|
| Employee + spouse | $14.16 |
| Employee + child(ren) | $15.04 |
| Employee + spouse + child(ren) | $24.24 |
Additional Supplemental Benefits
Visit American Fidelity's website to learn more about the following additional supplemental benefits:
- Additional Life Insurance
- Flex Medical
- Short & Long Term Disability
- Accident
- Cancer
Questions about Supplemental Benefits
For more information, please contact one of our American Fidelity representatives:
- Jeannine Daugherty
Executive Account Manager
Jeannine.Daugherty@americanfidelity.com
(901) 496-8385 - David R. Jenkins
Executive Account Partner
David.Jenkins@americanfidelity.com
(662) 401-4653
Open Enrollment
Open Enrollment
Open Enrollment is the one time of year when employees can enroll in or change their medical, dental, vision, and other insurance plans and enroll in reimbursement accounts. Employees may meet with insurance representatives during open enrollment dates in August. Enrollments or changes made to health insurance will be effective January 1. Enrollments or changes made to all other policies and reimbursement accounts will be effective October 1.
The district has two (2) different open enrollment periods:
- American Fidelity Supplement Benefits
- Open Enrollment Dates: August 14 to August 18
- Effective Date: October 1
- Details: During this enrollment period, employees may enroll in new supplemental benefits and/or make changes to existing plans. These changes will be effective on October 1.
- Blue Cross Blue Shield Medical Benefits
- Open Enrollment Dates: October 15 to November 15
- Effective Date: January 1
- Details: During this enrollment period, employees may enroll in a medical insurance plan or make enrollment changes to an existing plan. These changes will be effective on January 1.
PERS/Retirement
PERS / Retirement
Retirees should initiate the Exit Process at least twelve (12) months in advance but no later than 90 days before the planned retirement date. The later a retiring employee waits, the greater the potential for a delay in receiving benefits. Remember – Oxford School District is just one of many within the state. When an employee is considering retirement, an audit of PERS contributions should be made. For best results, the audit should be requested before submitting a letter of resignation with the intent of retiring. Once the audit is complete, the employee should attend a PERS seminar and schedule a one-on-one retirement meeting in Jackson, MS. The seminar schedule can be found on the PERS website.
Retirement Eligibility
Employees are eligible for service retirement when they:
- have 25 years of creditable service, regardless of age (30 years for members hired on or after July 1, 2011), or
- are 60 years old and vested. Employees are considered vested after:
- 4 years (for members hired prior to July 1, 2007), or
- 8 years (for members hired on or after July 1, 2007).
Creditable Service is the amount of time an employee has worked that counts towards their retirement. Creditable Service is awarded to vested members through the following qualifiers:
- Membership
- For every full fiscal year a member works after June 30, 2010, that member will be credited with one-half day of leave. (House Bill 1, First Extraordinary Session of 2010 of the Mississippi Legislature)
- Accumulated Unused Leave
- Military Service
- Out-of-State Service
- Professional Leave
- Non-covered Services
- Retroactive Service
- Administrative Errors
- Payback of account refunds
Request an Audit: It is recommended that vested employees request an audit at least two (2) years prior to retirement eligibility and attend a PERS retirement seminar.
What to do when you are ready to retire?
At least 9 months prior to the date you plan to retire, you should submit a completed PERS Form 9A: Pre-Application for Service Retirement Benefits and a copy of your driver's license to Human Resources.
Other
Other Benefits of Joining the Oxford School District
- Employee Support:
Professional growth opportunities and financial support for work-related workshops and training - Competitive Salaries:
Our district leadership values the importance of competitive salaries which impacts the financial wellness of employees - New Teacher Support:
Teachers new to the profession receive extra classroom funds for the first 3 years - Holidays Off for All:
All OSD employees are off on district-recognized holidays - Discounted Childcare:
Discounted after-school childcare at the local YMCA - Free Entry to Games:
OSD employees are granted free entry into all home non-playoff events - Power Partner Program:
Local business discounts from our Power Partners - Wellness Benefits:
Local YMCA membership discount for all employees and family members - Free Healthcare Services:
OSD employees and their children can seek free medical assistance from the Charger Health Clinic