Pensions And Benefits Sector

Karen MacGregor November 24th 2008

Event 1-3 Working of Government, 15:00-16:00

BENEFIT PLAN BENEFIT PLAN COVERAGE FOR COVERAGE FOR EMPLOYEES ON EMPLOYEES ON GOVERNMENT TRAVELGOVERNMENT TRAVEL

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The Pensions and Benefits Sector, Treasury Board Secretariat, manages the following programs:– Public Service Health Care Plan– Public Service Dental Care Plan– Public Service Management Insurance Plan/Long

Term Disability/Disability Insurance– Public Service Income Benefit Plan for Survivors of

Employees Slain on Duty – High Risk Travel Compensation Program– Public Service Pension Plan (Public Service

Superannuation Act).

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Public Service Health Care Plan (PSHCP)

• Employees on "official travel status" for government business are covered under the PSHCP Out-of-Province Benefit during the entire period on "official travel status”. This benefit includes the Emergency Benefit While Travelling and the Emergency Travel Assistance Services.

• Where employees are travelling out of province for reasons other than government business, for example, on vacation, coverage under the PSHCP Out-of-Province Benefit ceases 40 days from the date of departure.

• In some cases, Employees on “official travel status” immediately proceed on annual leave without returning to their province/territory of residence. Out-of-Province coverage will, of course, remain in effect while the Employee is on “official travel status”. However, once the Employee proceeds on vacation leave, the 40 day limit on the Out-of-Province benefit will apply, based on the original departure date.

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PSHCP cont’d

Emergency Benefit While Travelling• Pays up to $500,000 (Canadian) in eligible medical

expenses incurred as a result of an emergency while travelling on vacation or on business.

• Eligible expenses mean reasonable and customary charges in excess of the amount payable by a provincial/territorial health plan if required for emergency injury or disease treatment.

• Eligible expenses include, for example, ward accommodation in a general hospital, services of a doctor, one way airfare (economy) for a patient’s return, with airfare for a professional attendant if necessary, medical evacuation, family assistance benefits up to $2500 for any one travel emergency, and return of the deceased in the event of death of a family member.

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PSHCP cont’d

• Emergency Travel Assistance Services

The PSHCP provides a toll-free number which gives participants 24-hour access to a world-wide assistance network, Mondial Assistance. The network will provide transportation arrangements to the nearest hospital that provides the appropriate care or back to Canada; medical referrals, consultation and monitoring; legal referrals; a telephone interpretation service, advance payment of hospital and medical expenses on behalf of the participant or a covered dependant etc.

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Emergency Travel cont’d

If emergency assistance is needed, a 24-hour help line is available.

• Multilingual coordinators can access a worldwide network of professionals who offer help with medical, legal, or other travel-related emergencies.

• Call the 24-hour toll-free number for travel related emergencies:

Canada and USA 1-800-667-2883 (toll-free)All Other Countries 519-742-1342 (call collect)or Fax 519-742-2581

• For general PSHCP Claims Enquiries(613) 247-5100 (local calls)1-888-757-7427 (toll-free)

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Public Service Dental Care Plan (DCP)

• The DCP provides coverage for specific services and supplies that are not covered under a provincial health or dental care plan.

• For Members normally resident in Canada, eligible expenses incurred inside Canada are reimbursed based on the previous year fee guide for the province/territory where the expenses were incurred.

• For Members normally resident in Canada, the amounts recognized for dental expenses incurred outside Canada are those that would have applied if the charges had been incurred in your province/territory of residence. Note that benefits are paid in Canadian funds.

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Public Service Management Insurance Plan (PSMIP)/LTD

• Provides employees excluded from collective bargaining with group insurance: Basic and Supplementary Life, Accidental Death and Dismemberment (AD&D), Dependants' insurance and Long-Term Disability (LTD) insurance.

• LTD is compulsory.• Main Plan component is optional and employee

paid.• Executive Plan component is automatic and

government-paid insurance.

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PSMIP cont’d

• Basic and Supplementary life insurance will be paid if you die from any cause while insured.

• AD&D benefits are not payable if the loss was caused by disease, bacterial infection, suicide, self-inflicted injury, or participating in any riot or civil strife.

• AD&D and LTD benefits are not payable if the loss results from war or any act of war, UNLESS the incident occurs while you are outside Canada at the direction of the employer: on posting, in travel status etc.

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Disability Insurance (DI)

• Covers persons for whom Treasury Board is the employer, and who are represented in the collective bargaining process.

• Provides a monthly income benefit for employees who are unable to work for a lengthy period of time because of a totally disabling illness or injury.

• Maximum benefit is 70% of annual salary at date of disability MINUS offsets such as PSSA, CPP, etc.

• Benefits are not payable if the disability results from an act of declared or undeclared war. This restriction, however, does not apply to persons who become disabled as a result of such an act to which they have been exposed by the performance of duties outside Canada at the direction of the employer.

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Public Service Income Benefit Plan for Survivors of Employees Slain on Duty (Slain on Duty)

• The Slain on Duty program provides a monthly income to the spouse and children of employees whose death was caused by an act of violence unlawfully committed by another person or persons, occurring in the course of or arising out of the performance by the employees of their duties.

• This program supplements the income eligible survivors receive from various government sources (PSSA,CPP, GECA,SRBA). It guarantees an income level equal to the net pay (the salary and allowances an employee would have earned had s/he not died) or the net pension an employee would have received if alive.

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High Risk Travel Compensation Program (HRTCP)

• Provides survivors of Public Service employees on official travel status with compensation for private life insurance benefits not paid because death occurred as a result of war or other hostile activities.

• Compensation paid only if Government Employees Compensation Act (GECA) benefits are payable in respect of a death that occurred as a result of an incident arising out of and in the course of employment.

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HRTCP cont’d

• Maximum payout of $400,000. • The amount of compensation that will be

paid under this program is the lesser of:– The amount of the life insurance payment

excluded and – $400,000 minus the life insurance benefits

actually payable*.

• *The amount of any life insurance payable will reduce the payout under the HRTCP.

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HRTCP cont’d

• Includes individual and group life insurance.

• It does not include Accidental Death or Double Indemnity benefits under private or group insurance policies.

• A high-risk zone for the HRTCP is any area on the DFAIT site “Travel Reports and Warnings” which has a formal Travel Warning to: “Avoid non-essential travel” and “Avoid all travel”.

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Supplementary Death Benefit (SDB)

• Authority is Part II of the Public Service Superannuation Act (PSSA)

• Benefit is equal to double the employee's annual salary, rounded to the next multiple of $1,000.

• No war risk/terrorism exclusion clause.

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Example Case• Mr. Jones travels to Afghanistan at the request of the Government.

His annual salary is $80,000. He is excluded (non-EX) and has the following insurance:

• PSMIP: Basic and Supplementary Life, plus maximum Accidental Death & Dismemberment (AD&D).  If Mr. Jones dies in the performance of his duties, all life insurance would be paid. Since he is outside Canada at the direction of the employer, the AD&D exclusion would not apply. – Payments: Basic Life and Supplementary Life = $80,000 x 2

=$160,000; PLUS AD&D = $250,000 maximum (or less depending on the coverage requested).

• If Mr. Jones is injured and considered disabled, LTD benefits would be paid based on his salary at the time he became disabled. – Annual LTD Benefit = 70% x $80,000 = $56,000 MINUS any monthly

disability payments under CPP, PSSA, etc.

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Example cont’d

Mr. Jones is a PSSA contributor, SDB benefits are therefore paid regardless of location and cause of death. SDB Payment = $80,000 x 2 =$160,000

A survivor pension may also be payable depending on his personal circumstances. PSSA survivor pension based on employee’s

service and average salary at date of death.

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Example cont’d

If Mr. Jones is killed, Slain on Duty benefits may be paid depending on the circumstances. His eligible surviving spouse or common-law partner would receive a monthly Slain on Duty benefit calculated as follows: Monthly benefit = Net pay – PSSA+C/QPP pension income Net pay = Salary – PSSA+C/QPP+EI+INCOME TAX deductions

($80,000 – $20,000 = $60,000) Minus PSSA+C /QPP pension income = $40,000 Slain on Duty benefit = $20,000÷12 = $1,666.67/ month.

Once specified age and service pension thresholds are reached, the program will then top up the difference between the actual and deemed PSSA pension benefit he would have otherwise accumulated.