The New Blog is Here!

Categorized in five key areas, the new Total Rewards Blog will offer pertinent Northwell Health work/life information in a friendly voice to view, follow, and comment on. Here's what you need to do to login to this new mobile-friendly information tool.
1. Visit the new Total Rewards Blog at Northwell.edu/mytotalrewards
2. Scroll down and type in your email address to follow the Blog
3. Feedburner will pop up thanking you for your request
4. To help prevent spam you'll be asked to type in the text displayed
5. An email confirmation will be sent to your inbox
Every time a new blog post is published you'll  receive an alert. How great is that?

Please note: this blog will have no future postings.
Questions? Email peoplecommunications@northwell.edu

AbsenceOne Becomes New Disability/Leave Carrier

As of May 1, 2016 employees who are eligible for Short- and Long-Term disability coverage will now have a new carrier to file their claim. Known for their customer service, consistent communications and state-of-art filing systems, AbsenceOne will be a reliable new partner should you request a leave of absence (LOA). Although your coverage has not changed, the process of reporting a leave has been updated due to our change in carriers.

Steps to Submit Your Leave as of May 1

1. Notify your supervisor/manager of your leave of absence, request for Short Term Disability, or a leave in accordance with the Family Medical Leave Act
2. Call AbsenceOne at 855-RTW-WELL/855-789-9355 to initiate the leave with the Northwell Health Leave Claim Center
3. Provide AbsenceOne with the following information: address, phone number, employee ID or Social Security number, reason for leave, work location, physician information, and any information about a previous leave
4. Complete your portion of the Release of Information form provided to you by the Claim Center 
5. Have your physician's office complete their portion of the Release of Information provided to you by the Claim Center
6. Return all documents within 15 days of your first date of absence, or date claim reported (whichever is greater)

Northwell Health wants you to be healthy and stay healthy, but in case you do have a health-related event, know that you are in good hands with our partners at AbsenceOne!

Create you login at absenceone.com/Northwell

Clarifying the 1095-C Tax Form

By now eligible Northwell Health employees (those who are offered health coverage through their employer or union in 2015) should have received the new 1095-C Tax Form in the mail. In accordance with the Affordable Care Act (ACA), this form contains information about the offer of health insurance coverage to you and your dependents in 2015.

There is no necessary action needed on on your part at this time, but here's what you should know:

1. All recipients have a "P" listed as their middle initial: this is an error in the form. You will not receive a revised form, since you do not have to file it in 2016
2. The return address for Northwell Health is listed as Lexington Ave, Manhattan, due to the fact that this form was mailed through a third party vendor
3. In reference to Part II, Line 15: this amount of dollars is the LOWEST you would pay for health insurance through Northwell Health and may not reflect what you actually pay (again - there is no action necessary on your part!)
4. If your accountant is asking you for the form tell him or her:
   "Because this requirement and form is new under the ACA, the government has granted us a one year grace period and we do not have to file with our taxes this year. If you are still my accountant next filing season .... we will be required to file the form."
5. If you are covered by a union, you will receive the 1095-C Form stating that you were not offered coverage by Northwell Health (your employer) - those union employees should expect a 1095-B Form from their union - stating the coverage offered to them (it is really the same form - just from your union)

Questions?

Rest assured - this Form is not something you need to address in 2016. If you have questions or comments please share on our Blog so other employees can learn from your query. 

What's Next?

If you recently received a tax refund - think smart before you spend it. How about increasing your contribution to your 403(b) or 401(k) retirement plan by just one percent? Reach out to a Transamercia representative for more information about your retirement savings plan: Northwell.edu/myRetirement 

New Tax Form(s) Under ACA

A new form (1095-C) will be arriving to your home address early April, from Northwell Health. The purpose of the form is to show the months in which you and your dependents were offered, or covered by, an employer sponsored health insurance plan. This information is reported to the IRS by your employer (Northwell Health). The 1095-C is for your records. This form states that you were covered (or not covered) under the employer sponsored plan.

To further explain, under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) two new mandates were created:

1. Employer to send 1095-C Form to employees - save for your records 
2. Employer to send 1094-C Form to IRS

Note: the two forms contain the same information.

Union 

Employees covered by union multi-employer plans will receive 1095-B Form from the union and a 1095-C Form from Northwell Health.

Changes in the Annual Wellness Pledge Program

Each year the Wellness Pledge Program becomes a bit more robust, offering new options and resources to get you well, and keep you well. 

• The Health Assessment Pledge for You and Your Covered Spouse: As the gateway pledge, this pledge is the most important pledge of all. The health assessment (which is now called the Rally Health Survey on the United Healthcare portal) is a fun and easy way to get information about your health.
  Value and Buy-Up Plan members login to myuhc.com and click on the Rally Health Survey.
  CareConnect Employee Plan members login to access the Rally Health Survey here.
• The Financial Wellness Video Pledge: Designed to keep you in tune with your financial security in the future, this video pledge is currently in redesign and will be available to you mid-May. 
• New Pledge with the Feinstein Institute for Research: Employees now have a new option to gain credit towards the cost of their benefits by participating in clinical research. Pledge here.

Here's What You Can Do Now to Comply:

Schedule one or more preventive care appointments in 2016 prior to October 31, 2016, and you will be rewarded paycheck credits beginning with your first pay cycle in 2017:

1. Complete the Health Survey (this is re
2. Visit with your primary care physician and get a full physical 
3. Visit with your dentist and get an exam and cleaning 
4. Visit with your ophthalmologist for an eye exam 
5. Get screened for breast cancer with a mammography by Imaging
6. Get screened for skin cancer with a full body check by your dermatologist 
7. Get screened for cervical cancer with PAP Smear by your obstetrician/gynecologist
8. Get screened for colorectal cancer with a colonoscopy by Imaging
9. Have your covered spouse (if applicable) complete the Health Survey
10. Participate in the Feinstein GAP Registry

2017 Paycheck Credits for 2016 Pledge Actions
Complete all four pledges by October 31 and you will earn the maximum amount of paycheck credits in 2017 ($1,040). If you complete your pledge in November/December you will still receive the credits they will just be delayed by six to eight weeks, and you will not receive the maximum amount of credits.

If you have completed the pledges you will see the credit in each of your pay statements as follows:

• Semimonthly (paid on the 7th and 22nd of each month - 24 paychecks a year)- $10.83 for each pledge each pay cycle
• Biweekly (paid every other Thursday - 26 paychecks a year) - $10 for each pledge each pay cycle

We are happy to see that you are actively interested in this important program, keeping you in tune with your preventive care routine each year. 

Note: Newly hired employees will receive automatic credit for four Wellness Pledges. They will have six months to comply or their credits will cease.

How to Retrieve Your W-2 Form/Statement from Northwell Health

It's tax time -- and while you are busy gathering your receipts and checking in with your accountant, Northwell Health's payroll team assures you easy access to your W-2 Tax Statement. For the third year in row, Northwell has offered online access to your statement as early as January 15. All you have to do is:

1. Log in to Employee Self Service (use browser, Windows Internet Explorer on a computer, not phone, for best results)
2. Click on "Personal Information" tab
3. Click on the "Self Service" folder
4. Click on the "Payroll and Compensation" folder
5. Under Tax Information you will see "3 more..." click there
6. Then click on "View W-2 and W-2C Forms"
7. Click on "Year End Form"
8. Print, view, save your form

Note: If your 2015 W-2 Statement does not pop up - able to view and print - your popup blocker may be on. If this is the case, go to the top of your page (while still logged in) and click on "Tools". A menu will appear. Click on "Pop Up Blocker" and turn it off. Click on the "Year End Form" again, now you should be able to view, print and save your 2015 W-2 Tax Statement.

Additional Information about Accessing Your Statement
Northwell Health has made your W-2 Tax Statements available to you online since January 2014. While logged in you can view previous statements from years 2013 and 2014. If you opted out for a paper statement in the mail this year, or in previous years, your online version is the only version you will have access to. If you did not opt out for the paper statement - you should have received your 2015 Tax Statement in the mail by now. If you have misplaced your paper statement, simply retrieve your statement through Employee Self Service, as described above. The online version is just as authentic as the paper version.

Note: If you do not have access to a computer and "opted out" for the print/mail-to-home version (or you misplaced the print/mail-to-home version), contact your local site HR office for assistance.

Your Future
While money is on your mind, consider investing in your retirement by increasing your contribution to your 403(b)/401(k) retirement plan by at least one percent right now. Log in to Northwell.edu/myRetirement, select your Account, hit Manage>Contributions. Increasing your number by just one percent every year can really make a difference when it comes to your financially fit future!

New Tax Form

If  you did not have any health insurance coverage in 2015 - for the entire year, or at any point during the year - you will need to submit a 1095-C Form, when filing your 2015 taxes. Your 1095-C Tax Form will arrive in your home mailbox, from Northwell Health, on or around March 31, 2016. If this pertains to you, you will have to wait to file your taxes until you receive the form.

Note: Your W-2 Tax Statement is now available online when you log into Employee Self Service - just click on the Payroll and Compensation tab.