ARCHIVED CD 2010-006

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• Information Notice to Employees

| April 12, 2010 (revised July 8, 2011)

SUBJECT: Launch of the Public Service Health Care Plan (PSHCP) Self-Service Web Application, Changes to PSHCP Input Screens in the On-Line Pay System, and Changes to the Format and Issuance of PSHCP Certificate Numbers. Effective May 3, 2010.

Note: The new PSHCP Web Application is available only to those departments and agencies that have implemented the Compensation Web Applications (CWA).

1. PURPOSE

1.1  This directive serves to advise compensation advisors with access to the CWA that use of the new PSHCP Web Application is mandatory and to explain how this new tool works.

1.2 Further, this directive serves to inform compensation advisors who do not have access to the CWA of changes to the PSHCP input screens on the On-Line Pay System.

1.3 Last, this directive informs all compensation advisors about changes to the format and issuance of PSHCP certificate numbers.

2. BACKGROUND

2.1 Treasury Board Secretariat (TBS) requested that the Compensation Sector help improve the communication of PSHCP coverage information between employees, compensation advisors and the Plan Administrator. In response, the Sector developed a self-service PSHCP Web Application for compensation advisors and employees. This tool contains the same information fields as the current PSHCP paper application form, but includes automated features that reduce the need for manual data entry.

TBS identified duplicate PSHCP certificate numbers as one of the most commonly reported data anomalies. To address this problem, the Compensation Sector replaced the manual certificate block management process with a new program that will automatically issue certificate numbers through the new PSHCP Web Application and the On-Line Pay System.

In addition to concerns about data anomalies, TBS advised the Compensation Sector of changes to the type and frequency of PSHCP member data reporting requirements. These changes involve providing a weekly coverage file instead of the current monthly remittance file. In response, the Sector developed a file to collect and send the following data: coverage level, member name and date of birth, coverage effective date and certificate number. Although the new coverage file is ready, at the request of TBS , it will only be launched in April 2011.

The solutions introduced by the Compensation Sector will contribute to the overall reduction of data anomalies, meet future coverage file data requirements, and provide compensation advisors with a tool to automate aspects of the PSHCP administration process.

3. POLICY

3.1 The Public Service Health Care Plan Directive is available on the National Joint Council Web site.

4. PROCEDURES/INSTRUCTIONS

4.1. New Procedures/Instructions for Departments with the CWA

4.1.1  The PSHCP Web Application applies the same access rights currently assigned to compensation advisors in the Regional Pay System (RPS). This means compensation advisors will be able to access and update the same employee paylists (PL) or equivalent that they currently access in the RPS.

4.1.2. Employees can use the PSHCP Web Application to submit an electronic request to start, amend, stop or reinstate their PSHCP coverage. Over 80% of the PSHCP business rules are pre-programmed into the new PSHCP Web Application and the fields in the electronic form are prefilled with available personal tombstone data. The business rules determine which actions an employee is eligible to complete and will automatically calculate the monthly deduction amount, deduction start date and coverage start date, based on the coverage options selected by the employee. The automated system edits and calculations built into the electronic form will simplify the verification process for compensation advisors.

4.1.3  Employees who chose not to use the CWA will continue to submit paper application forms. Compensation advisors will enter these requests into the CWA on behalf of their employees. The automation and system edits built into the PSHCP Web Application will reduce the time that is currently required to calculate coverage data and verify application forms.

4.1.4   PSHCP application forms submitted electronically are sent through the CWA to a compensation advisor for verification (select "Verify" from the left-side menu). If necessary, compensation advisors can override the information fields on the electronic PSHCP application form rather than rejecting the application.

4.1.5  It is recommended that compensation advisors login to the PSHCP Web Application on a regular basis to action PSHCP requests in a timely manner. A message will appear on the Welcome Page of the PSHCP Web Application to alert compensation advisors that there are applications awaiting verification.

4.1.6  Verified and accepted application forms will automatically create a PSHCP deduction transaction to be extracted for processing by the RPS in the appropriate pay processing schedule. Once extracted, the monthly deduction amount will be added to the employee's pay account.

4.1.7  Compensation advisors can verify if transactions were successfully entered in the RPS by viewing the transaction database and the error analysis report. They can also use the PSHCP Web Application to view the coverage status of the member.

4.1.8  Rejected PSHCP forms will appear in the "Correct" section in the left-side menu of the PSHCP Web Application. If the transaction was rejected in RPS , the reason code will be identified. If the rejected application cannot be corrected, it will remain in the "Correct" section. All corrected applications are re-submitted to a compensation advisor for verification.

4.2. Notable Information for Departments with the CWA

4.2.1  Employees should not use the PSHCP Web Application to stop their coverage when going on leave without pay (LWOP). Employees who select the "Stop" action will receive a message indicating they should not use this tool for LWOP and instead contact their compensation advisor. This course of action was taken due to the complexities and additional information requirements associated with LWOP.

4.2.2  A warning message will appear in the PSHCP Web Application should it determine that an employee is on LWOP dual employment. The message serves as a reminder to follow-up with the employees and/or their home department to determine if they currently are a PSHCP member.

4.2.3  A warning message will be produced if the following two conditions are entered in the same PSHCP application for coverage: Amending the persons to be covered field while also applying for coverage outside of Canada, and activating Employer-Paid Coverage while also applying for coverage outside of Canada.

4.2.4  Supplementary and Comprehensive Coverage can be future dated for up to one year. An eligible member or the compensation advisor can future date a request for coverage by entering the date he is departing from or returning to Canada. Compensation advisors will need to remember to modify the request should the employee's situation change.

4.2.5. Imposed Eligibility Date of July 1, 1960

All employees who were eligible to become a member of PSHCP , but did not exercise this option on/before before May 2, 2010, will have an imposed eligibility date of July 1, 1960. Compensation advisors who are entering a paper PSHCP application form on behalf of eligible members with the imposed eligibility date of July 1, 1960, will receive a warning message to advise them that the date was imposed, verify and correct this date if necessary before completing their application.

If an employee was eligible to become a member of the PSHCP , but did not exercise this option on or before May 2, 2010, and attempts to go into the application to start coverage, the PSHCP Web Application will display a message indicating that the applicant needs to complete a paper application form and submit it, because the system could not identify an eligibility date.

4.2.6  Help text is available throughout the application by placing their cursor over the field number.

4.2.7  Compensation advisors can track the status of an electronically submitted PSHCP application form by selecting the "Create Application" link and then entering the employee's Personal Record Identifier (PRI).

4.2.8  Process for Transfer-in (TIN) and Transfer-out (TOU) / Taken-on-Strength (TOS) and Struck-off-Strength (SOS):

• Transfer within the same pay office (PO): Nothing is required. RPS will automatically generate a Stop (PAC16S) transaction to close the PO /dept/ PL and also generate a Commence (PAC16C) transaction to start coverage with the new PO /Dept/ PL. The generated PAC16C transaction will be processed in RPS in the update run following the transfers.
• Transfer between different PO s: When the transaction is PAC04 (TIN) and the PO value is different than the PO on the PAC03 (TOU), a warning message WN3 is displayed to the PO with the transfer-in: "WN3 - PO Change. Ensure PSHCP coverage continues if req'd". A PAC16S transaction will be automatically generated to report the close of the PO /Dept/ PL and to report a coverage end date. When the message is received, the compensation advisor should access the PSHCP Web Application, and the "Reinstate" screen will be displayed for the employee. The compensation advisor would need to complete the "Reinstate" action to start the member's PSHCP coverage, if the employee is still eligible.
• TOS and SOS : When an employee's account is SOS , a PAC16S transaction will be automatically generated to report the stop PSHCP with an "effective from date" of 1st of the month following the SOS month. A coverage "end date" will be added to the PAC16S transaction to report the stop coverage for the PO /Dept/ PL / PRI. Once the employee is TOS , the compensation advisor should access the PSHCP Web Application, and the "Reinstate" screen will be displayed for the employee (the compensation advisor should ensure that the employee's account was SOS before accessing the PSHCP Web Application). The compensation advisor would need to complete the "Reinstate" action to start the member's PSHCP coverage, if the employee is still eligible.

4.2.9  Applicants who were previously covered under the PSHCP as a member (this includes pensioners and former members of the RCMP or Canadian Forces), a spouse or a dependant:

•  If the PSHCP Web Application has access to a member's past coverage information, a "Reinstate" action will be displayed for eligible applicants or the compensation advisor to complete.
•  If the PSHCP Web Application does not have access to a member's past coverage information, a "Start" action will be displayed in the application for eligible applicants or the compensation advisor to complete. These applicants will simply need to enter their previous coverage information in the field identified as "Previously covered under this plan" (as per the help text provided in this field), as required when completing the paper form.

4.3. New Procedures/Instructions for Non- CWA Users: PSHCP Input Changes in the On-Line Pay System

4.3.1. PAC 16C, Deduction Commence (DEC):

• Compensation advisors are required to enter a coverage start date on all PSHCP commence transactions;
• When a change to the original effective from date is entered effective prior to April 2010, two transactions are required. Compensation advisors are required to enter the coverage start date on both transactions (same date) which would be the month following the effective date on the original commence transaction; and
• If the employee was previously a PSHCP member, the compensation advisor will need to enter the employee's former PSHCP certificate number otherwise the RPS will assign a new number.

4.3.2.   PAC 16A, Deduction Amend (DEA):

• Compensation advisors are required to enter a coverage start date on all PSHCP amend transactions;
• When a change of coverage is entered effective prior to April 2010, two transactions are required. Compensation advisors are required to enter the coverage start date on both transactions (same date) which would be the month following the effective date of the change in coverage; and
• The PSHCP certificate number of an employee will be imposed by the RPS.

4.3.3 PAC 16S, Deduction Stop (DES):

• Compensation advisors are required to enter a coverage end date on all PSHCP stop transactions; and
• The PSHCP certificate number of an employee will be imposed by the RPS.

4.3.4 PAC 16R, Deduction Refund (DER):

• Compensation advisors are required to enter the correct coverage start date on a PSHCP PAC 16R transaction when the refund is to amend the effective from date on the original commence transaction to now be a later date; and
• The PSHCP certificate number of an employee will be imposed by the RPS.

4.3.5   PAC 02S, Struck off Strength (SOS):

• The RPS will generate a PAC 16S PSHCP transaction to stop the PSHCP deduction in order to report a coverage end date on the PSHCP coverage file. The RPS will derive the coverage end date from the effective from date for the SOS transaction. For example, if the SOS date = Nov/XX, the coverage end date would be 31/12/XX. If there was no deduction taken for the month of SOS , this date may not always be correct. Therefore, the compensation advisor should verify the coverage end date.

4.3.6.   PAC 03S, Transfer Out (TOU):

• The RPS will generate a PAC 16S PSHCP transaction to stop the PSHCP deduction in order to report a coverage end date on the PSHCP coverage file. The RPS will derive the coverage end date from the effective from date for the TOU transaction. For example, if the TOU date = Nov/XX, the coverage end date would be 31/12/XX. If there was no deduction taken for the month of TOU , this date may not always be correct. Therefore, the compensation advisor should verify the coverage end date; and
• TOU transactions will also generate a PAC 16C, DEC Deduction Commence transaction, to start the PSHCP coverage in the new department only if there are no changes to the PO between the PAC 03 and PAC 04. The coverage start date will be imposed on the generated transaction.

4.3.7.   PAC 04C, Transfer In (TIN):

• If the transfer is between PO s, the RPS will produce a warning message WN3 to advise the compensation advisor that the PO has changed and to continue the employee's PSHCP coverage, if applicable. When there is no change to the PSHCP coverage, the coverage start date will be the month following the effective from date on the generated PAC 16C transaction (in the TOU department).

4.3.8.  On-Line Pay Screen Changes - New Fields Added:

• Deduction Commence (DEC): "Coverage Start Date";
• Deduction Amend (DEA): "Coverage Start Date" and "To Request a New Certificate No for PSHCP , Enter 'X'";
• Deduction Stop (DES): "Coverage End Date";
• Deduction Refund (DER): "Coverage Start Date";
• and Authorization (ATH): "Coverage Start Date" and "Coverage End Date".

4.4. Information About PSHCP Certificate Numbers

4.4.1  Departments will no longer maintain individual blocks of PSHCP certificate numbers. The PSHCP Web Application and the On-Line Pay System will now automatically issue new PSHCP certificate numbers.

4.4.1.1 It is important that the compensation advisor confirm with the employee if he was previously covered under the PSHCP either as a dependant or a member before accepting the application. If he discovers that the employee was a PSHCP member and it is not reflected in the application, the compensation advisor must reject the request and advise the employee to resubmit their application using the former certificate number.

If the employee was struck off strength (SOS) on or prior to May 2, 2010, then he must do a "start", using his former certificate number.

If the employee was SOS after May 2, 2010, then he must do a "reinstate" using his former certificate number.

If the employee was a member as a dependant and wishes to be a member in his own right, he must do a "start", but he should also complete the section "Previously covered under this Plan" and provide the certificate number under which he was previously covered.

4.4.1.2  If the employee confirms that he was a member of the PSHCP , but has forgotten his certificate number, the compensation advisor must advise him to call the Sun Life Assurance Company of Canada (the Insurer) at the following toll free number to obtain his former certificate number: 1-888-757-7427.

4.4.1.3  It will be the responsibility of the Insurer to match the former certificate number with the new certificate number.

| If you need to contact the PSHCP Coverage Unit at Sun Life Assurance Company of Canada, they can be reach at the following telephone number: 613-560-7512.

NOTE: Please be advised that the above number is for the sole use of the compensation advisors and are not to be given to employees.

4.4.2  Compensation advisors will no longer be able to amend PSHCP certificate numbers. Instead, compensation advisors can use the PSHCP Web Application and the On-Line Pay System to generate new certificate numbers upon request. However, it is recommended that this feature only be used in extreme cases.

4.4.3  In the On-Line Pay System, the compensation advisor can request a new PSHCP certificate number for a member. Enter an "X" in the "To Request a New Certificate No for PSHCP " field on the Deduction Amend (DEA) screen.

4.4.4   PSHCP certificate numbers for deduction codes 5D7, 5D8, 703, 708, 713, 854, 855, 856, 857, and 872 have been modified to seven numeric digits instead of ten. The first three positions have been removed.

5. INQUIRIES

5.1  All questions concerning the functionality of this new application are considered technical and must therefore be directed to the attention of the contact provided in the Web Application. All other inquiries on the information contained in this document should be addressed to your Public Works and Government Services Canada (PWGSC) Compensation Services Office.

Original Signed by
B. Fortin

Brigitte Fortin
Director General
Compensation Sector
Accounting, Banking and Compensation

Reference(s): CJA 9024-100-40