Currently benefit-eligible positions need to wait until the first of the month after 30 days of employment to be eligible for health-related benefits. Depending on the start date of new employees there can be a nearly two month waiting period for insurance coverage to begin, which can create significant logistical and financial challenges for employees and their families. In order to alleviate some of these potential challenges, staff is proposing to modify the current waiting period to instead be the first of the month after the date of hire. This will likely result in a shorter waiting period in most instances, since many employers allow for coverage to continue through the month that an employee terminates their employment. 

If approved, this change would be implemented as part of the open enrollment process and take effect January 1, 2022. Under current practice any new employees with a December start date would not be benefit-eligible until February 1, 2022, but this modification would supersede that practice as the change would be effective on January 1, 2022.