The New York State Health Insurance Plan (NYSHIP) rates for 2012 have been announced. Contract college employees have until Dec. 30 to change their health insurance and to enroll in Select Benefits -- either the Medical Reimbursement or Dependent Care Reimbursement Account.

The three considerations during this Option Transfer Period are:

• Health plans: During this period, you can change health plans; change from family to individual coverage; or cancel your health plan coverage. If you do nothing, you will automatically be enrolled for 2012 at the same coverage level you have now. To make changes, you need to complete the New York State Health Insurance Transaction (PS-404) Form, and mail, postmarked by Dec. 30, to Benefit Services, 130 Day Hall. Requests for changes after this date will not be accepted by the New York State Department of Civil Service.

The new health insurance rates will take effect in the semimonthly paycheck of Dec. 31 and the biweekly paycheck of Jan. 5, 2012.

A number of changes have been made to the NYSHIP. If you are enrolled in an HMO, you should consult the "Choices" brochure for specific changes pertaining to the HMOs that may be available in your area and the benefits provided by each.

If you are enrolled in the Empire Plan, note that:

Empire Plan Basic Medical Plan changes effective January 2012

Deductible -- 2011: $388 | 2012: $1,000

Coinsurance maximum -- 2011: $1,069 | 2012: $3,000

Empire Plan Non-Network Mental Health changes effective January 2012

Deductible -- 2011: $388 | 2012: $ Combined with medical, see above

Coinsurance maximum -- 2011: $1,069 | 2012: $ Combined with medical, see above

• Select Benefits: If you wish to sign up for a Select Benefits Medical Reimbursement and/or Dependent Care Reimbursement Account, you need to sign up every year. Enrolling allows you to use pretax dollars to pay medical or dependent care expenses.

To enroll, use the online enrollment system, eBenefits, at https://ee.ohr.cornell.edu. Click on the red eBenefits button to enter the site. Note: A new federal law goes into effect in 2013 that will limit the amount that you can put into the medical care reimbursement account to $2,500 per employee per year. For planning purposes, you may want to look over the next two or three years of expected medical expenses to best accommodate these new limits in 2013. Dependent care reimbursement accounts will retain the maximum cap of $5,000 under the new law.

• Child care: If you have been notified that you are a recipient of a Child Care Subsidy Grant for 2012, you must enroll in the Select Benefits Dependent Care Account to claim your grant money in 2012.

For additional information, see http://hr.cornell.edu/benefits/open_enrollment.html. Contact the Resource Center at Benefit Services at 607-255-3936 or email benefits@cornell.edu if you have questions.