Health and Dental Navbar

Health: Frequently Asked Questions

Eligibility

To be eligible for coverage, you must:

  • Be licensed to operate and have employees located in the state of Alabama.
  • Have at least one full-time employee (FTE) enrolling in coverage who isn't the owner, business partner, or spouse of the owner or business partner.
  • Have 50 or less FTE employees.
  • A valid tax ID is required.

 

Your employees must meet the following criteria to be eligible for your plan:

  • They must be an employee and are treated as such by you, their employer. Examples of persons who are not employees include independent contractors, board members and consultants.
  • You have determined that they work, on average, 30 or more hours per week in accordance with the Affordable Care Act (ACA)
  • You have offered them coverage under the plan.

 

The employee’s eligible dependents are:

  • the employee’s spouse.
  • a married or unmarried child up to age 26.

The child may be the employee’s natural child; stepchild; legally adopted child; child placed for adoption; or, eligible foster child. An eligible foster child is a child that is placed with you by an authorized placement agency or by court order. You may cover your grandchild only if you are eligible to claim your grandchild as a dependent on your federal income tax return.

 

There are no minimum participation and no contribution requirements for our health plans.

 

Employees must apply for coverage within 30 days of meeting the plan’s eligibility requirements. Coverage will begin no later than the 91st day from the beginning of any applicable waiting period.

If an employee does not enroll in the health plan when they are first eligible, they may only enroll during your annual open enrollment. The annual open enrollment is generally 30 days before the beginning of your plan year. In addition, various special open enrollment periods may apply for certain employees. Please review the contract or plan benefit booklet for more detailed information.

 

 

Enrollment

To enroll:

  • You must submit your signed contracts, completed employee applications and first month's premium.
  • Depending on your group size, we may also need IRS Form 941 (employer's quarterly tax form), Form A1 or Form A6.

 

Employees must apply for coverage within 30 days of meeting the plan’s eligibility requirements. Coverage will begin no later than the 91st day from the beginning of any applicable waiting period.

If an employee does not enroll in the health plan when they are first eligible, they may only enroll during your annual open enrollment. The annual open enrollment is generally 30 days before the beginning of your plan year. In addition, various special open enrollment periods may apply for certain employees. Please review the contract or plan benefit booklet for more detailed information.

 

The waiting period is the amount of time a new employee must work before they can enroll in health coverage. The ACA requires coverage to begin no later than the 91st day of employment. Based on the options we provide, you will determine the length of the applicable waiting period and when coverage will begin for eligible employees.

 

Yes, employers have the option to offer two Health plans to their employees.

 

 

Payment

Premium payments can be made in the following ways:

  • Online through GroupAccess, select one-time payment or automatic recurring payments
  • From your financial institution’s online bill payment service
  • Through wire/ACH transfer
  • By check

GroupAccess is your secure online self-service resource for account management. We’ve made it easy to make your payment online by following these steps:

  1. Login to AlabamaBlue.com/GroupAccess
  2. Select Account Management from the site navigation and click View Monthly Invoice
  3. Complete the Payment Authorization Form
  4. Proceed with making a one-time payment, set up automatic recurring payments, or change your account information

To make a wire/ACH transfer, please contact your Enrollment Representative for account information.

Or, mail your payment to:
Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Alabama
ATTENTION: Payment Processing Department
PO Box 360037
Birmingham, AL 35236-0037