How to Add Dependents to MSU Benefits
With the implementation of the new HR/Payroll System part of the Enterprise Business Systems, the process that faculty and staff need to use to add a dependent to their health benefits has changed.
You can still add dependents at anytime throughout the year if you have a qualifying life event, such as a marriage, birth or adoption. Otherwise, making changes to dependent coverage can only occur during the annual benefits open enrollment period. In either case, the steps you take to add a dependent have changed. There are several important steps to know about:
1. Get your dependent added to your list of eligible dependents in the new system. To add a dependent to your records in the system, log in to EBS, click on your ESS tab, and then click on the “Benefits” Link. On the Benefits screen select the “Add A Family Member or Dependent” Link. This will open an electronic form that you will need to complete and send by clicking the “check and send” button once you have completed the form. PLEASE NOTE: THIS STEP ALONE DOES NOT ENROLL YOUR DEPENDENT FOR BENEFITS! Completing this form (and providing required documentation) results in your dependent being added in the system to a list of your dependents who are eligible for enrollment either during the next open enrollment period, or right away in the case of a qualifying life event such as marriage, birth or adoption. *
2. Provide documents required to prove eligibility. In the past, you were asked to provide documentation for your dependent, such as birth certificate, marriage license, etc, within a certain number of days after enrolling that dependent. If you failed to follow up with documentation in the allotted time, the enrollment was cancelled. With the new system, you will need to provide the documentation to Human Resources first, before you can enroll a dependent. The necessary link in the system to actually enroll your dependents for benefits will not become visible to you in the system until you have completed steps 1 and 2. *
3. Completing the Enrollment Process. Once your form and documentation has been approved, you can then re-enter the system and enroll your dependent. To complete the enrollment process, under the ESS tab you will click on the “Benefits” link and on the Benefits screen you will select the “Enrollment Services” link. This will take you to the links you can use to finish enrolling your dependent. Please remember that unless you are adding your dependent due to a qualifying life event such as marriage, birth or adoption, you will need to wait until open enrollment to finish step three. However, you can complete steps 1 and 2 at anytime and doing it early will simplify things for you during open enrollment.
* Special note, some people may not need to complete steps 1 and 2 because their dependents are already listed in the system as being a dependent who is eligible for enrollment in benefits. On the benefits screen in ESS, if you click on the “View Family Members and Dependents” link and you can see the name of the dependent you are trying to add, you may skip steps 1 and 2 and proceed to step three.
Note: If you are enrolling a dependent who meets eligibility requirements for the Family Continuation Rider (FC) or the Sponsored Dependent Rider (SD), you may enroll them by completing the Offline Enrollment/Change Form and the Affidavit of Dependency. Contact the MSU Human Resources Benefits Office for questions at 517-353-4434 or 1-800-353-4434.
