Benefits open enrollment: April 28-May 16

The following was emailed to benefits-eligible faculty and staff on April 2, 2025.

Colleagues, 

Benefits open enrollment is approaching, taking place April 28-May 16. This is your annual opportunity to choose your insurance coverage for the year ahead. 

We know health insurance is deeply personal and an important decision for every employee. Each year, university leaders face difficult decisions about our health insurance plans. This includes how to make sure our plans are sustainable and keep us competitive among our peer institutions.  

We also must consider financial realities. UK's health care costs have been greater than the premiums paid by the university and our employees in recent years. 

In a continuing commitment to provide outstanding health coverage to our employees, the university will continue to cover as much as 96% of the true cost of employee-only coverage on the Saver plan and 93% of the true cost of employee-only coverage on the HMO plan.  

We also have heard from you, through several feedback opportunities last year, that employees would like a lower-cost option and greater flexibility to choose a provider. 

Among this year’s changes: 

• We will reduce the cost of employee-only coverage on our Saver plan — a high-deductible plan with a health savings account — to $30 per month. Costs for family coverage will range up to $432 per month. On the Saver plan, UK provides $1,000 or $2,000 in a health savings account to help you meet your deductible.
• UK HMO costs will range from $55 per month for individuals to $530 per month for families. UK Retail Pharmacies will also become the exclusive pharmacy for ongoing prescriptions on the HMO plan.
• UK PPO costs will range from $99 per month for individuals to $682 per month for families.
• The HMO and PPO plans will also have some increases to:
  • Deductibles (the amount you pay before insurance begins coverage)
  • Co-pays (a flat fee for services)
  • Co-insurance (a percentage of the cost of services)  

Additionally, we will no longer offer the Regional Health Plan (RHP) or EPO plan. These plans were the most expensive to operate and would have required substantial cost increases to make them sustainable. If you are on one of those plans, you can still remain on UK health insurance, such as the Saver and PPO plans. These plans offer lower monthly costs and still allow access to any health care provider nationwide in the Anthem network. 

We will be in touch closer to open enrollment with more information for all eligible employees to help you make an informed decision. This will include support for those whose plans are no longer available and will need to choose a new plan for coverage that begins July 1. 

We also will provide many opportunities for you to ask questions and engage with our HR staff in the coming weeks, including individual consultations, open houses, informational webinars and a decision support tool.  

You can find the schedule for upcoming events and additional details about all benefits, including monthly rates, at our open enrollment website. 

UK continues to invest in benefits by offering outstanding health insurance, retirement contributions, tuition benefits, well-being programs and many more. We are committed to taking care of our people, who in turn do so much to take care of our Commonwealth. 

Sincerely, 

Melissa Frederick 
Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer