Distribute 2025 Group Benefits Program SPDs and SMMs by March 1

2025 summary plan description (SPD) and summary of material modification (SMM) documents for the NRECA Group Benefits Program must be distributed to current plan participants and beneficiaries no later than March 1, 2025. Also give copies to employees you hire during 2025 (within 90 days of their hire date) and to directors elected or appointed during 2025. COBRA plan participants, retirees, surviving dependents and any children under a qualified medical child support order must receive their own copy if they do not reside with your employee.

Before distribution, ensure that your SPDs correctly reflect the elections you made during annual renewal (e.g., eligibility, premium cost-sharing, deductibles, and coinsurance). If they do not match, contact the benefits compliance team. The 2025 SPD updates document lists the areas within the SPD that changed since 2024. Also, ensure the plan provisions in your SPDs properly reflect your co-op’s human resources policies and procedures.

The BA Guide has a full distribution checklist, guidelines for who must receive SPDs and SMMs, and electronic distribution guidelines. Please review the electronic distribution guidelines before providing documents electronically. See the article in this issue on the new participant Summary Plan Description page on the Employee Benefits website for an alternative electronic distribution option for eligible participants.

Once you distribute the documents, acknowledge all outstanding distributions using the “Documents Requiring Acknowledgement” section of the Group Plan Documents page.

If you have questions about downloading or accessing your SPDs, contact the Member Contact Center at 866.673.2299 or contactcenter@nreca.coop. For all other SPD questions, call the benefits compliance team at 866.673.2299, option 7, or email us at group.compliance@nreca.coop.