BENEFIT FUND NEWS & REMINDERS

  • Coordination of Benefits - If you, or a covered dependent, has other insurance coverage, make sure to revisit the Health and Benefit Plan’s SPD, to learn what your responsibilities are and what you need to do and do timely, in order to coordinate the other insurer’s benefits with that of the 697 Health and Benefit Plan.
  • HRA - The IRS has strict rules regarding anything that has potential tax savings, so participants must substantiate every HRA claim that gets reimbursed. That means you must have a receipt and/or explanation of benefits (EOB) for every claim, including those that were paid with your HRA Debit Card, to prove it was a qualified medical expense under the plan.
  • To discover more about the HRA program and/or what will occur should you fail to substantiate a debit card purchase, thoroughly read the HRA section of the Health and Benefit Plan’s SPD.

  • Shortage of Hours – Shortage of Hours payments for coverage in the first quarter of 2023 are due at the Benefit Fund office no later than 12:00 P.M., Friday December 30th, 2022.
  • Pension Plan - There is exciting news and improvements that are going to take place within the Pension Plan in 2023. Consequently, active and retiree participants alike will want to pay attention to their mail and/or monitor the Benefit Plan’s website so that they do not miss those announcements.
  • Issuance of W-2 & 1099-R Tax Forms - Participants that have received Loss of Time or S.U.B. Fund Benefits, and retirees that have received Pension Benefits in calendar year 2022 are reminded to be on the lookout for their W-2 form or 1099-R form (respectively) in late January or early February.