Medical Plans

High Deductible Health Plans (HDHPs)

HDHP: Cigna Base High Deductible Health Plan - $4,000

Summary of Benefits & Coverage

Plan Booklet

HDHP: Cigna Value High Deductible Health Plan - $2500

Summary of Benefits & Coverage

Plan Booklet

Choice Open Access (Traditional) Plan

If enrolled in the Traditional Plan, you may participate in the Medical Flexible Spending Account. You will receive coverage for Emergency and Urgent care services outside of Virginia. Prescriptions for mail order and retail pharmacy are filed through Cigna.

Summary of Benefits & Coverage

Plan Booklet

Vision

Anthem BlueView Vision Plan

Anthem offers a vision plan separate from the University’s Voluntary Vision Insurance.

Plan Booklet

Benefits Summary

Bon Secours Healthcare and Cigna are currently negotiating the renewal of their contract, which is set to expire on April 1, 2025. Unfortunately, these negotiations may impact your access to Bon Secours facilities and physicians in the future.

We are closely monitoring these negotiations and are actively encouraging both parties to reach an agreement before the expiration date. Negotiations between healthcare providers and insurance companies are common, but they usually do not become public or result in providers leaving an insurance network. We will continue to voice our concerns and encourage an agreement to prevent any disruption for our employees.

What You Need to Know:

• Impact on Care: If Bon Secours and Cigna are unable to reach an agreement, Bon Secours may leave the Cigna network, potentially affecting your access to or the cost of their services as they would become an out-of-network provider.
  
  You will find a list of alternative in-network options here.
  
  
• Continuity of Care: If you or a dependent are receiving ongoing treatment with Bon Secours, you may qualify for Continuity of Care. This program allows eligible participants to continue using certain Bon Secours providers or facilities at in-network rates for a limited time after a contract ends.
  
  To find out more about Continuity of Care, please contact Cigna at the toll-free number on your Cigna ID card,or use the myCigna® app or website. You’ll find the Continuity of Care brochure and application there:

1. Go to myCigna.com.
2. Scroll to the bottom of the page and click on Find a Form.
3. Select Medical, and then choose Transition of Care/Continuity of Care Form.
4. If you call Cigna, please let the Customer Service Advocate know you’re in the middle of treatment. They’ll work with you to determine your eligibility for Continuity of Care. They can also help you complete the request form.

• Cigna Notifications: Cigna is contractually required to notify affected members 30 days before a contract expires. If a resolution is not reached by April 1, 2025, you will receive official communication directly from Cigna regarding any potential changes to your network options. A copy of this notification can be found here.

We are actively working with Cigna and Bon Secours and will continue to monitor the situation.

For more information and additional FAQs, please see Cigna’s website at Cigna Healthcare Newsroom.

Beginning in 2024, Cigna will be transitioning to digital insurance ID Cards. 

If you are enrolled in a University medical plan, you will not receive a physical copy of your medical insurance card. Digital ID cards will allow customers to access their plan coverage information more easily, and they are more conveniently available when needed. Customers can request physical medical ID cards through myCigna.com.

Cigna has provided information below regarding this transition:

MyCigna App and Digital ID Card Instructions

Frequently Asked Questions

Employee: All full-time employees have the option to enroll in the University’s health plan. Please see Eligibility Section of Plan Document for further details.

Dependent: Employees have the option to enroll eligible family members. Please see Eligibility Section of Plan Document for further details.

Costs for all plans are based on the University’s experience and are subject to annual changes. Please refer to the Medical Insurance Comparison Chart and Health Insurance Rates.

Enroll in your medical insurance in the WEX Benefits portal at benefitexpress.richmond.edu.

It is the responsibility of the employee to enroll in one of the University’s health insurance plans no later than 30 calendar days after their employment start date. If an employee fails to comply with this requirement, the University will understand this to mean the employee is declining health insurance coverage and may not enroll until Open Enrollment unless there is an eligible life status change. 

Please note that health insurance plans may only be changed during the Open Enrollment period. However, an employee whose eligibility status changes during the year may be eligible to make changes to their current coverage within 30 days of the status change. For more information, please see examples of life status changes.

Coverage will be effective the first day of the month following employment. If employment begins on the first of the month, coverage will begin that day.

Participation

Please refer to the Participation Section of the Plan Document to view when health insurance will be effective.

An employee may choose to waive their enrollment in the University’s health insurance plans and receive 5 vacation days (only staff) or $500 taxable cash benefit. These amounts are annual benefits which will be pro-rated for any portion of a year. Waive coverage in the WEX Benefits portal at benefitexpress.richmond.edu no later than 30 days after the employment start date. If an employee fails to enroll in health insurance or waive insurance within the 30 calendar days, the University will understand this to mean the employee is declining health insurance coverage and may not enroll until Open Enrollment unless there is an eligible life status change. Spouses who both work full time for the University are not eligible for the $500 or 5 vacation days. Additional information about waiving coverage is available in the Enrollment Section of the Plan Document.

For information regarding COBRA, please refer to the COBRA Section of the website or the Plan Document.

For information regarding HIPAA please refer to the Certificate of Coverage under a Group Medical plan section of the Plan Document.

Find a Provider

You can find a health care provider on the myCigna app or at myCigna.com. Watch this video for a quick overview.

Learn about Cigna benefits here.

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