Health & Benefit Plans

Santa Monica Community College District - Open Enrollment

 

2026 Benefits Open Enrollment
September 15 - October 10, 2025

The 2026 Open Enrollment begins Monday, September 15, 2025, for the following employee groups:

  • Academic Administrators
  • Board of Trustees
  • Classified Employees
  • Classified Managers
  • Confidential Employees
  • Full-time Faculty
  • Personnel Commissioners
  • Police Officers
  • Project Managers

During Open Enrollment, you may enroll, change, add or remove eligible dependents from your health benefits for the 2026 plan year. All changes made during Open Enrollment will be effective January 1, 2026. The deadline to make changes to your health benefits is Friday, October 10, 2025, by 5 p.m.

If you do not wish to make changes to your current health benefits (medical, dental, and/or vision), there is NO ACTION to complete. Your current plan elections will remain intact for the 2026 Plan Year.

2026 Benefit Plans Information

CalPERS Medical Plans

CalPERS Health Plans Changes for the 2026 Plan Year.

  • There is NO Employee Cost for ALL CalPERS MEDICAL Plans for 2026. The premiums for all medical plans the District offers through CalPERS are 100% District paid. (Except for part-time employees, who will contribute according to their full-time equivalency for any health plan)
  • There are NO CHANGES to co-pays, co-insurance or deductibles for all CalPERS Medical Plans in 2026.
  • New Pharmacy Benefit Manager  -  Effective January 1, 2026, CVS Caremark will replace OptumRx as the pharmacy benefit manager for the following CalPERS health plans:
    • ANTHEM BLUE CROSS TRADITIONAL HMO
    • ANTHEM BLUE CROSS SELECT HMO
    • HEALTH NET SALUD Y MAS HMO
    • UNITEDHEALTHCARE ALLIANCE HMO
    • UNITEDHEALTHCARE  HARMONY HMO
    • PERS GOLD PPO
     
    • PERS PLATINUM PPO
     
    • There will be NO Change to the pharmacy benefit manager for Blue Shield Access+ HMO, Blue Shield Trio HMO, and Kaiser HMO plans.
    • During open enrollment, CVS Caremark representatives will be available to assist employees and provide more information about your prescription drug benefits. Employees can also verify the status of their specific medications on the CVS Caremark formulary list.

Plan Resources

Plan Websites

Note: Health premium contributions are deducted on a pre-tax basis. This means your premium contributions are deducted from your paycheck prior to federal and state tax withholdings, thus reducing your taxable income. Employees may waive the pre-tax option by completing the Pre-Tax Health Premium Waiver Form.

Delta Dental Plans

  • There are NO CHANGES to Delta Dental PPO and HMO Plans for the 2026 Plan Year.

Delta Care USA HMO:

Delta Care USA HMO provides all reasonable and customary dental care if care is rendered by a selected Delta Care dentist. The participant must select a dentist/dental network upon enrollment. There is no cost for covered service except for co-payment on certain procedures.

Delta Dental PPO:

Delta Dental PPO has an annual maximum towards dental service of $2,000. Basic services, diagnostic & preventative care, and crowns & cast restorations are covered at 100% coverage level. Participants enrolled in the plan are able to see in-network and out-of-network dental providers.

Plan Resources

Plan Website

VSP Vision Plan

  • The contact lens allowance is increasing from $150 to $180 for the Vision Service Plan (VSP) for the 2026 Plan Year.

VSP provides for one Wellvision eye examination, one prescription eyeglass frame (up to $180 allowance) or contact lenses (up to $180 allowance) per 12-month period. When visiting a VSP provider, participants pay a $10 co-payment. If participants receive services from a non-VSP provider, it is a lesser benefit. The plan offers extra discounts and savings on additional glasses and sunglasses, contact lens, exams (fitting and evaluation) and laser vision correction.

Plan Resources

Plan Website

Cash-in-Lieu Program

Classified Employees, Full-Time Faculty, & Police Officers Only

Under the contract provisions for the District-CSEA, District-SMCFA, and District-SMCPOA, Classified Employees, Full-time Faculty, and Police Officers who have non-District medical coverage may opt-out of the District's medical plans and receive a cash-in-lieu benefit amount up to $2,000 per year. Classified Employees, Full-time Faculty, and Police Officers who are currently participating in the Cash-in-Lieu Program will need to renew their declination during open enrollment.

To enroll/renew in the Cash-in-Lieu Program, employees will need to complete the SMC Open Enrollment form and provide proof of continuing health coverage (i.e. copy of medical plan card). For more information, see the contract provisions below:

Voluntary Benefits

(Ameriflex/ Colonial Life/ Pacific Educators)

Open Enrollment for Voluntary Benefits will be held between the period of September 29 - October 10, 2025.

Section 125-Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs)

Ameriflex administrators Section 125 - Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs). FSAs allow employees to set aside pre-tax dollars for out-of-pocket medical expenses and/or dependent care cost into a Health Care FSA and/or Dependent Day Care FSA. Below are the annual plan maximums for 2026.

2026 FSA Plan Maximum

  • Health Care FSA$3,300 Annually
  • Dependent Day Care FSA$5,000 Annually
  • Commuter Reimbursement Account$325 Monthly

Important Information:

  • Employees currently enrolled in an FSA account(s) for 2025 and will like to continue their election into 2026, you must complete a FSA Enrollment form to re-enroll for the 2026 plan year. Current elections will not rollover into the 2026 plan year.
  • For the 2026 plan year, there will be an additional employee administrative fee of $4.20 (tenthly) for FSA account(s). Part-time Faculty the fee is prorated at $5.25/eighthly.
  • Employees who are enrolled in a 2025 FSA account(s) must submit all expenses to AmeriFlex by no later than March 31, 2026, for reimbursement. Unused funds up to $660 for the medical FSA account will carry over into the 2026 plan year.

Plan Resources

How to Enroll in FSA Accounts:

THE ENROLLMENT PROCESS FOR THE 2026 PLAN YEAR. To enroll in an FSA account for 2026, employees will NOW complete an Ameriflex Enrollment form below.  Return the enrollment form to the Office of Human Resources as a scanned attachment via EMAIL to BOTH Alysha DeLuna (deluna_alysha@smc.edu) and Lugina Rogers (rogers_lugina@smc.edu) scanned attachment must be sent from your SMC email.  IMPORTANT: Please complete ALL highlighted sections of the enrollment form.

Other Voluntary Benefits Options:

You have the opportunity to review and apply for other voluntary benefits through Colonial Life and Pacific Educators. The following voluntary benefits are offered for purchase during the enrollment:

  • Disability Insurance
  • Term Life Insurance
  • Universal Life Insurance
  • Whole Life Insurance
  • Accident Insurance
  • Cancer Insurance
Plan Resources

How to Enroll in Other Voluntary Benefits

To enroll or make changes to your supplemental policies with Pacific Educators or Colonial Life for the 2026 plan year, you will be able to meet with representatives separately to discuss plan options and rates.

Eligible Dependents

  • Spouse
  • Registered Domestic Partner
  • Children up to age 26 (natural, adopted, domestic partner's, or step)
  • Children, up to age 26, if the employee has assumed a parent-child relationship and is considered the primary care parent
  • Certified disabled dependent children age 26 and older

All Dependents enrolled in District-sponsored insurance are subject to verification of eligibility.

How to Enroll or Make Changes to Your Benefits

  1. Complete the SMC Open Enrollment Form; and
  2. Complete Health Plan Enrollment Form(s)
  3. If you are adding dependent(s), you must provide proof of dependent eligibility (i.e. birth certificate, marriage license, certification of domestic partnership, etc.)
  4. Return the enrollment forms and supporting documentation (if applicable) to the Office of Human Resources as a scanned attachment via EMAIL to BOTH Alsyha DeLuna (deluna_alysha@smc.edu) and Lugina Rogers (rogers_lugina@smc.edu) scanned attachment must be sent from your SMC email.

Forms

Deadline: Friday, October 10, 2025, by 5 p.m.

Contact

For additional information or if you have questions, please contact the Office of Human Resources:

Alysha DeLuna, Employee Benefits Coordinator - 310-434-4523 / deluna_alysha@smc.edu
Lugina Rogers, HR Analyst-Leaves & Benefits - 310-434-4060 / rogers_lugina@smc.edu