Status change

[Guest wallacea]

Our annual open enrollment season is June of each year. If an employee's spouse's employer holds their open enrollment in December of each year, is that an valid status change to allow the employee to drop our health coverage mid-year?

[Guest]

I don't think so unless there's another reason such as the spouse just began working.

[Lisa Hand]

The Proposed Regulations issued March 23, 2000, "provide that a cafeteria plan may permit an employee to make an election change, during a period of coverage, corresponding with an open enrollment period change made by a spouse or dependent when the plan of that indiviudal's employer has a different period of coverage."

[Guest wallacea]

Where can additional information about theser proposed regulations be found?

[Lisa Hand]

Benefits Buzz - accessed from BenefitsLink home page

[SLuskin]

In addition, even though these new regs aren't required until plan years starting 1/1/2001, the IRS says we may rely on them effective 3/23/00.

Is anyone amending their documents, or just applying these new changes?