Two announcements from WELS Benefit Plans

WELS Shepherd Plan
Administrative costs for the WELS Shepherd Plan, the retirement savings program for WELS called workers and employees, have decreased by 9.8 percent, effective Oct. 1, 2023. The new annualized administrative cost will be 37 basis points (37/100ths of one percent) per year. Administrative costs are charged to the participant’s Shepherd Plan account on a quarterly basis.

This is the fifth cost reduction since Oct. 1, 2017, resulting in a cumulative 47.1 percent decrease during that time period. The continued growth of the Shepherd Plan has made these recent cost reductions possible.

WELS VEBA
The WELS VEBA Commission is offering a limited open enrollment for the WELS VEBA Group Health Care Plan for the 2024 plan year. The limited open enrollment is available to eligible workers at sponsoring organizations with at least one active worker enrolled in medical benefits under the WELS VEBA health plan. Enrollment opened Nov. 1, 2023, and will run through Nov. 30, 2023.

Eligible participants can enroll in WELS VEBA or change current WELS VEBA coverage by going to the WELS Benefits Service Center website at www.wels.bswift.com or by calling 1-800-487-8322 (option 1) during the open enrollment period.

The WELS VEBA Commission has also announced that the 2024 premium rates for WELS VEBA medical benefits will increase by 11 percent. This increase is necessary to ensure that the plan maintains adequate long-term reserves, particularly given inflation-related increases in the cost of health care. WELS VEBA health plan rates for 2024 are available on the Benefit Plans website.

Information regarding the 2024 limited open enrollment and WELS VEBA benefits is available in the 2024 WELS VEBA Benefits Guide.