Dear Members,
The MTA/Board of Higher Education Health & Welfare Fund (The Trust or MTA Fund) was established in 1984 under collective bargaining agreements between what was then called the Board of Regents of Higher Education and MTA affiliates at the University of Massachusetts, the State Universities, and the Community Colleges. The purpose of the Fund is to provide supplemental benefits, i.e. benefits other than the health, disability, and life insurance programs offered under the aegis of the Commonwealth’s Group Insurance Commission. The Fund operates under a formal Trust Agreement and is governed by a 12- member Board of Trustees, six of whom are Labor Trustees representing the various MTA affiliates and six of whom are Management Trustees.
The Fund is a tax-exempt Taft-Hartley organization that is not subject to ERISA but operates in a manner generally consistent with ERISA. Although it provides benefits to members of the Massachusetts public higher education system, the Trust is not subject to the regulations of the Commonwealth with respect to such matters as bidding procedures and open meeting requirements. The MTA/BHE Fund is financed entirely by employer contributions required under the terms of applicable collective bargaining agreements for full-time-equivalent members. Members are required to make no contribution to the funding of the Trust.
The Trust employs no staff but relies instead on professional consultants to carry out its day-to-day responsibilities. These include a benefit consultant (KD Consulting Group), legal counsel (McDermott Will and Emery LLP.), auditor (Lester Halpern and Company P.C.), and a Third-Party Administrator (KD/HPI).
The Fund’s focus is entirely on dental insurance benefits that are offered to eligible members at 29 campuses, as well as their spouses and dependents. The current dental provider, MetLife, has been with the Fund for 18 years. Its contract is subject to an annual renewal based on negotiations between the Fund and the company.
The fund does not have a formal open enrollment period. New subscribers become eligible for benefits as described below.
Commencing March 1, 2025:
- To shorten the dental plan waiting period for new hires and to conform to recent GIC changes, such that employees hired on the first of the month are covered immediately, otherwise, coverage starts on the first day of the following month.
- To truncate the dental plan waiting period for all existing employees/enrollees and allow all those currently in the waiting period to become eligible effective March 1, 2025.
To the extent there is an open enrollment period, it is merely a period during which subscribers can change from single to family coverage or vice versa. At any time that a subscriber has a qualifying event, such as a marriage, birth or adoption, or a dependent loses their dental coverage, the subscriber may notify their HR office of their need to change their coverage from single to family or vice versa. They have thirty days to submit their request which becomes effective on the first of the month following receipt of the paperwork. Whenever a staff member transfers between units, or between a non-unit and a unit position, if they have previously been covered by any dental plan, their will be no waiting period, and benefits become seamless with the ending of their prior dental coverage.
The dental plan offered by MetLife is considered an open plan. Subscribers are free to use the dentist of their choice. If a member uses a dentist who participates in the MetLife network, the fees for each procedure are capped and the out-of-pocket costs for members is generally less than when a non-Network dentist is used.
Subscribers are required to make no contribution to the Fund. Each new employee is provided the Dental Plan marketing materials and a dependent enrollment form by their HR office, which they have thirty days to complete and return. As of 2014, the enrollment process for all eligible unit members has been conducted automatically via the submission of electronic files to KD/HPI. Once their HR administrator has their dependent form, the administrator can log onto the KD/HPI portal or enrollment system to add the family members to the policy established for the subscriber by the monthly electronic file.
We hope this information is helpful and clarifies the Fund’s operations and how the Board of Trustees together endeavors to protect and maximize benefits for our collective members.