BUFFALO

To establish your health insurance benefits, you must complete and submit the Health Insurance Enrollment forms with supporting documents (if applicable) to the Benefits Office within 30 days of your hire date.

1. Health Insurance Enrollment Form 

• You must enroll within 30 days of your start date.

• If you do not enroll within this window, you must wait until Open Enrollment (November) or experience a Qualifying Life Event (QLE) to enroll.

• Important: Plan changes are only allowed during Open Enrollment.

OR

Waiver Form - (ONLY if declining coverage due to coverage elsewhere OR or a spouse of a Board of Education employee who is enrolled in health insurance)

• Required form if you choose not to enroll in District health insurance.

• Waiver payments are issued once per year in January (final January paycheck).

• Forms are not retroactive.

2. Group Life Insurance Enrollment Form

• Required form

• No cost to you (District-paid benefit)

3. Employee Notification Acknowledgement

• Required form

Failure to submit all required forms—completed in full and with supporting documentation—will result in processing delays.

Additional Benefits available to you

The additional benefits below are available to you as a BPS staff member:

• Employee Assistance Program (EAP)

• Employee Wellness

Optional Benefits

You may also choose to enroll in the following:

• Flexible Spending Accounts (FSA): Health and/or Dependent Care

• Pre-Tax Retirement Savings: 403(b) and/or 457(b)

  • Please Note: per Contractual Bargaining Agreement, you MUST deposit your retirement termination pay into a 403b account at time of retirement\

Additional details on these benefits are provided below.

Health Insurance Eligibility

You may choose from four Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield of WNY plans and enroll in either single or family coverage. Review eligibility guidelines to confirm which dependents qualify for family coverage.

Health Insurance Effective Date

• Coverage begins on your hire date if enrollment forms are submitted within 30 days.

• If you do not enroll within 30 days of hire, you must wait until Open Enrollment (November) or experience a Qualifying Life Event (QLE) to enroll.

IMPORTANT NOTICE for Temporary teachers

A Temporary Teacher must be employed for a minimum of 100 days and be on the payroll at the end of the school year, to qualify for summer benefits. 

If you are a Temporary Teacher and are hired after January 28, 2026:

• Coverage will end June 30th

• Please contact the Benefit department via email to discuss eligibility for summer health insurance

Probationary teachers do qualify for summer benefits. 

Information to help you compare and choose the best plan for your family

Traditional Plan (Plan A)

This plan offers flexibility—there is no network requirement, so you can see any provider you choose.

Best for:

• Employees or dependents who travel frequently, especially internationally

• Individuals with specialized or unique medical needs requiring specific providers, services, or equipment

• Those who want the freedom to continue seeing a preferred provider regardless of network

Key Cost Details:

• Deductible: $150 (single) / $300 (family), in addition to bi-weekly payroll contributions

• Once the deductible is met, most services require 20% coinsurance

  • Plan pays 80%; you pay 20%

• Out-of-pocket maximum: $500 (single) / $1,000 (family)

⚠️ Important: Adult immunizations are not covered under Plan A.

Point of Service (POS) Insurance
Enrollees are encouraged to use in-network doctors to receive the highest level of coverage. You may choose any provider in the network, but using out-of-network providers will result in co-insurance and higher out-of-pocket costs.

Plans B, C, and D Overview
These plans may be a good fit for employees or dependents who spend most of their time in the Western New York area and do not require specialized medical care or equipment. They are standard POS plans, with most services covered by a $15 copay, making it easier to estimate and manage annual healthcare expenses.

Key Differences
Plans B, C, and D vary in coverage for:

• Durable Medical Equipment

• Prosthetic devices

• Diabetic supplies

• Skilled nursing facilities

• Out-of-network services (including travel and specialized care)

Important Note

The Benefits Office cannot recommend or select a health plan on your behalf. To support your decision, each plan includes a Summary of Benefits and Coverage (SBC), as required by the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. These standardized documents allow you to compare coverage, costs, and services across plans.

Plan Information & Resources

To review plan summaries, click: BTF Summary of Benefits and Coverage , or contact the Benefits Office by email to request a printed copy.

Additional resources available:

• Health Insurance Comparison Chart

• Detailed Plan Documents:

  • Plan A

  • Plan B

  • Plan C

  • Plan D

Important Enrollment Reminder - Once you select a plan, you cannot make changes until the annual Open Enrollment period in November.

Provider Network - To confirm whether a provider participates in the Highmark of WNY network, visit the WNY Network website

Employee Contributions

• All contributions are deducted pre-tax from your bi-weekly paycheck

• Health Insurance costs are by fiscal year (July 1st - June 30th). Although you do not work in July and August, you are still covered during those months. The cost for July and August is included in the payments you make while working from September through June.

  • This means you receive 12 months of coverage, but you pay for the 12 months through contributions made from September through June. If you resign or retire before the end of the school year, you may owe for health care because of the way the contributions are structured on the 10-month payroll.

18 Bi-Weekly Contributions 7.1.2023 BTF contract until 6.30.2028

To enroll in the Health Insurance, click here -> Health Insurance Enrollment Form 

• You must enroll within 30 days of your start date.

• If you do not enroll within this window, you must wait until Open Enrollment (November) or experience a Qualifying Life Event (QLE) to enroll.

• Important: Plan changes are only allowed during Open Enrollment.

Your application will be processed when your appointment is approved by the Board and all completed paperwork and required documentation is received in the Benefits Office.

Please complete the below Acknowledgement as well

• Payment Responsibility Acknowledgement

For more information and to access enrollment, please click below.

The District offers an Employee Assistance Program (EAP) that provides free and confidential support for employees and their family members facing personal or work-related challenges. We encourage all staff to take advantage of this valuable resource.

For more information about the EAP, please click below.

In June 2017, the Buffalo Board of Education approved the District Wellness Policy.  The District recognizes that in order to achieve student wellness, well-being and academic success employee wellness must also be stressed, emphasizing the importance of creating a District-wide workplace culture that supports employee health and wellness.