Annual Enrollment is your opportunity to review and make changes to your benefits plan elections for the upcoming year. It’s also the time to confirm eligibility for any enrolled family members to continue their coverage through 2024.
In late October, an Annual Enrollment letter and the 2024 Benefit Plan Changes booklet were mailed to you to help you with the enrollment process. If you didn’t receive these materials, or if you prefer to review online, you’ll find everything you need at Costcobenefits.com.
♪ ♪ NARRATOR: Your health and the health of your family is a top priority at Costco. That’s why we are committed to providing you and your family with affordable benefits that help you receive quality care whenever needed.
Now that Annual Enrollment is here, we want to make sure you understand the benefits available to you and your family and why this time is so important. Here’s everything you need to know about Annual Enrollment.
Annual Enrollment is the time of year that benefit eligible employees have the opportunity to make changes to their benefit elections for the upcoming calendar year. You can add or drop coverage for yourself or family members, change your existing plans, and explore the benefits available to you and your family in the coming year.
By now, you should have received a kit in the mail that includes everything you need to enroll in Costco benefits. This includes things like the Benefit Plan Changes booklet and information about how to log on to Costcobenefits.com and start the Annual Enrollment process.
If you have not received a kit, that’s totally fine. All of the information in the kit can be found on Costcobenefits.com, where you can also sign up for text reminders about Annual Enrollment, so you don’t miss a step of the process.
We’ve done our best to make the Annual Enrollment process easy. Beginning in November, you can click on the Annual Enrollment banner on Costcobenefits.com to start the process. Once you have selected your benefits, they will go into effect on January 1st.
If you have dependents enrolled, you will need to complete the dependent verification process each year to continue their coverage, even if you didn’t make any changes. When you begin the online Annual Enrollment process, the platform will automatically remind you to verify your dependents.
In addition to core benefits like medical and dental coverage, Annual Enrollment is also a great time to ensure that your beneficiaries are up to date for your Life insurance, AD&D and Retirement plans.
Having your beneficiaries set up for these plans is critical so you can ensure that the right people receive this benefit in case it is needed. You can update your beneficiaries for life insurance and AD&D online while you go through the Annual Enrollment process.
To update beneficiaries for your retirement plans, just visit Rps.TRowePrice.com. As a reminder, if you want to participate in the HCRA or DCAP, you must enroll during Annual Enrollment, even if you were already enrolled for the current plan year.
All your other benefit elections will continue into the following year if you don’t make any changes. And that’s the basics. Annual Enrollment begins and ends in November, so be sure to enroll early.
If you have any questions or need more information, just visit Costcobenefits.com or call the enrollment center at 800-541-6205. Thanks for watching, and remember, we’re in this together.
The recipe for a healthy, happy 2024
Follow this checklist to ensure a successful Annual Enrollment. You must complete these steps by November 21, 2023.
Sign up for text reminders on the Enrollment Website at Costcobenefits.com.
Complete your Dependent Verification to continue coverage for your eligible family members. This must be completed every year, even if you don’t make any changes to your benefits.
Review your current benefits plan elections on the Enrollment Website. This includes confirming your life insurance beneficiaries.
Enroll or re-enroll in your Health Care Reimbursement Account (HCRA) and/or Dependent Care Assistance Plan (DCAP) for 2024.* Remember, even if you’re already enrolled, you must re-enroll to participate in 2024.
To complete your Annual Enrollment, use your ESS user name and password to log in at Costcobenefits.com.
Costco takes your health and well-being very seriously. That’s why your Costco benefits are continually evolving to provide affordable, quality care for you and your family. You’ll find exciting new benefits plan enhancements for 2024 to help with hypertension management, mental health support and vision coverage — all at no cost to you or your covered family members.
♪ ♪ NARRATOR: Your health and the health of your family is a top priority at Costco. That’s why we are committed to providing you and your family with affordable benefits that help you receive quality care whenever needed.
This coming year, we have made exciting enhancements to your Costco benefits, all at no cost for you and your dependents. Here is everything you need to know about this year’s new benefit enhancements.
Costco is offering three new benefits enhancements this year. These are vision benefits through EyeMed, Omada for Hypertension, and Supportiv, a fully anonymous mental health service. These enhanced offerings will be available to you and your family beginning January 1st.
In 2024, your vision and hearing aid benefits will be supplied through EyeMed. With this change to EyeMed, your vision benefit will be available to use throughout the year. You no longer have to use it all in a single purchase, but you do have to use it by December 31st.
This year, we have added a new hypertension program through Omada. This virtual program makes it easier to manage your blood pressure and reach your health goals. The program provides you with a personal health coach and clinical specialist who supply you with a personalized care plan, day-to-day support, and online peer groups and communities.
Plus, you can get a smart device like a blood pressure monitor, and if eligible, a smart scale to monitor your blood pressure and track your progress. If you are already using the Omada for Diabetes or Prevention programs, no action is needed on your part.
Your coach will be able to help you with hypertension as well. Eligible employees and dependents on the Costco medical plan can enroll in this program at no cost. Beginning in 2024, all Costco employees and dependents age 13 or older will have free access to Supportiv, an online peer-to-peer chat support group.
Supportiv is a fully anonymous peer-to-peer service that connects you to other people dealing with the same challenges you are. Conversations are among small groups and are facilitated by trained moderators.
It’s your place to de-stress and feel supported 24/7/365, no sign-ups, assessments, or appointment necessary. These changes are effective January 1st. If you have any questions or need more information, just visit Costcobenefits.com.
Thanks for watching, and remember, we’re in this together.
Explore your enhanced benefits
Help for hypertension
A new virtual blood pressure management program from Omada is coming in 2024. Omada for Hypertension provides one-on-one support and guidance from a personal health coach and clinical specialist, as well as the tools you need to track and monitor your progress. In addition, you’ll get a personalized care plan, weekly lessons and membership in an online support group.
Employees who are enrolled in a Costco medical plan and their covered dependents age 18 or older can participate in Omada for Hypertension at no cost, starting January 1. If you’re enrolled in Omada for Diabetes or Prevention, your health coach can also assist you with this service.
Peer support when you need it
Beginning January 1, all Costco employees, their household members and dependent children age 13 or older will have free access to Supportiv. This online peer-to-peer support program matches you with other people going through the same struggles you are, such as emotional challenges, parenting concerns, relationship issues and much more. The conversations are through live small group chat sessions that are professionally moderated and fully anonymous. It’s your place to de-stress and feel supported 24/7, 365 days a year – no appointment necessary.
Use your vision benefit throughout the year
Starting in 2024, your vision and hearing aid* benefits will be supplied through EyeMed. With this change, you no longer have to use your vision benefit in a single purchase — it’s available to use throughout the year. For example, if you buy a pair of glasses in January for $100, then lose them three months later, you’ll still have $75 to put toward a replacement pair. You must use your full benefit by December 31, 2024.
To learn more about these benefits plan enhancements, visit Costcobenefits.com.
*Hearing aid and eye exam benefits in Puerto Rico will continue to be supplied by Triple-S.
Taking care of yourself and your family can have a big impact on your budget. There are the everyday expenses, including medications and first aid supplies and larger ones, like day care and orthodontia. But here’s some good news: You can set aside pretax money to help pay for these items with reimbursement accounts, administered by PayFlex®. Even better news: You’ll also spend less on taxes.
Costco offers two reimbursement accounts. You can choose to enroll in one or both of them. The Health Care Reimbursement Account (HCRA) is for health care expenses, and the Dependent Care Assistance Plan (DCAP) is for dependent care expenses. You must enroll or re-enroll in these accounts every year, so make your elections for 2024 during Annual Enrollment, November 1–21.
♪ ♪ NARRATOR: Your health and the health of your family is a top priority at Costco. That’s why we are committed to providing you and your family with affordable benefits that help you receive quality care whenever needed.
One of those benefits are the reimbursement accounts available through PayFlex. Here’s everything you need to know about reimbursement accounts. There are two types of reimbursement accounts available to you as a Costco employee through PayFlex, the HCRA and the DCAP.
The HCRA or Health Care Reimbursement Account, allows you to set aside pre-tax dollars to reimburse yourself for eligible medical expenses, such as: Copays, Coinsurance and deductibles, Dental and vision expenses, Prescriptions, and over-the-counter items.
Annual Enrollment is the only time you can enroll in an HCRA account, and the HCRA must be re-elected every year if you want to continue your account. The DCAP, or Dependent Care Assistance Plan, allows you to set aside pre-tax dollars to reimburse yourself for qualified child and elder care expenses necessary for you and your spouse to work.
Funds can be used to pay for childcare for your dependents age 12 and younger, or for a spouse or dependent incapable of self-care. Examples of DCAP expenses are things like day care, before and after school care, nursery and pre-school, and in-home aids.
Please note that the DCAP cannot be used for dependent health care expenses. You need to enroll in the DCAP every year to continue your account, however, you can unenroll, change, or stop your enrollment whenever there is a change to your dependent care needs throughout the year.
Both types of accounts are funded by automatic pre-taxed payroll deductions from every paycheck. If you choose to enroll in one or both of the reimbursement accounts during Annual Enrollment, you will be prompted to choose how much money you would like to contribute for the plan year.
Funds will then be deducted pre-tax from your paychecks and deposited into these reimbursement accounts. While you can access the full amount of your annual HCRA election beginning January 1st, with the DCAP, you can only access the amount currently in your account at the time of your reimbursement request.
Each account has a funding limit set by the IRS. Before you enroll, take a look at your health care and dependent care expenses for the previous year, and think about needs in the coming year to get a sense of how much you would like to contribute.
Your needs may vary from year to year, so think carefully about the coming year’s needs before selecting your contribution level. It is important to remember that funds in both accounts are “use it or lose it” per IRS rules.
Only a small portion of your HCRA balance can roll over into the next plan year. This amount is determined annually by the IRS. Only participants who have an active HCRA as of December 31st are eligible for this rollover.
Any funds beyond the rollover amount are forfeited after the claim filing deadline. This is why it’s so important to consider your anticipated expenses for the coming year before selecting a contribution level for each account.
If you have a larger amount in your DCAP account than you expected as the end of the plan year approaches, you can take advantage of the grace period. The DCAP offers a grace period at the beginning of the following year where funds from the previous year can still be used.
Don’t forget to submit all your reimbursement claims by the filing deadline as any funds left over after this period will be forfeited. Be sure to calculate your contributions carefully. And that’s the basics.
If you have any questions or need more information, just visit Costcobenefits.com. Thanks for watching, and remember, we’re in this together.
The smart way to pay for health care and dependent care expenses
The Health Care Reimbursement Account (HCRA) and Dependent Care Assistance Plan (DCAP) allow you to pay for qualified expenses with money automatically deducted from your paycheck before taxes are calculated, lowering your taxable income. Here are answers to some common questions about these accounts.
What do they cover?
You can use your HCRA for eligible health care expenses that are not covered by your medical plan for you and your covered spouse and dependents. These expenses can include your plan deductible and copays, and many health care items and services, for example:
Your DCAP can be used to reimburse yourself for eligible dependent care expenses necessary for you and your spouse to work. Funds can be used to pay for childcare for your dependents age 12 and under, or to care for another family member incapable of self-care who lives in your home, such as a spouse, a child age 13 or older or a parent. Here are a few examples of eligible expenses:
Note: Your DCAP cannot be used to pay for dependent health care expenses.
How do they work?
When you enroll in an HCRA or DCAP, you choose an amount of money to put aside for the year based on what you think you’ll need to cover your expenses. This money is automatically taken out of each paycheck and deposited into your reimbursement account before payroll taxes are calculated.
You don’t pay taxes on this money. That means you save an amount equal to the taxes you would have paid on the money you set aside.
With an HCRA, you can pay for certain expenses directly from your account with the AutoPay function if you’re enrolled in a Costco medical plan. You can also use the HCRA debit card for eligible expenses, or pay upfront and submit a claim for reimbursement. See below for more details.
Autopay
HCRA
The HCRA will automatically reimburse certain medical, dental and vision plan expenses, including copays, coinsurance and deductibles.
debit card
HCRA
Use for eligible expenses at Costco Pharmacy or Online Pharmacy, Costco Optical Department and Costco Hearing Aid Center.
Claim form
HCRA & DCAP
Use for other eligible expenses, such as prescription drugs or over-the-counter drugs or items.
With a DCAP, you’ll need to pay upfront for an eligible item or service, then you’ll submit your receipt and a claim form through PayFlex to get reimbursed from your account.
Each reimbursement account has different rules and restrictions, as follows:
HCRA
Contribution amounts
You can contribute between $120 and $3,050 per year.
Enrollment
To enroll or re-enroll in an HCRA for 2024, you must make your election during Annual Enrollment.
Access
You can access the full amount of your annual HCRA election on January 1.
Rollover
Only a small portion of your HCRA balance can roll over to the next plan year. If you are enrolled in an HCRA for 2023, your rollover amount to use in 2024 is $610. This amount is determined each year by the IRS.
Use it or lose it
All expenses must occur during 2024. You forfeit any balance over the rollover limit that remains in your account after the claim filing deadline of April 30, 2025.
DCAP
Contribution amounts
You can contribute up to $5,000 per year ($2,500 if married and filing separately).
Enrollment
To enroll or re-enroll in a DCAP for 2024, you must make your election during Annual Enrollment. You can unenroll or change your DCAP election at any time during the year if there is a change in your dependent care needs.
Access
Access is limited to the amount currently in your account. You can get reimbursed up to the amount of your year-to-date contributions, not the entire annual amount you selected.
Grace period
You can use the funds you contributed for any services through March 15, 2024.
Use it or lose it
You can submit claims until April 30, 2025. Any funds remaining after the deadline will be forfeited.
How do I know how much to contribute?
Be very thoughtful when choosing how much money to contribute to your reimbursement accounts. Look at what you spent this year on health care and/or dependent care, and consider how that amount may change in 2024. Money left in reimbursement accounts (except for the allowed rollover amount for the HCRA and the grace period for the DCAP) will be forfeited after the claim filing deadlines.
How do I get started?
If you wish to participate in a reimbursement account for 2024, you must enroll during Annual Enrollment, which ends on November 21, 2023. Important note: If you enrolled in a reimbursement account for 2023, you will need to re-enroll in order to have a reimbursement account for 2024.
Visit the Enrollment Website located on Costcobenefits.com to make your reimbursement account elections. See the resources below for more information.
Worrying can bring your day to a halt. When you’re focused on past experiences or anxiety about the future, it can be hard to concentrate and think clearly. And when that happens, you can miss what’s going on in the here and now.
Grounding can help anyone, at any age. This mindfulness technique works to redirect your thoughts back to the present with the help of your five senses. Grounding is simple, powerful and only takes a few minutes. And it’s as easy as counting down 5, 4, 3, 2, 1.
Listen below to get started. Grounding is a great tool to have anytime, but especially as we enter the holiday hustle.
Hey, folks. I’m Alex, a licensed social worker and trauma coach.
You know, after a period of acute, or prolonged stress – which many might consider traumatic – it’s normal, perfectly normal, to experience flashbacks of our traumas or the stressors we’ve endured. It’s common to experience depression as a result of our thoughts about the past, or even anxiety due to racing thoughts about the future.
And sometimes we can even get stuck in a loop of constant worry and fear, which prevent us from being present in the moment. We can sometimes get stuck in our past or spend too much time worrying about the future that we miss what’s going on around us in the present moments.
Today, I’m going to take you through a grounding technique. Grounding techniques are practices that we can do for ourselves which help control symptoms, like worry, and bring one’s focus back to present moments.
So the grounding technique I’m going to talk to you about today is simply known as the 5,4,3,2,1 technique – and it’s very simple: If you catch yourself thinking too much about the past or future, you can bring your focus back to the present by engaging your senses.
And specifically, you want to look for 5 things that you can see,
4 things that you can touch or feel,
3 things you can hear,
2 things you can smell,
And 1 thing that you can taste.
So, if I were doing this exercise, it might be because I’m noticing myself struggling to concentrate – maybe I’m starting to worry about several upcoming deadlines that I have. I might try this exercise to reset my focus a little and increase my awareness to the tasks that are present in front of me.
First, I’d identify 5 things that I could see – I might look around my office for small objects or details. Or I might notice the way the light is coming through my window. I also keep a diffuser on my desk, so I might focus on the vapor coming from the diffuser.
Once it feels like you’ve started to really engage with your sense of sight, you want to move on to things that you can touch or feel. And this can be noticing the sensation of the clothing on your body, if there is any sun coming through your window that may be touching your skin, if you can feel that warmth, the feeling of the chair you may be sitting in. Or if you’ve got objects on your desk or near to you, you could pick these things up and notice the weight of them, or the texture, or any other physical aspects.
Next, we engage our hearing – you want to pay attention to the sounds that your mind may have tuned out. It could just be white noise, or maybe the subtle ticking of a clock, or if you could hear the wind outside, or maybe a car passing by your home.
Second to last is our sense of smell, and here’s where I have some examples on things that you can actually double down on. For example, the diffuser I mentioned earlier. These are things that I can reflect on in multiple ways, and just as I might notice their appearance, I can also take a moment notice their aroma.
Lastly is our sense of taste, and this too can be duplicated, such as a warm cup of coffee – this is something that you can hold and feel the warmth of it, you can smell the aroma of it, but you can also sip and taste it. Some other good ideas are simply keeping some chewing gum on you, or mints or candy.
Now I know this was a very simple exercise – but it’s meant to be. And it’s also a powerful exercise. With practice, you may not even need to do the full list. You might just engage with one sense or another and find that that was enough to get your mind refocused. Or if you’re just starting out, you might need to do the exercise a couple of times. Or maybe do the exercise in a different location or while going for a walk.
It’s easy to sometimes get lost in our thoughts and struggle to focus on our present moments. But if or when you find yourself lost in your thoughts, just remember you can always ground yourself by engaging your senses to bring yourself back to the present. And it’s as easy as counting 5,4,3,2,1.
As we enter the busy holiday season, it’s more important than ever to take care of yourself. That includes giving your body the nourishment it needs when it needs it. Here are some guidelines that might help:
Stick to your regular meal schedule. Even when things are hectic, eating at your usual times can help you avoid overeating later.
Make sleep a priority. Good sleep can boost your mood and help you make healthier food choices.
Don’t skip the food traditions you love. Savor your favorites in moderation. Saying “no” can backfire and make it harder to stick to your goals.
This slow cooker chicken taco soup recipe can help you meet all of the guidelines listed above. With only five minutes of prep time, it can fit into even the most overscheduled days. There’s no chopping or browning — just stir everything together in the cooker (no need to thaw the veggies) and let it go. The soup has just the right amount of spice and warmth for colder nights. And it’s a light enough meal to send you off to bed feeling satisfied, but not stuffed.
In a slow cooker, combine the corn, pepper strips, onions, chili powder, cumin, garlic powder, salt, salsa, and beans. Stir in 2 cups water, and place the chicken thighs in the mixture.
Step 2
Cover and cook on low until the chicken is very tender, 6 to 7 hours.
Step 3
Remove the chicken from the slow cooker. Shred the meat with 2 forks and then stir it back into the soup.
Step 4
Ladle the soup into bowls. Top with the cheese and cilantro, if desired.
Nutrition
Serving size: 1 ⅔ cups | Calories: 309 | Total fat: 8 g | Saturated fat: 2 g | Sodium: 897 mg | Total carbohydrates: 29 g | Fiber: 7 g | Protein: 31 g
Give yourself a gift this year! Costco employees can join WeightWatchers for as low as $14 per month, and spouses/domestic partners and dependents can join for as low as $19.50 per month. Participants must be age 18 or older to join. Sign up at WW.com/Costco or call 866-204-2885.
