Retirement Information for Retirees Under 65 Years of Age

Medical Insurance

HealthSelect of Texas for Retirees will be your primary health insurance. This plan is administered by BlueCross BlueShield of Texas.

See the Summary of Benefits for HealthSelect of Texas for Retirees to review highlights of the plan. See the Plan Guide for HealthSelect of Texas for Retirees to review details on coverage.

Prescription Drug Coverage

Prescription coverage after retirement will be provided through HealthSelect of Texas Prescription Drug Program. This plan is administered by OptumRX.

You Will Receive Two ID Cards in the Mail

Medical: When you receive this card, call BlueCross BlueShield TX to name a Primary Care Provider (PCP)

Prescriptions: This card will come from Optum Rx. No need to call them when it arrives.

Is Retirement an Opportunity to Make Election Changes?

Yes. Once ERS receives your Retiree Insurance Enrollment Form, they will send you a welcome packet. That packet will include a summary of your current elections, and instructions on how to make election changes as you transition from active employee to retired employee. You will only have 30 days from your retirement date to make those election changes, so be sure to watch for that welcome packet to arrive. If you do not wish to make changes, you do not have to make changes.

Under 65

Important Information About Paying Insurance Premiums to ERS

ERS will not send payment reminders or payment books. ERS expects the retiree to remember to make the payments, and will cancel coverage if payment is not received. Premiums are due to ERS by the 5^th of each month. Retirees pay premiums in advance (as opposed to in arrears while an active employee). The first month of retirement will possibly feel as if you are duplicating payment because your final paycheck from TWU will include premiums for the final month as an active employee, and ERS will expect payment in advance for the first retiree premium by the 5^th of that month. For example: If you retired December 31^st, your final paycheck will have premium deductions for December coverage, and ERS will expect retiree premiums to arrive by January 5^th.

Options for payment of insurance premiums to ERS are:

Mailing a check to ERS each month
Authorizing ERS to auto-draft premiums from your bank account each month
If you are retiring through TRS (not ORP) you can authorize that your premiums be deducted from your monthly TRS annuity by requesting it in writing when you send your first premium payment to ERS.

All insurance premiums after retirement are deducted post-tax.

Premiums are to be mailed to: ERS P.O. Box 13207 Austin, TX 78711-3207

Payout of accrued Sick Leave upon Retirement

There is no payout of Sick Leave accruals upon retirement from TWU. If you wish, you may choose to donate a portion or all of your unused accrued Sick Leave to Sick Leave Pool, Family Leave Pool, or a Sick Leave Direct Donation.

At What Point In The Year Do I Have Credit For a Full Year of Service?

If you complete the fall semester and are paid for the full month of December, you will gain service credit for the full fiscal year if this is the year in which you retire. You must not have any portion of December unpaid to gain the full fiscal year of service credit. Faculty will remain on the payroll through January 15^th in or to receive the full pay out of their contract for the fall semester.

Parking On Campus After Retirement

Once you are completely retired, you can contact the TWU Parking Office at 940-898-2925 for a parking permit that allows you to park in Silver and Maroon lots. These permits are currently at no charge to the retiree.

Wellness In Retirement

There are multiple wellness and fitness programs available through HealthSelect of Texas for Retirees.

Retiring through ORP

If you are an ORP Retiree, contact your vendor representative(s) if you wish to receive distributions from your ORP account. NOTE: You must leave some funds in your ORP account in order to continue to receive retiree insurance benefits.

Retiring through TRS

If you are a TRS Retiree, you must complete the TRS 18 form (in your packet from TRS or on the TRS webpage) no more than 3 months prior to retirement for an estimate of benefits.

Voluntary Retirement Programs

If you have personal savings through Texa$aver or TDA 403b, contact your vendor representative directly.

Plan to Attend the Annual Retirement Ceremony Honoring the Previous Year’s Retirees

If you retire after January 31^st, please be sure to provide the Benefits Team in the Office of Human Resources with an official notice, or copy of your resignation letter. This will guarantee your name is included in the upcoming annual ceremony.

TWU Exit Packet

We encourage all retirees to complete the TWU Exit Packet. This packet includes the form used to donate remaining sick leave to the Sick Leave Pool if you wish to do so.

Contacts

TWU Benefits: 940-898-3552
Texa$aver 457 Plan: 800-634-5091
TRS: 800-223-8778
Social Security : 800-772-1213
ERS: 877-275-4377
ORP/TDA Authorized Provider List

Page last updated 10:28 AM, October 17, 2022