Adjunct Medical Benefits Program (AMBP)

Attention Adjuncty—Enrollment Period Now Open for
The Adjunct Medical Benefits Program
Completed forms may be mailed to the Human Resources Department
if postmarked no later than March 31, 2012 or returned to
the Human Resources mailbox in Bailey Hall by 5:00 p.m., April 2, 2012.

The State's budget crisis has implications for adjunct faculty who get—or hope to get—their medical benefits through the SRJC Adjunct Medical Benefits Program (AMBP). AFA wants you to be informed of the application process and the requirements for eligibility. You may be surprised to learn that there is some flexibility in determining your eligibility for continuing coverage.

On March 1, HR emailed all adjunct faculty about the AMBP. That email included the eligibility forms you will need to fill out and submit by the deadline if you plan to apply for or continue medical coverage through this program. There are seven requirements for establishing initial eligibility:

1. For adjunct faculty with a date of hire BEFORE July 1, 2008, ONLY: Must have taught at SRJC for two of the past three semesters.
2. For adjunct faculty with a date of hire of July 1, 2008 or AFTER, ONLY: Must have performed your adjunct faculty job for five semesters since your most recent date of hire.
3. Must be a current SRJC adjunct faculty member with a load of 20% or more.
4. Must have a current cumulative load of 40% or greater from all California community college districts.
5. Must not have any portion of your medical benefits premium paid by an employer, or by any employer of your spouse or domestic partner, including any businesses owned by your self, spouse or domestic partner including another community college district.
6. Must not receive reimbursement for retirement medical benefits or stipends, from any source.
7. Must not receive a payment in lieu of medical benefits from another employer, nor from any employer of your spouse or domestic partner.

When adjunct faculty members contact the AFA office with questions about eligibility for this program, those questions commonly address load requirements for maintaining ongoing coverage. According to the requirements described in the forms provided by HR, you must meet the seven initial eligibility requirements above if you are to continue to be eligible for the AMBP. However, if you do not meet requirement #4 exactly as stated, you have some flexibility: HR will use your cumulative SRJC load for a one-year period that includes the present semester. For example, if you are applying for continuing coverage this spring, you may use Spring 2012, Fall 2011, and Summer 2011 in your calculation. If these three terms do not get you to the 80% total-annual-load requirement and if your Summer 2012 load is already electronically published and is greater than your Summer 2011 load was, HR can use Fall 2011, Spring 2012, and Summer 2012 to help you meet the 80% total-annual-load requirement. This flexibility has been critical in helping adjunct faculty to maintain ongoing participation in the AMBP in the face of ongoing cuts to the schedule.

Note these other important points:

• You have two plans to choose from: the SISC Kaiser Permanente SRJC Group Plan or the SISC Blue Shield SRJC Group Plan;
• You must provide a marriage certificate for a spouse, a domestic partner affidavit for a domestic partner, or birth certificates for dependents you wish to include on your policy;
• For continuing coverage, you must re-enroll twice each year—in March and in September;
• All forms must be filled out completely and accurately;
• All forms must be postmarked, or delivered to the HR mailbox in Bailey Hall on the Santa Rosa campus, by 5:00 p.m. on the deadline as stated on the forms;
• HR will send email notification of your benefit status;
• Because this is a group plan, you cannot be denied coverage due to pre-existing conditions;
• If a plan provider requires additional verification data, you will be notified about what is needed and where to submit it;
• The participating adjunct faculty member is responsible for making a monthly premium payment, which is approximately 50% of the total monthly premium;
• This premium will be deducted from your paycheck. During a coverage period when you do not receive a paycheck, you are responsible for making the premium payments directly to the Accounting Department. Premium Payment vouchers will be sent electronically at the time of enrollment or re-enrollment in the AMBP and are available in the HR Department; and
• Failure to pay the adjunct faculty portion of the premium will result in cancellation of this benefit.

If you have questions about the AMBP, call the Human Resources Department at 707-524-1624, or email Susan Muskar (smuskar@santarosa.edu).

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