The October Benefits Newsletter includes:
GSI is 25!
On October 6th, GSI celebrated its 25th Anniversary! We have seen a lot of changes since 1997: most notably there has been a growing respect for wellness within the benefits and services GSI provides, but we have also experienced demographic shifts to manage and ongoing technology improvements.
Early on, GSI formed the national health plan for active members, and a little later it added the national retiree health plan. Many improvements have been made over the years. One notable improvement in recent years was the psychology benefit’s increasing from an annual allowance of $500 to $5,000. Five years ago, a managed short term disability plan and parental leave pay plan were added to support wellness and financial security. In 2021, we added the health and lifestyle spending accounts to provide members with more flexibility to get the support they need.
Technology has helped us communicate better: with this monthly newsletter and the website, you, our members, have information and resources close at hand — even though we are located many miles apart. Please continue to reach out with all your questions.
Feeling down? Here’s when to seek help for low mood or depression.
Having a range of emotions is what makes us human. Though, when things get tough, it can be hard to know whether the feelings are short term, or a long-term issue that we should seek help for.
This month’s Humanacare newsletter was written to help you know when to seek help when it comes to your mental health.
Recognizing the Signs of Depression in a Team Member
Your workplace’s culture is pivotal to success, but when a team member is suffering from depression, it can bring the entire morale of the team down. During National Depression Education and Awareness Month we will identify key indicators of depression and ways to help.
Humanacare Webinar for October 12 @ 1:30 PM EST
Health Care Spending Account (HCSA) & Lifestyle Spending Account (LSA)
Time is running out to use any remaining balance in your Health Care or LifeStyle Spending Account allocations from 2021; balances can be carried over only to a maximum of one year. You can find your remaining balance on your Manulife member app or on-line account. Any balance left over from 2021 as well as the 2022 amount can both be put towards 2022 claims.
Modular Health Benefits – New Selections
As we move to the end of the year, members will have the opportunity to reflect on their benefits needs and select their benefits module option that would start on January 1st. Members can move to an adjacent module (e.g., from green to teal) by filling in a Group Benefits Enrollment form and submitting it to the GSI office by Monday December 19, 2022.
Health module premiums will be posted on the GSI website by the end of October, so that you and your congregation will be able to consider those in the decision.
Note that if a change is made, members’ claims history will be carried forward. This means that benefits with coverage maximums that extend over more than one year (e.g., vision care at 24 months) will not when a different module is selected at a later date.
