Watch for 2026 Summary of Benefits and Coverage Documents
Starting the week of September 15, summary of benefits and coverage (SBC) documents for 2026 group benefits plans will be released to cooperatives through the Group Plan Documents page on the Employee Benefits website.
Your co-op will receive a Message Center notification when your SBCs are available. Download and distribute them to plan participants either with annual enrollment materials (if provided) or at least 30 days before the first day of the new plan year (if renewal is automatic, with no opportunity to elect different benefits).
The SBC helps participants compare and select group benefit plan coverage. It describes plan exclusions, cost-sharing and certain covered services. You’ll receive an SBC for these plans, if your co-op offers them:
- The NRECA Medical Plan renewed by your co-op for January 2026.
- Stand-alone well-being programs. Update the highlighted areas of the FutureMe, Powered by NRECA™ SBC before distributing it.
- NRECA Dental and Vision Plans if your co-op pays 100% of the premium; SBCs are not required for VSP vision plans.
Co-ops that offer health flexible spending accounts (FSAs) and health reimbursement arrangements (HRAs) must create SBCs for these plans. You may use the model notices available on the pages linked above. Download the sample(s) and update the highlighted sections to reflect your plan’s provisions. The models are only samples, so please review them with your legal counsel before use.
You do not need to distribute a health flexible spending account SBC if your co-op:
- does not contribute to the account,
- provides a dollar-for-dollar match, or
- contributes less than $500.
Give SBCs to everyone who is eligible for the plans that your co-op will offer during 2026. Eligible individuals include:
- employees, retirees, directors, and your retained attorney
- surviving dependents
- COBRA plan participants
- new enrollees at the time of first enrollment, and
- individuals with HIPAA special enrollments
You must also give the SBC to any participant who asks for a copy within seven days after their request.
For complete information about your SBCs, including which plans require them, when to distribute them, and how to use an electronic distribution method, review the Summary of Benefits and Coverage (SBC) page on the Employee Benefits website.
Finally, complete the online acknowledgement form. To access the acknowledgement form, follow the link in the original SBC Message Center notification or go directly to the Group Plan Documents page. You can acknowledge distributing SBCs for multiple plans in one step. If you have questions about the content of your SBCs, contact the benefits compliance team at 866.673.2299, option 7, or group.compliance@nreca.coop.