[Ucrea] Via Benefits – Actions Taken to Shorten Wait Times

[Cristina L Otegui]

[cid:image002.png at 01D7E68C.AA1546D0]

December 1, 2021
To:
UCR Emeriti & Retirees

From:
UCR Benefits Office on Behalf of UC Office of the President (UCOP)

Re:
Via Benefits – Actions Taken to Shorten Wait Times

Via Benefits, for Medicare-eligible retirees permanently living outside of California, informed the UC that they have been working diligently to shorten the wait times on phone calls. As of November 8, 2021, in response to the high call volume, Via Benefits added more licensed Benefit Advisors and offered overtime to their staff. They have observed an improved wait time since the week of November 15, 2021, and expect this trend to continue through the end of the Annual Medicare Enrollment period on Tuesday, December 7, 2021.

Updates when contacting Via Benefits

·       Website: Due to the Via Benefits’ appointment schedule for Annual Medicare Enrollment being full, members are advised not to attempt to book Annual Medicare Enrollment appointments online. The Via Benefits website has a message alerting members of this update.

·       By phone: Members who call the Via Benefits phone number at 1-855-359-7381 will hear a recorded message by the National Director of Via Benefits, Brian Tanner, indicating the possibility of longer than normal wait times of up to forty minutes, due to the impact of the national labor shortage. Callers are encouraged to visit the Via Benefits website for enrollment and funding-related purposes at app.viabenefits.com.

Members without appointments and who want to make an Annual Medicare Enrollment change are recommended to:

·       Log into their accounts at https://my.viabenefits.com/uc and complete an online self-guided enrollment change, or

·       Call Via Benefits at 1-855-359-7381, Monday through Friday, 5:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. (Pacific Time)

o   Use the callback feature to ensure a callback when the member is next in line

o   Request an enrollment specialist to guide the member with online enrollments, or

o   Request a licensed Benefit Advisor to assist with enrollment over the phone (wait time is longer)

·       Members who are currently enrolled in Medicare Advantage plans and want to make enrollment changes must complete this process by December 7, 2021. No action is needed for members who are satisfied with their plans.

·       Members who are currently enrolled in Medicare (Medigap) Supplemental plans may make enrollment changes to another Medicare (Medigap) Supplemental plan at any time during the year.
Members with appointments will receive email reminders for their upcoming call-in appointment. Please note that the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services mandate that enrollment must be initiated by the member. Via Benefits’ system will appropriately put members with appointments to the front of the line in the call queue for a licensed Benefit Advisor to assist with their enrollments.

Questions on the Annual Medicare Enrollment period may be addressed to the Via Benefits phone line at 1-855-359-7381.





-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <https://lists.ucr.edu/pipermail/ucrea/attachments/20211201/c920a009/attachment-0001.html>
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: image002.png
Type: image/png
Size: 10252 bytes
Desc: image002.png
URL: <https://lists.ucr.edu/pipermail/ucrea/attachments/20211201/c920a009/attachment-0001.png>