Frequently Asked Questions

Open/Switch Enrollment is the period of time each Fall during which eligible employees may elect, for the employee and eligible dependents, to:

• Enroll or dis-enroll in one of the medical, dental, and/or vision plans offered by APS. A two-year lock-in rule applies to dental and vision coverage.
• Enroll or re-enroll in one or both of the Flexible Spending Account plans; Healthcare Flexible Spending and Dependent Care Flexible Spending.
• Add or drop eligible dependents on the medical, dental, or vision coverage. A two-year lock-in rule applies to dental and vision coverage.
• Change medical and/or dental plan options. A two-year lock-in rule applies to dental coverage.
• If you are currently enrolled for Additional Life Insurance and wish to enroll your child or children for Dependent Life Insurance, that must be done during Open/Switch Enrollment.
• Please note that no other life insurance or long-term disability insurance enrollments will be accepted during Open/Switch Enrollment. If you are not currently enrolled in Additional Life Insurance or Long-Term Disability Insurance, you may apply for these benefits (subject to Evidence of Insurability), at any time during the year except between September 20 through October 31. 
• If you currently have Additional Life Insurance and want to apply for more coverage or apply for spouse life insurance, you may do so at any time during the year (subject to Evidence of Insurability) except between September 20 through October 31.

Enrollment will be online using the Winocular Workspace system, which is the same system you use to renew your contract each year.  Benefit-eligible employees will receive emails starting October 1 from hr@aps.edu with information and links to Winocular.

The Benefits Department will not accept paper enrollment or change forms. In-person assistance by APS Benefits Specialists will be available to answer questions and help employees through the online enrollment process at the Employee Wellness Fair.

If you will be adding an eligible dependent to your medical plan, dental plan, vision plan, or adding child life to your existing Additional Life Insurance during Open/Switch Enrollment, you will need to submit supporting documentation (marriage certificate to add a spouse, birth certificate(s) to add a child or children, completed Domestic Partner Affidavit and required documents to add a qualified domestic partner).

If you need assistance enrolling or making a change to your benefits, the Benefits Department will be hosting the Employee Wellness Fair on Tuesday, Oct. 8 and Wednesday, Oct. 9 from 2:30 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. Laptop stations and enrollment assistance from our Benefits Specialists will be available. To allow for plenty of parking this event will be held at the Berna Facio Professional Development Center (southwest corner of Louisiana and Comanche NE).

If you will be adding an eligible dependent to your medical plan, dental plan, vision plan, or adding child life to your existing Additional Life Insurance during Open/Switch Enrollment, bring supporting documentation with you for enrollment assistance (marriage certificate to add a spouse, birth certificate(s) to add a child or children, completed Domestic Partner Affidavit and required documents to add a qualified domestic partner).

Review your 2024 Benefits Statement, which will be sent to your APS email on October 1-3. Please keep in mind not everyone will receive the email on the same day. Emails are sent in batches because of the size of our employee base.  If you have not received the "Welcome to Open Enrollment" email by October 3, please email us at employee.benefits@aps.edu.

Yes. Effective January 1, 2025, Cigna Healthcare will no longer be offered as a medical plan option. Employees under the Cigna plan will need to engage in open/switch enrollment and select either Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Mexico or Presbyterian Health Plan.

Medical plan premiums increased 13.5% for the 2025 calendar year. The dental and vision premiums remain unchanged.  Also effective January 1, 2025, Albuquerque Public Schools will offer one type of plan - an EPO plan that will include out-of-state, in-network access. APS employees have the option to choose between Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Mexico (BCBS) EPO or Presbyterian Health Plan (PHP) EPO for medical insurance. Both will offer in-state as well as out-of-state, in-network options. The Presbyterian Health Plan will utilize the Aetna network of providers for out-of-state dependents ages 17-26 only. There is no out-of-network coverage included with either plan.  

The Express Scripts prescription drug pharmacy benefit has changes to preferred brand, non-preferred brand, specialty drug co-pays and out-of-pocket maximums have increased. Excluding specialty medications, generic drug copays remain unchanged.

Copay changes for Preferred Brand Formulary and Non-Preferred Brand for 2025

Pharmacy out-of-pocket maximums for 2025

• View the 2025 Medical Plan Comparison Chart here.
• View the 2025 payroll deductions/premium rates for medical plan benefits here. 
• View the 2025 Food Service/C-schedule payroll deduction/premium rates here.

Yes, if you do not actively enroll for benefits (or have not done so in the past), then you will not be covered. If you have waived coverage in the past, that election will continue for 2025. 

Or, if you choose to drop your current coverage starting January 1, 2025, you must complete the Open/Switch Enrollment process to specify AND submit any changes to Employee Benefits, including to 'waive coverage', on the Enrollment Change Form.

Please carefully consider your options before you submit your enrollment in Winocular Workspace. Once the Open/Switch Enrollment period ends, you will not be able to make a change to your benefits until open enrollment in 2025 for the year 2026, unless you qualify for Special Enrollment or have a qualifying mid-year change event.

If you submit your open enrollment form and change your mind before October 16, 2024, email your Benefits Specialist. 

There are premium increases to the 2025 medical plan options. There are also changes to the pharmacy benefit plan effective January 1, 2025. We highly recommend that all benefit-eligible employees attend the APS Employee Wellness Fair to learn more about their benefits for 2025. If you do not wish to change your medical or other plan options or participate in the Flexible Spending Accounts, you do not need to enroll again.

You will be automatically re-enrolled with your current insurance plan for 2025 except for flexible spending. If you want to participate in the health care or dependent care Flexible Spending Account plans for the calendar year 2025, you must enroll or re-enroll during Open/Switch Enrollment. 

No. If you have been enrolled for coverage with Presbyterian Health Plan or BCBS and do not make a new election during the Open/Switch Enrollment period, you will be automatically reenrolled and retain the same medical coverage for you and your enrolled eligible dependents during 2025.

Since there are changes to the medical plan premium contributions and prescription drug copays for 2025, and the BCBS PPO plan is changing to an EPO, with no out-of-network coverage, it will be assumed you are aware of these changes for the new plan year. The medical plan premium increase and 2025 prescription drug copays will apply regardless of whether you make a change to your medical plan. The BCBS network change will also still apply to those currently enrolled with BCBS who continue with BCBS for 2025. 

Please note: Effective January 1, 2025, Cigna Healthcare will no longer be offered as a medical plan option. Employees covered under the Cigna Health plan will need to engage in open/switch enrollment and elect either Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Mexico or Presbyterian Health Plan. 

Employees will have two medical healthcare insurance options to choose from for 2025. Each of the medical plans includes prescription drug coverage through Express Scripts. 

Both medical insurance options will offer an EPO plan that will include out-of-state, in-network access. APS employees have the option to choose between Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Mexico (BCBS) and Presbyterian Health Plan (PHP). Both will offer in-state as well as out-of-state, in-network options. There are no out-of-network options included with either plan. 

What is different & what is staying the same?  

Presbyterian Health Plan

• For employees and dependents who live in New Mexico, the PHP EPO plan will continue to provide in-network access to contracted physicians, hospitals, and medical facilities. The only change is the addition of the Aetna network for out-of-state dependents ages 17-26. 
• The Presbyterian Health Plan will utilize the Aetna network of providers for dependents living out-of-state who are ages 17-26 only. 
  
• The Aetna network is not open to employees and their dependents living in New Mexico.
• Urgent Care and Emergency/ER care are covered nationwide; a copay is required for these services.
  

Blue Cross Blue Shield

• The BCBS EPO plan has the same network of physicians, hospitals, and medical facilities as the current PPO plan. However, the EPO plan does not offer out-of-network access. 
• The BCBS EPO plan offers out-of-state, in-network access - only.
• The BCBS EPO offers the same out-of-state in-network providers as your current BCBS PPO plan. 
• Urgent Care and Emergency/ER care are covered nationwide; a copay is required for these services.

Again, there are no out-of-network options included with the BCBS EPO or PHP EPO healthcare plans. 

More specific information, including a chart that shows a comparison of benefits between the plans, is available on the 2025 Medical Plan Cost Comparison Grid. 

Prescription drug coverage is included with each of the medical plan options. There are copay and out-of-pocket maximum changes to the prescription drug plan for 2025. Please refer to the above section, "Are there changes to the benefits for 2025" or the 2025 medical plan comparison page.

Remember that our prescription drug plan is a coinsurance plan; if the cost of the drug you or a family member is taking increases (or moves from preferred formulary to non-preferred formulary) your cost may increase. Refer to the Express Scripts Summary of Benefits for more information on the APS Human Resources Benefits page or go to express-scripts.com/apsnm for more information.

For employees and their family members who are taking specialty medications that are part of the SaveOnSP program, APS is continuing this program. SaveOnSP is a copay assistance program, which will reduce copays for a select group of specialty drugs for members who are enrolled in the SaveOnSP program. 

The medical plan best for you and your family is a very personal decision. Your choice may be based on how much health care you and your family members expect to need, family circumstances and finances, whether you have a current doctor or specialist you would like to continue to see or have a preferred hospital, and other factors. To assist our employees in making this decision, we strongly suggest employees attend the Wellness Fair.  There will be personal access for one-on-one conversations with representatives from Blue Cross Blue Shield, Presbyterian Health Plan, Delta Dental, and Davis Vision. Express Scripts (pharmacy benefit) and ASI-Flex, your flexible spending account vendor, as well as The Standard Life Insurance and Hartford Long-term Disability Insurance, will be at the wellness fair to answer questions.

If you wish to participate in the Health Care Flexible Spending Account (HCFSA) or Dependent Care Flexible Spending Account (DCFSA) in 2025 you must enroll during open enrollment.  Your current FSA election will not roll over to 2025. (Even if you just enrolled in the FSA as a new employee.)

The Employer Code for FSA Online Enrollment is “APS”

You may apply for Additional Life Insurance and Long-Term Disability Insurance anytime during the year, except during Open/Switch Enrollment.

APS does not allow employees to submit applications for Additional Life Insurance and Long-Term Disability Insurance between September 20 - October 31. The only exception is UNLESS you are currently enrolled for Additional Life Insurance and wish to enroll your child or children for Dependent Life Insurance, which CAN ONLY be done during Open/Switch Enrollment. 

If you are not currently enrolled in Additional Life Insurance or Long-Term Disability Insurance, you may apply for these benefits (subject to Evidence of Insurability), at any time during the year other than between September 20 through October 31.

If you currently have Additional Life Insurance and want to apply for more coverage or apply for spouse life insurance, you may do so at any time during the year (subject to Evidence of Insurability) other than between September 20 through October 31.

Benefits you elect during Open/Switch Enrollment in October will begin January 1, 2025.