[Faculty] Fwd: IMPORTANT: Information Regarding Hiring/Benefits for Graduate Students through SDSURF Funds

[Temesgen Garoma]

FYI…

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Begin forwarded message:

> From: "Tracy Love, Ph.D." <tlove at sdsu.edu>
> Date: August 5, 2022 at 3:58:27 PM PDT
> To: GRA Doctoral Program Advisors <GRA.DocAdvisor at sdsu.edu>, Diane Smith <dksmith at sdsu.edu>, Rachael Record <rrecord at sdsu.edu>, Gustaaf Jacobs <gjacobs at sdsu.edu>, Douglas Stow <stow at sdsu.edu>, "Guadalupe (Suchi) Ayala" <ayala at sdsu.edu>
> Cc: "Goetz, Michele" <mgoetz at sdsu.edu>, Jennifer Sneed <jsneed at sdsu.edu>, Deb Naylon <dnaylon at sdsu.edu>, Renee Lechner <rlechner at sdsu.edu>, Hala Madanat <hmadanat at sdsu.edu>, Libby Skiles <eskiles at sdsu.edu>, Salvador Ochoa <shochoa at sdsu.edu>, Ana Molina-Rodriguez <amolinarodriguez at sdsu.edu>
> Subject: IMPORTANT: Information Regarding Hiring/Benefits for Graduate Students through SDSURF Funds
> Reply-To: GRA.DocAdvisor+managers at sdsu.edu
> 
> 
> Dear all,
> 
> Please please please communicate the information below to any and all faculty who are supporting graduate students through SDSURF funds. The suspension of the GSHIP requirement impacted the SDSURF's ability to provide reimbursements for health insurance coverage. We are working diligently to provide options for our students. 
> 
> We are working on communication to send early next week to those students who qualify for the SDSU scholarship (as outlined in Provost Ochoa and VP Wood's most recent email) or who can be covered through SDSURF insurance. This way students will know what their next steps are.
> 
> Thank you for sharing this important information.
> 
> Have a great weekend,
> Tracy
> 
> 
> from:	Michele Goetz <mgoetz at sdsu.edu>
> to:	Tracy Love <tlove at sdsu.edu>
> cc:	Hala Madanat <hmadanat at sdsu.edu>,
> Crystal Little <little at sdsu.edu>,
> Ana Molina-Rodriguez <amolinarodriguez at sdsu.edu>,
> Mkremicki at sdsu.edu,
> Deb Naylon <dnaylon at sdsu.edu>
> date:	Aug 5, 2022, 3:41 PM
> subject:	IMPORTANT: Information Regarding Hiring/Benefits for Graduate Students through SDSURF Funds
> Tracy,
> 
> 
> 
> Thank you for working with us to ensure we can appropriately classify and provide benefits to the JDP students employed through the research foundation. 
> 
> As we discussed this morning, we received clarification from our insurance broker that under the Affordable Care Act, employers are prohibited from paying for or subsidizing individual market coverage even on a post-tax basis. The law considers this an improper employer payment plan that could result in significant penalties to employers. Therefore, SDSURF is not able to reimburse employees or make payments directly to Anthem, Covered California, or other insurance providers for alternative health plans procured outside our current SDSURF plan offerings. In order for PIs to cover benefits for their JDP students, those students must be set up in our JDP Scholar Exempt classification. Recall that benefit offerings are not available to master’s students through the research foundation.
> 
> Note - This does not impact our ability to reimburse allowable health care costs for students on training grants or fellowships, where health insurance is included in the trainee allowance. 
> 
> We need your assistance in notifying JDP Program Directors, students, and PI sponsors of the following actions needed if they wish to provide benefits to their JDP students:
> 
> New or continuing JDP students (international or domestic) who are not yet on our payroll or are in process of being appointed as new employees: PIs must appoint these students to our JDP Scholar Exempt classification and the students must select the SDSURF insurance provided. If students waive the SDSURF provided medical, dental and/or vision coverage, we will not be able to reimburse them for any coverage obtained elsewhere, including the SDSU-negotiated Anthem international insurance plan. PIs should contact their grant specialist for assistance in correctly classifying all new appointments for Fall 2022.
>  
> Existing JDP students currently employed on grants or other funds through SDSURF:
> 
> International or domestic JDP students already employed in the JDP Scholar classification and covered under SDSURF insurance – No action required.
> Domestic JDP students already appointed in the JDP Scholar classification who waived SDSURF insurance last year to take Anthem coverage will have a lapse in coverage as of 08/15/22. These students must take action before 08/31/22 to sign up for SDSURF insurance with coverage starting 9/1/22 at the earliest. Students should contact J’Anna Howland for assistance at jhowland at sdsu.edu.
> International JDP students already employed in the JDP Scholar classification who waived SDSURF insurance to take Anthem International Student coverage will no longer be eligible for reimbursement of that coverage.  These students will be eligible to sign up for SDSURF insurance and will receive information on how to sign up for SDSURF insurance during open enrollment (October 2022).  These students must take action when contacted to resume coverage on SDSURF insurance effective 1/1/2023. As I understand it, Provost Ochoa and VP Wood’s recent message outlined that SDSU is committed to providing these students coverage for the fall 2022 semester through an allowance of up to $400/month for a plan comparable to Anthem. If students take action during open enrollment, they will roll to the SDSURF provided benefit package effective 1/1/2023.
> 
> International or domestic JDP students who were hired as temporary hourly employees (not as a JDP Scholar) through SDSURF, are not eligible for health insurance benefits and will not be eligible to be reimbursed for benefits obtained elsewhere. Those PIs who have previously reimbursed their students and want to continue to cover benefits need to contact their grant specialists to reappoint their JDP students to the JDP Scholar classification by 8/31/22 to enable students to obtain SDSURF coverage effective 9/1/22.
> Master’s students who are hired as temporary hourly employees through SDSURF are not eligible for health insurance benefits and will not be eligible to be reimbursed for benefits obtained elsewhere.  If they were promised coverage through GSHIP (Anthem), PIs should include their student information on the spreadsheet sent on July 30 (Subject line: URGENT: information needed regarding Anthem Insurance commitment through SDSU Research Foundation funds).
> 
> 
> We will work with the division of research and innovation and the PIs if these changes have any financial impacts on the grants but are focusing our efforts right now to ensure that no student’s needs are unmet during this transition.  Thanks for your help.
> 
>  
> 
>  
> 
> Michèle G. Goetz
> 
> Pronouns: she/her/hers
> 
> Associate Vice President and CEO
> 
> SDSU Research Foundation
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> mgoetz at sdsu.edu
> 
> O: 619-594-1862
> 
> C: 619-840-3103
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> ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ 
> Tracy Love, Ph.D. | tlove at sdsu.edu
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> Professor, School of Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences
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