HealthCare
Health insurance is available to all regular and restricted full-time salaried faculty and staff (with a portion of the premium paid by the state). Part-time (20-31 hours) staff employees are eligible to participate in the health insurance plans with no state contribution toward the premium. The health plan options available are COVA Care Basic (buy-up options available), COVA Connect (available in the Tidewater area of Virginia), COVA High Deductible Health Plan (state wide plans administered by Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield), and Kaiser Permanente’ (available to employees in Northern Virginia).
- Eligibility, Enrollment, and Changes
- For eligibility rules, click here
- Documentation is required to add a dependent to your plan. Click here for a list of required documents:
- New employees have 31 days from their hire date to enroll in a health insurance plan. The effective date of coverage will be the first of the month after the request to enroll is received. This link will provide additional information regarding enrollment and making changes to your plan.
- Certain mid-year events may allow you to make changes outside of our annual open enrollment. For more information regarding qualifying events, click here.
- ENROLLMENT FORM
- Pre-existing Conditions – Pre-existing conditions are covered under your health plan. You do not have to satisfy a waiting period before services for pre-existing conditions are covered.
- Coordination of Benefits – Coordination of benefits (COB) rules apply when you or members of your family have additional health care coverage. You will receive and be required to complete an annual COB questionnaire. Claims payment will be withheld until the completed questionnaire is received.
- Health Plans Offered - Click on the plan name for detailed information regarding each plan.
- COVA Care Basic is available everywhere in the state except in the Tidewater area (see CovaConnect). The plan administered by Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield. The COVA Care Basic plan offers buy-up options to enhance the coverage provided under the basic plan. Cova Care is also available to Virginia Tech employees who live outside of the state of Virginia & outside the United States.
- COVA High Deductible Health Plan is another statewide health insurance plan administered by Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield.
- Kaiser Permanente’ is available to eligible employees living and/or working in the Northern Virginia area only.
- COVA Connect is available in the Tidewater area. The plan is administered by Optimahealth.
- Employee Direct – Employees may use EmployeeDirect to review and make certain changes to their health insurance and/or flexible reimbursement plans. The state-assigned BES (Benefits Eligibility System) identification number, located on the health insurance identification card or by calling the HR Service Center at 231-9331, is required in order to use EmployeeDirect .
Please note: The BES identification number is the number found on your health insurance card; it is NOT the Virginia Tech assigned identification number.
- Employee Assistance Program (EAP) – Employees and family members covered by the state health insurance plans are eligible to participate in the Employee Assistance Program which provides up to four free counseling sessions for a variety of topics. The EAP is administered by ValueOptions. For details, go to: